HELOISE Removing the handiwork of a budding artist

Dear Heloise: Is there a way to get crayon off of a chalkboard? Tricia, via e-mail
Tricia, oh my -- do we have an artist in the house? Here's the hint to solve the problem: You can put a brown grocery bag over the crayon and carefully iron it with a warm (not hot) iron. You can also use baking soda -- sprinkle some on a damp cloth or sponge and scrub until the marks are gone.
Then you can buy chalkboard paint, which can be found at most paint stores, to make the surface like new again. You might have to call around, as we had to check with a few places until we found one that carried the paint. Baking soda is a great cleaner and deodorizer, and it's cheap, too! For great money-saving hints on ways to use baking soda around the house, please send $4 and a long, self-addressed, stamped (60 cents) envelope for the six-page pamphlet to: Heloise/Baking Soda, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5001. Keep an empty spice shaker filled with good ol' baking soda. It will be handy to sprinkle on stinky dishcloths and sponges. Store it in the kitchen next to the sink, and you're ready to go. Put one in each bathroom to use as a good nonabrasive cleaner for sinks and tubs. Heloise
Dear Heloise: Don't throw away old window shades. Use them for dropcloths when painting. Just roll them out. When done, roll them up. Sandra Murray, Kenosha, Wis.
Dear Heloise: I love to use daily facial cloths, but I always felt that I should do something more with them than wash my face. These little disposables are so sturdy. I wash my face while taking my shower, then I get the soap and lather the cloth back up again. I now have a disposable washcloth. But I take it one step further and clean the tub when I am done. My facial cloths have now earned the right to be disposed of. Patsy, via e-mail
Here are two hints from a reader, via fax:
UWhen I leave a store and forget where I parked my car, I just hit my remote button for locking the car, and the horn beeps once. Or I will hit the alarm button, and the horn will beep until I hit the button again. By that time, I have found my car.
UMy mother told me about this one. She has a coat hook on the wall and was afraid the end of the hook would poke a hole in the coat. So, she got a tennis ball and put a small hole in it so it could go over the hook.
XSend a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000, or you can fax it to (210) HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.
King Features Syndicate