Even with our digital devices, many of us still have a box with handwritten recipe cards we keep in the kitchen and pull out when it’s time to bake Grandma’s famous chocolate chip cookies. But paper cards can disintegrate over time, so if you want to protect them from splatters and spills without using non-eco-friendly lamination, try hairspray. Just spray a light coating of hair spray on the cards and let them dry. It’ll give a protective coating that will help prevent grease, water or any food stains from destroying the cards.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Over 1.3 billion tons of perfectly good food -- pastries, sandwiches, fish, produce, you name it -- are thrown away every year because it’s simply surplus for stores. A new app wants to help fight food waste from supermarkets, restaurants and food purveyors by connecting their leftover food with people willing to buy it at a steep discount. It’s called YourLocal, and it’s simple: In the last few hours of business, retailers post their surplus to YourLocal and sell it at up to 70 percent off. You claim it, buy it and pick it up. You’ll be saving money and the planet, too.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Having clothing dry-cleaned is not only expensive, it also can be bad for the environment. But you have no choice but to dry-clean items like delicate cashmere sweaters, right? Actually, you can machine wash those, too. Just choose the delicate setting and place the sweaters inside a mesh bag, which will prevent them from snagging inside the machine. When you’re done washing, roll up the freshly washed sweaters in towels, then lay flat to dry.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION