Broken zipper

Fix a missing zipper pull, temporarily, by inserting a paper clip in place of the tab.

Extend a ceiling-fan chain

You can make a temporary fix for a broken pull chain, by hooking several paper clips together, and then fasten it to the end of the split chain.

Stuck DVD player

To get a disc out of the DVD player easily, straighten out one end of a paper clip and insert it into the tiny hole by the tray (front or side of the player, depending on brand). Give it a gentle push to manually activate the drawer mechanism.

Hanging flowers to air-dry

Hold together a few flowers with a rubber band, forming a small bouquet. Unravel a paper clip, insert one end under the band and bend the other half creating a hook. Hang the bouquet upside down and let the flowers dry completely.

Easily pit fresh cherries

Grab a clean paper clip, take the smaller loop of it and vertically unfold it from the larger loop (it will look like an “S”). Insert the smaller loop into the top of the cherry where the stem used to be, gently wiggle to loosen the pit, and pull. The seed will pop right out.

Avoid pin marks on papers

Hang important papers (photos, documents, artwork etc.) on a cork board without leaving any damages or perforation marks. Secure a paper clip to the board with a pushpin, and then slide the paper into the clip.

Mark a recipe page in the cookbook

Avoid losing your recipe page while cooking, by sliding a paper clip onto the edge of the page in use, positioning it horizontally so it marks the recipe. You will never touch your book with dirty hands and miss an ingredient again.

Keep iced tea bags together

To keep tea bags together and prevent them from falling to the bottom of the pitcher, gather them in a pack and hook one end of a paper clip around the strings near the tabs. Secure the clip to the edge of the pitcher, pour in boiling water and steep as usual.