Tips, Tips and More Tips from August 2012

Short tips to burglar-proof your house. Think like a thief and examine the exterior for trouble spots. Look in back, too, for patio doors or low roofs that lead to an upstairs window. Avoid hiding spots by trimming bushes. Light up the yard with motion-detecting lights, decorative gaslights, or even an extra city street light if allowed. Install an alarm system and use it each time you leave home. Get a dog. Ask your neighbors for help when you are away. They can watch to make sure mail and newspapers do not pile up. Install bolts, extra key locks, even bars on windows, but be sure they can be removed in case of fire. Don’t give copies of your house key to repair people, cleaning help or even family members you have reason to distrust.

If you find an old box or can with contents, read the label. The container may hold a dangerous substance. These are some of the chemicals now kept out of general use because they are unsafe: chlordane (used for termites), DDT (agriculture), kepone (ant and roach poison), lindane (dog dips), ethyl parathion (pesticide), safrole (dog repellent), sodium cyanide (wildlife poison) and strychnine (wildlife control). Most of these poisons were outlawed or restricted in 1972.

Walls of small pictures are in style. Use frames that complement each other. One decorator says not to use gold and silver frames but that gold and wood or black and white will work. We think any frames that are similar in size will work if arranged cleverly. Hang with about 1 1/2 inches between them at the top, bottom and sides to form a large rectangle or other pleasing shape. You can mix paintings, prints and photographs if the shapes work.

Photo albums can be made with almost any type of binder—spiral, ring, clamps, sewn—but avoid glue. The album can be covered with cloth, paper, plastic or leather. Do not overstuff an album when you mount photos. Archival paper corners should be used to mount pictures. Do not use tape or glue or paste.

Clean the hard parts of stuffed animal trophies, including antlers, teeth or hooves, with a cotton swab dampened in isopropyl alcohol. If fur, feathers or skins are damaged, look for mites, moths or carpet beetles. Spray with an insecticide or consult a taxidermist.

The best care for an opal is to wear it. This helps restore moisture to the stone. Do not oil it. If you soak an unused opal in water, use distilled water. Do not store an opal in a safe deposit box.