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ost people associate the word cleaning with words like chores, work, and boooooring. Today we’re going to flip that around, turn it inside out, have a blast, and oh yeah, finish cleaning for Pesach! (Here’s a bonus: If traditional cleaning smells bother your sinuses, these ones sure won’t!)

Your parents have probably been telling you to clean your things. But how? Sure, you could take a cleaning spray and shmatteh, but the sky’s the limit if you feel like thinking outside the box!

BACKPACK — Many backpacks can be emptied and thrown in the washing machine. But be careful, the best way to make sure the straps don’t get caught in the machine is to turn it inside out or put the backpack inside a pillow case. (Not all backpacks can go through the machine, so check the care tag first.)

JEWELRY — Believe it or not, the best way to clean pretty much anything in your jewelry box is with toothpaste! (Except pearls.) Brush a tiny bit of toothpaste on your silver, gold, or gemstones and scrub away. Wipe it clean with a warm, wet cloth. Ta-da! Sparkly AND minty fresh!

SNEAKERS — If you want your tennis shoes to go back to their original white, I’ll give you a leg up: break out the toothpaste yet again. But wait, what if they’re not dirty, but they are… how shall I put this delicately… scented? (If every time you kick off your shoes, your family starts fainting and begging for fresh air, then you know exactly what I mean!) Here’s a simple solution: sprinkle baking powder onto some old newspapers and scrunch them into balls. Stick them inside your shoes overnight. They’re supposed to eat up the moisture and odor. Toe-tally awesome!

KEYBOARD — Do you have slime handy? (If you don’t, you can make your own!) Just shake out the keyboard and plunk some slime on to get anything that’s still sticking to the keyboard. It’s easy to peel off but it won’t leave any residue!

MIRROR — Sure, it’s clean, but it’s got all those streaks. You can barely see yourself. Simple solution: if anyone in your family wears glasses, ask if they still have that little cleaning cloth that came with it. If they do, you’re in luck. Perfect for getting rid of smudges, they’re even thin enough to hit all those hard to reach angles, corners, and edges. Another solution: use the window-wiper from the car!

TCHOTCHKE — If you’re one of those people with shelves dotted with little tchotchkes and knickknacks, you know it can take forever to pick up each one and dust it down. Want a quicker way? Pull out your hair dryer. It’ll blow away the dust in no time!

BEADS — Are you one of those people who makes jewelry out of thousands of those tiny little beads? One careless knock and boom, beads are everywhere. Talk about overwhelming! Here’s how to spend a few seconds picking them up instead of hours: Cut the foot part of a thin stocking off, tie it over a vacuum cleaner, and turn it on. It will suck up all the beads, but they’ll only stay in the stocking part, making it easier for you to put them away.

(Excerpted from Mishpacha Jr., Issue 756)