Blog Posts by Good Housekeeping

Tips for a Mildew-Free BathroomThe secret to a mildew-free bathroom, especially in summer, is to rid the room of heat and humidity as quickly as possible. Mold spores thrive in warm, moist conditions, so to cut down on cleaning time, keep your bathroom as cool and dry as possible. Here are my favorite ways to stop mildew in its tracks:

1. Ventilate the room This is probably the most important thing you can do. Before each shower, open the window, open the door (at least a crack) to facilitate airflow, and if you have an exhaust fan, switch it on. In fact, keep the fan running for at least 20 minutes after you get out of the shower to purge as much moisture as possible from the room.

2. Squeegee the tiles In my house the rule is last one out of the shower wipes it down. To make it super easy, I keep Casabella's Clip-On Silicone Squeegee ($10) hanging from the showerhead. It takes me (or my husband) just seconds to go over the tiled walls and tub sending virtually all

5 Tips for Pie-MakingI love all the luscious fruit popping up in the market right now and can't get enough of eating juicy, floral peaches, wine-y cherries, and delicate blueberries straight up, but there are few things as satisfyingly decadent as baking them into a gorgeous, show-stopping pie.

Sure, a pie takes a little more work than, say, a cobbler or crisp, but every once in awhile, that bit of extra effort results in a welcome challenge and a delicious reward.

Related: Tastiest Prepared Pie Crusts

Here are a few tips to make the road to pie paradise a little less bumpy:

Shortening vs. Butter: When looking at a recipe, know that those using only shortening will typically be easier to handle and manage. They are not as sensitive to heat and stretching as all-butter crusts are; however, they lack the deep nutty flavor that butter brings. All-butter crusts have the best flavor, but are tricky. They can start melting on you pretty quickly (especially in the summer heat, just pop it

woman looking in mirror1. START WITH A SERUM

"It has a higher concentration of wrinkle fighters than a lotion or cream," says dermatologist Mona Gohara, M.D., of Yale School of Medicine. "One with vitamin C, an antioxidant, will also help stimulate collagen production." Try Kiehl's Powerful Strength Line Reducing Concentrate ($58, kiehls.com) under sunscreen-fortified moisturizer in the A.M.

2. CAMOUFLAGE LINES

Crow's feet and marionette lines are especially aging, says Dr. Gohara. For the biggest youth boost, target them with a temporary filler like Yes to Blueberries Deep Wrinkle Filler ($16, drugstores) with wild acacia. For best results, dab it on several times a day.

Related Link: How to Look 7 Years Younger

3. USE THE DERM FAVORITE

Retinoids are gold-standard wrinkle zappers. If you develop redness or flaking, mix a pea-size dab of the retinoid with an equal amount of anti-ager--free moisturizer. Or, for especially sensitive skin, apply moisturizer underneath. We like: Roc

GoodreadsEven fans of paper books can admit: Reading apps have plenty of great perks to offer. Apps can put dictionaries, maps, reviews, and libraries into your pocket, and each of these resources makes for sharper reading. Here are some of my favorite apps geared toward the old-fashioned bookworm that can enhance your reading experience.

Related: Easy-To-Use eReaders

1. Book Crawler (Apple iOS, $1.99)
Most books have an ISBN number printed on the back. Book Crawler scans this ISBN number, recognizing the book's title, author, edition, cover art, and so forth. If you want, Book Crawler will then add the book to your digital bookshelf. You can also manually input titles or search for them on GoogleBooks. This is the app's core function: to serve as a personal librarian, organizing and sorting titles for you. After you've scanned or searched for a book, you can pull up its reviews on Goodreads. Like what you see? Click an icon and you can access the iTunes store or check for the

credit card stackIf you're like many of us, you have a deck of (plastic) cards inside your wallet - debit, credit, prepaid, etc. Or perhaps you're flooded with offers in the mail. In either case, the key question is: Which card is really best for your budget and your lifestyle? Here's the inside story.

Debit Cards

IN A NUTSHELL Think of a debit card as an extension of your checkbook - it's linked to your checking account and debits it when you buy something, rather than giving you a line of credit. (The MasterCard or Visa logo you may see just tells you what company processes the transaction.)

BEST DEAL PerkStreet Financial Platinum Debit MasterCard (perkstreet.com). This card has no monthly activity fee and free checking and offers an unlimited 1% back on purchases (2% at certain retailers, such as Amazon; 5% on rotating categories), plus free transfers/direct deposit; it can be used at 42,000 free ATMs.

PROS Debit cards are all about reining in spending, because you're limited to

If you ever find yourself wondering what to do with an old pair of socks or growing collection of spare buttons, we've got some double-duty solutions for you. Here, alternative uses for 25 household items.

Uses for Rubber BandsRubber Bands
Coming in and out with your hands full? Loop a single rubber band around a door's inside and outside knobs, twisting it as you do so that the "X" presses the latch open. Once finished, hang the band on the inner knob for the next time.

Related: Unusual Uses for Everyday Items

Pants Hanger as Jewelry Organizer

A five-rung pants hanger makes a great jewelry organizer. Use the top rungs for bracelets and the bottom ones for necklaces. (Submitted by Raye Jean Wilson)

Snag a spare one to stow jewelry when packing a suitcase. Another great use? For your MP3 player and earbuds.

Use Socks as PaddingSocks
No need to buy pricey, not-so-eco-friendly Bubble Wrap. Socks, T-shirts, and towels make excellent padding when boxing up breakables for a move.

Tips for Teen Driving"Mom, Dad, can I borrow the car?"

Is this where the saying, "if I had a nickel every time I heard that," comes from?

Research backs up your intuition that you should think twice before you hand the keys over to your sad-eyed, pouty-lipped teen who's begging you to let her take your new car for a spin to the mall.

Related: Road Rules for Teen Drivers

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), traffic crashes are the leading cause of death of teenagers in the United States. Statistics show that teens are involved in three times as many fatal crashes as all other drivers.

It's summer, which means curfews are pushed back, parental supervision is less overbearing, and teens are more anxious than ever to have their friends pile in the car and take off. Here are a few important rules to establish with your teen when it comes to driving:

• Buckle up: Seatbelts may not seem "cool," but they save lives. The majority of teens involved

People aren't the only ones who can get depressed. Pets can, too - especially if they've lost a human or animal companion or experienced a change in environment. So how do you know if your four-legged friend is feeling down? Put the following nine signs on your radar and talk to your vet if you notice any of them. Much like with humans, there are numerous options for treating depression in pets, and the sooner you recognize the signs, the sooner your pet can start getting treatment.

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