More Miraculous Uses for Mayo Around the House

Sometimes you have exactly what you need right in front of you, maybe even right there in your kitchen. Open up your fridge, bypass that Diet Coke, and reach for the mayo. You might be surprised what it can do besides adding zest to your sandwich.

When we were recently reading a novel, The Help, we were reminded of a household tip that a grandmother or aunt mentioned once upon a time. It had to do with using mayonnaise to get rid of water stains on wood, and we just happened to have a water stain that needed tending. Inspired by this month’s Home Hacks theme, we thought we’d try a little home improvement with our friend, Mr. Mayo. Could the mayo measure up to the likes of the vinegar and lemon juice and be more than just a salad dressing ingredient? Actually, yes.

5 Miraculous uses for mayo around the house:

1. Wipe out water stains on wood surfaces.
Apply 2-3 tablespoons of mayo on a paper towel and lay the towel over the stain, pressing lightly. Leave on for 15 minutes or longer if necessary. Wipe away excess mayo and buff the stain with a cloth.

2. Remove crayon marks from furniture, floors or walls.
If the kids get too creative on the wood floors, try rubbing mayo on the crayon marks. Let it sit for a few minutes and then wipe away with a damp cloth.

3. Take the yellow out of the ivories.
Whiten up piano keys by applying mayo with a soft cloth. Let it sit for a few minutes, wipe off with a damp cloth, and then play a merry tune.

4. Take the sticky out of stickers.
Wishing you hadn’t stuck that Hello Kitty sticker on the mirror? Dissolve the glue on stickers by rubbing mayo over the offending things. Let it sit for a few minutes and then peel off the sticker.

5. And of course, shine up plant leaves (if it’s really that important to you).
In case you missed it, Gregory brought us this neat trick last week. Professional florists are supposed to use this trick and you can too. Using a paper towel, rub a smidge of mayo on houseplant leaves to make them shiny, happy plants for weeks at a time.

Do you have any more practical uses for mayonnaise, other than the obvious? What are your favorite kitchen multitasking items and household hints?

Comments (16)

Anyone know if these work with Miracle Whip also??

Miracle Whip has sugar in it, so make sure you clean up thoroughly or your floors and tabletops will get sticky.

If you have a ring you can't get off your finger, you can use mayo to help make it slippery enough to come off.

If it works on "sticky things", would it help me remove old contact paper? I'm working on two small tables my grandfather made for my mother, and the formica top is covered in aged contact paper. HELP!

"...then play a merry tune."

I am trying #1 on my second-hand nightstand and #3 on my piano, which has real ebony and ivory keys!

Allison--If you can get the contact paper peeled off, try mayo to get the glue up. If that doesn't work, try lighter fluid (I used to work in a used book store & we'd take old price tags off of books with a paper towel & some lighter fluid. Stinky & not very environmentally friendly, but effective).

For sticky gluey residue from labels or stickers I use peanut butter. It has the oil of mayo but also a bit of grit to it as well. Works like a charm.

Allison112 - a good trick for removing old contact paper is to use a hair dryer. It will soften the paper and glue and lift right up.

You just wanted to show off that amazing vase.

its also a good moisturizer, shampoo, and tooth paste! yum-yum! It this type of advertising continues on AT i don't think i'll visit much longer

brocktontriangle - Seriously?
It's not an advertisement. It's just household tips that a lot of people actually like reading, aside from people who apparently get angry by the thought of cleaning their water stains with mayonnaise.
If you don't like it, then there are two options; scroll on to the next post, or find a website that doesn't use offensive condiments in their posts.

if your hair is prone to be a little greasy, do NOT use mayo as a deep conditioning treatment, as julia roberts did in the movie "dying young". I ended up having to pour a bottle of vinegar on my head to get it all out. HOWEVER, i can't wait to try this trick on the water stains on my coffee table :-)

Thanks guys, I will definitiely try those tricks this weekend.

I haven't had any luck removing water stains using the mayo method. I did salvage an old water stained coffee table using the white t-shirt and ironing method. I kept ironing the t-shirt over the water rings till the moisture evaporated.

@clampers- please update when you do! Interested to hear if it actually works.

@vintagejunkie91- high five. good use of condiment humor. ;)

Mayo has other great uses for hardwood surfaces other than removing water stains. It is great to rub into hard wood floors to fill and camouflage scratches and scuffs from pets and high tracked areas. It is eco friendly which is great and even better way cheaper than floor polishes or a resurfacing professional. Just wash the floor first with applecider vinegar and water, rub mayo on liberally (actually getting into the cracks and rubbing it in), wipe off with a dry towel and finish up with the vinegar and water wash again. It's not slippery or over glossy, it gives a perfectly conditioned, semigloss look. My floors look awesome!