By now you should realize how much I love a good kitchen hack, especially when it includes items and ingredients I already have around the house. One of my favorites? Forget harsh detergents and solutions when scrubbing grease spots off your cast-iron cookware. Instead, grab a pinch of salt and a paper towel to create a salty solution that works wonders!

Proof that sometimes the most natural ingredients are the best DIY lifesavers.

Want to know some other ways a pinch of salt can make your life easier? Read on, right here at DIY Life:
Find out the various uses of your average table salt: The Many Uses of Table Salt
Spice up your beauty routine with salt: Make Your Own Salt Scrub
Salt for your green thumb: Epsom Salt in Your Garden
And, lastly, salt in the kitchen (of course!): Make Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Your Microwave

Wow, that sounds a lot more harsh than necessary. Did you realize that you can remove the scent of onions and garlic from your fingers by gently sliding the face of a stainless knife across them? Sounds like a joke, but it's true! Gently is the operative word, guys -- unless you'd like to get a bit bloody for Halloween this year.

And yes, it's kitchen hack week here at DIY Life. For more fun and inventive ways to make things easier for you in the kitchen, check out a few of my favorite DIY Life articles below!:

1. Out of cleaning supplies and no time to re-stock? Clean your entire kitchen with one lemon.
2. Have an extra towel rack laying around and collecting dust? Turn your IKEA towel rack into a condiment spice shelf.
3. Learn your freezer know-how: 20 Foods That Freeze Surpisingly Well... and 20 That Don't.

There truly is something for everyone in this world. I would never have thought to combine kitchen storage with geeky computer stuff, but this idea is well worth crossing the two. After thinking it over, it makes perfect sense to store your server in your extra bread bin.

The tutorial for this project is quite clever -- and clear enough for even the most challenged of DIYers. A bread bin is just about the perfect size for a server, and the material is easily cut to fit cords and the like. Once the server is safely tucked in its new home it can live there relatively dust free and out of harm's way.

Pretty much everything on this planet has more than one use. Think of all the things you use on a daily basis, and I'll bet you could use those items for something else. The same goes for office supplies.

Lifehacker has a top 10 list of office supply hacks, pretty much involving binder clips. From closing a chip bag, to holding files together, to keeping them from falling over, binder clips can be used for more than keeping your important paper in one place. They can turn a stack of index cards into a Hipster PDA; they can even catch loose cables.

The list goes on to say that you can remove permanent marker from a dry erase board, with, yes, you guessed it, a dry-erase marker. You can also get of all your computer equipment off of your desk by using a letter tray to organize it. For even more great ideas, be sure to check out the Lifehacker comments.

This isn't the first time we've discussed creative uses for office supplies at DIY Life. In the past, Francesca told us how to build a MacBook stand using binder clips, and Diane created a card wreath using paper clips. There are many other possibilities... comment to tell us your favorite hack!

Don't you just hate it when a hinge on a door or cabinet just won't stay put because the screw hole is stripped out? Sure, you can use a bigger or longer screw, but then it won't match. Frankly, that just looks tacky. But don't lose hope; here's a trick I use.

The first thing to do is remove the offending hardware. Next, dig one of your golf tees out of your golf bag. Apply some epoxy glue or wood glue on the pointy end and sides of the tee. Tap it in with a mallet or hammer as far as it'll go. After the glue is completely dry, use your coping saw to cut off any excess tee and sand as needed. Presto! New wood!

Now you can replace the hardware and it's as good as new - maybe better. The hole is too small for a tee? Use as many toothpicks as will fit in the hole. The ones with flat sides work best. The great thing about this hack is that it really doesn't have to be pretty; the hinge covers up your handiwork.

I love IKEA: I can spend my days looking and drooling at all the wonderful products that I could have shipped to my home. My husband is incredibly thankful that I am not a big spender, because I really could have IKEA packages delivered to my door every day.

If I did go on a shopping spree for IKEA products, one of the items I would buy would be this awesome GRUNDTAL towel rail, primarily made for the bathroom. It is inexpensive and can be easily hacked into something else, namely a spice and condiment stand.

Instructables user Frootloose used the Grundtal towel rail, attached a piece of openwork steel to it, added a few hooks to hang necessary kitchen utensils, and affixed it to his kitchen wall. The towel rail happened to be just the right size, shape, and length for what he needed.

With my tiny kitchen, I am very appreciative of Frootloose's hack. I have one space on my wall that is just begging for this shelf, and it will free up some clutter in my cabinets. What do you think you could use the Grundtal towel rail for?

[via: Curbly]

My laptop is dead. Long live the laptop. (And, no. I did not kill it.) Luckily it's demise was slow, giving me ample time to make complete backups of all my documents, photos and videos. Phew. If your computer died and you were not so lucky, don't freak out yet. Your files can probably be retrieved by manually accessing the hard drive.

This is something a techie guru can handle. However, if you're pretty confident you know your way around a computer, you can attempt a DIY job. JoeTech provides groovy instructions on manual hard drive retrieval, along with tons of juicy color photos to guide you in your endeavor. Detail is the key word here; Joe's instructions are just so beautifully detailed.

Now, the laptop featured in Joe's post is a Sony Vaio, but I guess the guts of laptops are all pretty similar. Also interesting to note that Joe's previous laptop, a Dell, lasted for seven years before it bit the dust. Wow. That's three years longer than my old Dell. (And I thought four years of constant use was pretty good mileage!)

Finally: an important note. Realize that as soon as you open up your laptop for a DIY repair/retrieval operation, your warranty is void. Dead. As in deader than your laptop.

To me, this looks more like a dancer's pole than a bike rack, but regardless of the kind of rack this pole is supporting, it's an impressive hack. Bike storage is an issue for many people with small spaces. This sleek design allows you to stack two bikes on top of each other, taking up very little room.

This innovative solution is just another example of the tremendous flexibility of IKEA parts and products. Here's what you need to put the bike rack together:

• One Stolmen post
• Two brackets
• Two hooks
• Screws
• Aluminum 20X20 pipe
• Rubber foam

IKEA hacker has all the assembly instructions. The whole thing will cost about $40. Pick up these few things from IKEA, spend a bit of time assembling the rack and stop tripping over your bikes for good.

[via: Lifehacker]

Over the holidays I got a Nike+iPod Sport Kit so I could start tracking my treadmill work. Unfortunately, I didn't have a pair of Nike's to support the device, which requires specific shoes which have a little recessed well in the sole of the shoe to hold the pedometer/transmitter. Instead, also over the holidays, I got the shoes I prefer: a pair of New Balance 779's. What to do but DIY, right? I've compiled a list of "hacks" for the Nike+iPod, all of which will somehow attach the transmitter to your shoe. Unfortunately, all of them tend to damage the shoe in some way. Next week I'll show you how to make a simple, effective pocket for your transmitter that will not harm the shoe in any way.

Simple and cheap: The 99-cent DIY shoe mod takes a simple strip of adhesive Velcro (the hook side) and allows you to latch to your shoelaces, while also slipping the unit under your laces. My problem with this? The Velcro will ultimately chew up your laces (I treasure the laces on New Balance, so unlike the slippery junk Nike's come with) and the transmitter, while tiny, can hurt when pressed against the top of your foot in this way.

(more on the next page)

It's a fact of life-- Winter happens. And with it comes freezing weather. But that doesn't mean that your DIY projects stop. And if your current project involves caulking, on some days the freezing weather may render your tubes of caulk unusable as they "ice up", especially if you have to drive to the work site in the wee hours. But Brian Carter came up with a great solution and shared it at www.taunton.com.

Brian decided to use a metal can with no lid and store it under the hood of his truck. He put it close to the engine but not in contact with it. The tubes go in the can for incubation and by the time he gets to the work site, the warmed-up caulk is free-flowing. Left under the hood the cooling engine it stays workable for hours.

I love the sewing tables that my mom had, but they are small. They certainly won't be able to support the memory quilt I plan to make from my oldest daughter's clothing. The quilt would end up dragging on the floor when I sewed the pieces together. Mom's vintage sewing tables are nice, but not big enough for a quilt project.

Marguerita had a work space that was too small for her quilts, so she decided to make her own quilting desk. She used two inexpensive folding tables from Sam's Club, and foam insulation and window insulation she bought from her local hardware store. The vinyl window insulation really helps to slide her quilts around so that she isn't pulling and tugging when she needs to move them.

I love her new quilting desk and it has really given me inspiration to get going on cutting up the clothes needed to make my memory quilt, and I especially love that I can slide pictures of my girls under the vinyl so that I will be inspired to keep going when I don't feel like quiting. It also helps that I don't have to shell out big bucks for a table that I won't be able to put away when I am not working on a sewing project.

Have you ever been rejected at a press conference where they reserve seats for the real news? Obviously they don't want some guy who is going to cut together the interview to best poke fun at them, then put it on his blog to get passed around to far more people than the real news guys will ever reach. So maybe they're being prudent.

Whatever your motivation, if you're looking to pass as a legitimate reporter, this microphone flag (along with a shower, change of clothes and less cursing) will be your ticket in the door. The video shows you how to put together a quality prop that will fit right in against the real ones. Impersonate an existing network (though I sure don't advise it), or make up your own, either way, when you're holding your microphone up with the others you'll blend in seamlessly.

It seems like the video instructions make this all more work than it needs to be, but their final product sure does look like the real thing. Michael Una uses a simpler spin, making the mic flag from a metal box he had on hand. His results look pretty convincing to me, but I wouldn't suggest going as cheap as one commenter suggested and using cardboard and markers. When you get tossed out from backstage at Fashion File, don't blame me!

After our kids are in bed, Jason and I can be found downstairs rocking out to Guitar Hero. While I'm sure we both look like total dorks, and I am admittedly pitiful at any song that is even mildly complicated, we still have a blast. A little spirited competition and some classic rock tunes are just what we need at the end of a long day.

There are lots of instructions out there that will tell you how to customize your guitar, but none that are quite as clear and well documented as these. This instructable walks you through the dis-assembly, painting and reassembly of your Guitar Hero SG controller. You'll be taking out nearly 40 screws, so clear your workspace and get organized before you get started. Once you have it apart, painting can be as simple or as detailed as you want. The metal finish that this instructables author chooses looks great. He suggests using a spray paint, but you'll still need to be careful and take your time. If you want to get really creative, try stenciling on a some flames or even a design of your own.

Cassette tapes have been replaced with much more modern technology. I don't own an iPod, but I do own about 300 cassette tapes, so aside from disguising your iPod with a cassette tape, or digitizing your old cassette tapes, what else do you think could be done with those old tapes that are wasting space?

Turning a cassette tape into a business card holder should eliminate any more issues with loose business cards in your purse or briefcase which can be difficult to find when you need them, or worse yet, crinkled business cards in your pockets. All you have to do is remove the screws from the cassette tape, use pliers to break off the plastic pieces, insert your business cards between the empty pieces of plastic, and wrap the elastic around to secure the tapes together.

I don't know if I would go through all the trouble of tearing up a cassette tape. Why couldn't you just use the cassette tape case for holding your business cards? I would think you could get more business cards in the tape case than you could in the cassette tape itself. Either way, it is still a cool hack, don't you think?

Have you even seen a trick light bulb? You can find them in magic stores or science shops. They are a great prank to play on your friends. When you pass the bulb to a friend it seems like a regular unlit bulb, then when it's passed back to you it lights up on contact. The video shows you how to hack together a magic bulb. Here's what you'll need: