10 Brilliant Uses for Wine Corks Around the House

Nothing beats an evening curled up in front of a cozy fire. To start it in a flash, put natural corks in a closed jar filled with rubbing alcohol. (Store away from the fireplace.) When you’re ready for a fire, place a cork under the kindling and light with a fireplace match. The flammable alcohol will help the cork catch quickly and stay lit to ignite the wood.

The boot tray in your entryway is great at keeping your floor dry and clean. The only problem? Puddles often collect inside, keeping your boots from fully drying. To avoid this, line the bottom of the tray with a layer of natural corks. The absorbent corks will help soak up any excess water.

With all the snacking going on this time of year, you may need more chip clips than you have available. To the rescue: wine corks! Simply use a knife to carefully cut a slit into the end of a cork and slide over a closed (and folded bag). The cut cork will act as a sort of clamp, guaranteeing the bag stays closed and the food stays fresh. 

Who says your sweetie needs expensive toys to have a blast? Help replenish her fun stash by creating a cork toy. To do: Use a Phillips-head screwdriver to widen the hole in the cork made by the corkscrew and thread a few pieces of string or ribbon through the hole. Then hang the toy from a doorknob. Your furry friend will have a blast batting it around!

Oh no! While prepping a casserole for your holiday dinner, you found the knob to your pot’s lid missing. In a pinch, use a cork as a heatproof replacement. Simply push a sharp, pointed screw through the hole of the pot lid and carefully twist the cork onto the hardware until it’s secure. Problem solved!

To avoid accidentally poking yourself with a loose needle when digging through your sewing box, try this: Stick all of your needles and pins into a cork or two. The makeshift pincushions will firmly secure the needles, keeping your sewing box neat.

Argh! The new bottle of pricey olive oil you bought has such a wide spout that you keep pouring out too much every time you use it on a dish. The save: Cut a 1/4-inch-wide wedge down the length of a cork and slip it into the bottle’s neck. This slimmer gap will prevent overflow when pouring, helping you savor every last drop.

If only your earbuds didn’t end up jumbled every time you pulled them out of your purse! To prevent it, use a small nail to poke a hole in one end of a cork. Then, use a sharp knife to make a narrow slit in the other end. Insert the earbud plug into the hole, wrap the wires around the cork, and slide the ends into the sliver. This handy trick will help ward off tangles, and the small cork will make it easy to stash the whole thing away.

When you need to take your knitting supplies on the go, the last thing you want is for your handiwork to fall off the needles. What can help: sticking the sharp ends into a wine cork. The stopper will help block the yarn from falling off the needles’ slick ends, so you won’t have to double back on your stitch later.

The secret to keeping your leafy green plants happy and healthy even in dry indoor heat: corks! Simply cut eight to 12 natural corks in half, grind them up in a food processor and mix the bits into your plants’ topsoil. Whenever you water your greenery, the air-filled cork cells will absorb the excess and slowly release it as the plant dries out, ensuring it stays regularly hydrated.

This article originally appeared in our print magazine, First For Women.