21 brilliant hacks for dental floss you’ll start using all the time

Climbing plants like to grow upward. Put a wooden dowel in the soil that they can wrap around, then keep them from breaking off by tying around a bit of dental floss. You can also grow your plants right in a container you already own.

Here are 23 more genius gardening hacks you’ll be glad to know.

Use floss as the string on banners, balloons, popcorn strings and floral garlands instead of investing in specialty craft supplies.

If a dripping tap is giving you a headache, remedy the noise with floss until you have a chance to fix the leak for good. Tie floss around the tap head, making sure the other end of the string is guided into the drain. The drops of water will slide quietly down the floss instead of thudding into the sink below.

If you can’t get your hands on a hair tie but need to put your hair up, look for a piece of dental floss. Tie it around your ponytail, and you won’t have to worry about your tresses falling into your eyes.

Just make sure you’re not making one of these 14 everyday mistakes that are ageing your hair. 

Waxed floss is flammable, making it a useful tool during your next bonfire. Wrap it around kindling, then light it up to get your flame going.

Making a roast, but no cooking twine to be found? Wrap your meat with a piece of unflavoured floss instead. Just be sure to pick unwaxed floss, which won’t melt or burn in the oven.

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Floss is more durable than your typical thread, so use it for coat buttons that never seem to stay in place. It’s also a quick fix if you need to make any clothes repairs on the fly.

If you run out of hooks when setting up your Christmas tree, head to your medicine cabinet for dental floss and use it to tie up your ornaments.

Don’t miss these 12 cool Christmas tree alternatives.

The ends of rope can unravel, leaving you with an unmanageable piece. Keep the ends from fraying by wrapping floss tightly around the bottom couple of centimetres or so.

If you lose track of the screw attaching your eyeglasses’ arm to the front frame, no need to walk around blind. Simply thread a piece of floss through the screw hole, tie it into a knot to stabilise, and snip off the extra floss. It’s not a permanent fix, but it will keep you going until you can buy a new screw.