We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Baseboards are one of those features that most homes have, yet they’re chronically overlooked when it comes to tidying up. In fact, when I consider my own family’s weekly cleaning routine, rarely do I remember the white wooden boards that run through every room of the house. And this is unfortunate because they’re the perfect place for dust to accumulate, especially thanks to their tiny ridges. But no matter how spotless your floors and furniture are, dirty baseboards will subtly disrupt a seemingly perfect appearance, so it’s a chore you don’t want to ignore.
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There are so many great dust-busting gadgets for your floors, blinds and other surfaces; my own laundry area is fully stocked with Swiffer refills and microfiber cloths. But on Amazon, you can purchase an ingenious tool specifically designed to clean up those neglected moldings. The Baseboard Buddy has your back — in more ways than one!
To be more specific, this lightweight, mop-like product has a handle that expands up to four feet, meaning you no longer have to crouch down or stand on a stool to spruce up hard-to-reach baseboards. A while back, AT contributor Shifrah Combiths tried the Baseboard Buddy for herself, and her cleaning routine was changed for the better. “As I adjusted the angle of the Baseboard Buddy’s swivel head to my baseboards, it was the first time I felt like there was a tool that effectively reached into the several levels of grooves in my intricate baseboards,” Shifrah shared in her review. “The shape of the cleaning head combined with the length of the fibers makes it obvious that the Baseboard Buddy is carefully made for the duty it’s supposed to accomplish.” She also found that the product’s reusable cleaning pads are much more effective when wet.
In addition to being able to reach difficult areas (which is great for people with mobility issues), the Baseboard Buddy also has a 360-degree swivel head, so you can comfortably clean vertical moldings, as well. And if you want to use it for other surfaces, feel free! “It works wonderfully on all the woodwork, not just the baseboards,” one Amazon shopper wrote. “The long pole made it easy to clean at the top of tall windows.” (Shifrah similarly found the device most useful for cleaning the tops of doors and window moldings.)
Above all, you cannot overestimate the convenience of this tool. “With two dogs and two cats, there’s a lot of fur in my house, and some of it has taken up residence on the baseboards,” an Amazon reviewer reflected. “The baseboard buddy not only cleaned up the baseboards, it saved my knees. I won’t be crawling or duck-walking around the house cleaning the baseboards now.” After reading such glowing remarks, we can confidently say that if your home has baseboards (which I’m almost certain it does), this is one find you need to check out.
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
When it comes to ranking chores, nothing comes in lower than having to clean up after your clean-up methods. Washing my mop after washing my floor? No thank you. Rinsing the vacuum filter after tackling my carpets? I’ll pass. Cleaning my sink after scrubbing my dishes? Nope!
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That last one adds a special dusting of salt to the wound, particularly because I have a sink area that always gets soaking wet when I do dishes. I’m pretty sure it has something to do with the arc of my faucet head, but that’s a complaint for another day. All you need to know? Twenty minutes of dishes leave my countertops looking like a small lap pool and I’m constantly forced to spend another portion of my precious child-free evening hours sopping it all up so I’m not left with mold, mildew, and water stains.
Perhaps the above gripe is why I was so excited when the Ternal Sinkmat came onto my radar. Genius in its simplicity, this must-have invention buttons easily around your faucet head to make quick work of soaking up excess water, either from a dripping faucet or an overly enthusiastic dish washer (hello, it’s me!). The secret to its functionality lies in the super absorbent design, which combines a sponge-like core with a mesh back and a microfiber-cloth coated exterior to quickly wick up any excess moisture around your faucet head and sink basin. Once you’re done washing dishes, the mat can easily be wrung out and hung to dry (if necessary) or tossed in the laundry occasionally to be kept fresh.
While designed with a single-hole faucet in mind, the Ternal Sinkmat comes in a variety of lengths (ranging from 9 inches to 24 inches), so you can definitely make it work if you have a bridge faucet or other style. The mat comes in two hues — a rich black and steely gray — both of which coordinate nicely with most sink setups. The snap closure allows you to attach the mat to your faucet in either direction, giving you a super snug fit in front or a bit of an overhang over your sink basin to keep things extra dry.
Reviewers love the Ternal Sinkmat’s simple yet effective design, praising the piece for solving one of the biggest dishwashing pain points out there. “These work perfectly!,” says one happy customer. “I’ve looked for a long time for a way to keep water spots from getting on my stainless steel sink by the faucet. I was always wiping that area to keep it looking nice. These work perfectly. I am very happy with them and would recommend them to all my friends.” Another reviewer also sang its praises: “I purchased the Ternal Sinkmat because my husband and I had just bought a new home and wanted to keep the granite countertops clean. This was, without a doubt, the best kitchen purchase! The product is handy, easy to clean, and most importantly, functional. It’s large enough to fit dish soap, lotion, hand soap, and our sponge holder without making our sink space look cluttered.”
Beyond just preventing a lot of spillage around your sink, the Ternal Sinkmat is actually a worthy investment in the soundness of your kitchen. Excess water can be super damaging to your cabinets, particularly if the waterproof seal around your faucet or basin has seen better days. The resulting mold and mildew (not to mention wet wood) can compromise the integrity of your cabinetry, forcing you toward fixes that wouldn’t be necessary until decades down the road with proper care. Your countertop material is also a consideration, as many finishes (like marble, stainless steel, and more) can experience permanent stains due to excess water. Personally, I intend on snagging a Sinkmat ASAP for all these reasons and more — after all, if there’s one thing I can get behind, it’s spending less time cleaning up after my clean-up efforts.
Britt is a stargazer and sunrise-chaser with a collection of magic erasers, and a fascination with the fantastic. A storyteller at heart, she finds inspiration in all the small things, and can likely be found singing show tunes, catching up on K-dramas, or going on adventures to satiate her natural-born wanderlust. (Sometimes even all at the same time.)
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
I’m in the middle of moving (which is one of my least favorite activities) and noticed that in my new one-bedroom apartment that I have even less bathroom storage space than I used to. As a former beauty writer, I have quite the skincare and makeup collection — eight bags worth. My new place only has a cabinet under the sink for me to use (and share with my boyfriend). If you do the math, you’ll realize that eight bags definitely can’t fit in there. I immediately took to Amazon to see what budget-friendly storage solution I could find.
Luckily, I stumbled upon this genius two-tier organizer from madesmart. I’ve come across my fair share of inside-the-cabinet organizers but this one is more innovative — and requires no tools to build. Instead of an organizer that has two tiers fused together, this organizer allows you to easily slide the tiers in and out. You can even pick up and remove both bins; they can live on their own in your home without the organizer structure if you no longer need it.
The organizer took advantage of so much previously unused vertical space. I was able to fit two bags worth of skincare into the top tier and used the bottom tier for extra toothpaste, Q-tips, contact lenses, and dental floss. The only downside is that you can really only put shorter objects in the bottom organizing bin.
Now, it’s easy to grab what I need out of these bins in the morning. I simply slide out the bottom drawer if I need to get my contact lens or restock my toothpaste.
I’ve moved apartments five times in the last seven years, so I’m used to pivoting based on how much storage space I’m going to get. Maybe I won’t have a bathroom cabinet at my next place (though I don’t even want to think about moving right now)! These bins can be repurposed in the kitchen (even in my fridge), on my desk or even on my closet shelf. I know that regardless of where I live that these bins will be with me for a while.
And I’ve got some good news — even though I didn’t manage to snag these on sale (I paid the full $29 and bought two), these organizers are only $20 right now. I opted for the clear version, but there’s also a frost one available.
Alicia Kort is the Senior Commerce Editor at Apartment Therapy. She enjoys writing about cool finds and all things organizational. She’s based in Brooklyn and is from the suburbs of Chicago.
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
One of the quickest ways to distinguish an old, worn or potentially low quality textile is by its bumpy surface. And I’m not talking about natural fabric texture — no, I mean those annoying pills and clumps of lint that result from just using the item as was intended. It’s important to take care of clothing and other fabric items, whether that means keeping them wrinkle-free or making your laundry process as efficient as possible. But even proper TLC won’t always prevent blankets, sweaters and even upholstered chairs from looking run-down after a while. And a lint roller will only get you so far.
This is where the Conair fabric shaver comes in. With a price tag of just $11, not to mention Amazon Prime Day being right around the corner, what’s there to think about? The tool removes virtually any type of fuzz from fabric by simply shaving it off. It’s battery operated and portable, meaning you can easily move the shaver over any surface. It also has nearly 67,000 five-star reviews, one of which reads, “Since it’s so portable, I just sat on the couch to watch TV and shaved two shirts and a pair of cottony exercise pants while watching TV.” We love a good multitasker.
What’s more, the Conair shaver has three settings so that you can customize the shaving depth depending on the fabric. Ideally, this will help prevent damage to more delicate fabrics. A detachable lint catcher makes for easy disposal, though some reviewers shared that it fills up fast. Basically, you’ll want to empty the compartment out regularly to avoid a jam. But besides that, you can expect well-worn fabrics to look as good as new. “I decided to start with a knit shirt I love but was ready toss because the fabric pilled so badly,” one reviewer wrote. “… it worked so well my shirt looks brand new!”
If you need any more reasons to buy and try the fabric shaver, consider this: You can travel with it, AND it comes in six fun colors. Plus, it’s always a good idea to see which items you can refurbish and fall in love with again instead of tossing out. As much as the AT team encourages you to try new and cool home goods, we recognize that it’s equally as important to take great care of the ones you already have.
