HELOISE Tips given on storing photos in cedar chest

Dear Readers: Recently, a question came in about storing photos in a cedar chest. So we took the question to the experts who manufacture cedar chests, and here is what they had to say:
It's OK to put photos in the chest as long as they are stored in an archival box with acid-free paper. Don't let the photos touch the wood itself, as it's acidic and could ruin the photos.
The cedar chest needs to be stored in an area where there is no direct heat or moisture, which means not in the attic or basement.
It's also a good idea to check the contents of any cedar chest at least once a year to make sure that everything is OK. Heloise
FYI: You can find archival boxes and paper at craft- and scrapbook-supply stores.
Dear Heloise: I purchase clothing through mail-order catalogs quite often. More times than not, the items don't fit, making it necessary to ship them back. In most cases, the company provides a prepaid postage label for the return.
To save the expense of buying an envelope, box, etc., to mail an item, if it came in a plastic packaging bag, turn the bag inside out, slap the label on it and take to the post office. Works every time. Tania, Waynesville, Mo.
Dear Heloise: We recently moved to an apartment. To make the pantry more efficient, I took a shoe bag (22 pockets) and cut it in half. I used one half on the pantry door to hold paper sacks, straws, plastic storage bags, small trash bags and the trash bags for the kitchen trash cans. I used the other in my bathroom on the linen-closet door to hold brushes, combs, hair dryer and curling irons. Margaret Parker, Dallas
Dear Heloise: A good friend, Michele, told me about using the new "glue" mouse traps to catch all the nuisance insects that crawl along my garage floor. My husband forgot to close the garage door last night, and this morning, it sounded like every cricket in the county was in my garage! I put a few of these glue traps down, and when I came home from work, they were loaded with black crickets, plus a couple of bonus spiders! I just put one close to each door and along the walls, out of the way of my dog and the curious little fingers of my grandchildren.
It's amazing how many crickets and spiders try to walk over it and become stuck and can't get off. Margaret Philpot, Paulding
Dear Heloise: When we have anything that won't go down the garbage disposal and will be especially smelly in the garbage can (like meat/fish wrappers, shrimp/lobster tails, etc.), we simply put it in a plastic bag, wrap it securely, put the bag in the freezer and then get it out on trash day. I have a note on the garbage can to check the freezer for throwaways. Jerry Mostrog, Hot Springs Village, Ark.
XSend a great hint to: Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000, Fax: (210) HELOISE or E-mail: Heloise@Heloise.com.
King Features Syndicate