There are many ways, but my favourite is to knock the edge of the lid in a couple of places against a hard surface. Works every time!

The outside of it can be prone to rust and damp – apply a layer of car wax to stop the metal from rusting.

Ecover, who make environmentally friendly cleaning products, have a fragrance-free range, endorsed by Allergy UK, especially for people with very sensitive skin and suffering from severe allergies.

Ecover use only plant-based and mineral ingredients and the products include washing-up liquid, laundry detergent and conditioner.

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Make your pet’s food anti-ant by placing the bowl in a container of water that’s only slightly larger than the bowl – that’ll stop the critters in their tracks!

Do not rub at the stain. Shake off as much loose powder as possible. Hold the fabric over the sink and tap the back of it with an old toothbrush to remove more powder.

Take the toothbrush carefully over the stain then sponge with soapy water.

Afterwards machine-wash at hottest possible cycle for the fabric.

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Store it in the fridge as it’s much easier to handle when chilled!

Some of them these days are very realistic…until they get covered in dust. Don’t dunk them in water – they’ll die instantly!

Instead blow the problem away using the cool setting on a hairdryer. 

Works on dried and plastic flowers as well (though you can always wet-wash plastic).

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Clean the sugary deposits straight away. Sugar crystallizes on cooling and eats into the glass, leaving tiny pits in the surface.

Why is it that when the sun comes out every speck of dust is visible? And as for the television, no sooner have you been over it with the duster than it’s covered again with a fine layer (it’s because the static charge generated by the telly acts like a magnet for dust).

I do love a microfibre cloth, and in a glove form it’s a great way of dusting (I know, I need to get out more).

Using it, you can get the job done in a fraction of the time, and it also works well when wet for mirrors and glass, taps, fittings and worktops.

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You could be overloading the machine. The more you put in, the less room the clothes have; they stay in one position and dye gets drawn out of the creases.