20 Things to Do With Your Old Nail Polish
Do you really use all of those jars of nail polish in your dressing table drawer, or are you just leaving them there until they dry out and you won’t feel so bad about throwing them away? That electric blue or dark brown color looked cool in the jar, but on your fingers….not so much. So what now? Let them go to waste? Toss them in the trash and make landfill? Don’t do anything drastic – because you can still use ugly nail polish.
- Use nail polish to stop runs on your stockings. Use clear nail polish for anything that will be showing and darker colors for runs hidden under clothes.
- Dab nail polish on to the end of frayed shoelaces or string to keep from unraveling.
- Use to mark work levels on measuring cups or buckets.
- Use as a carpenter’s mark on wood or other projects.
- Give to kids for art projects.
- Use to hide chips in ceramics and pottery.
- Use to mark your desired water temperature on the thermostat.
- Dab on warts. Disclaimer: I read several instances where this is said to work – I don’t know that for sure.
- Use to touch up worn spots on leather furniture, clothing or shoes.
- Paint over screws, especially those on sinks, tubs, toilets and outside fixtures, to prevent rusting.
- Clear nail polish can prevent costume jewelry from tarnishing.
- Use to mend small holes in window screens.
- Use on the bottom of your metal flour and sugar canisters to prevent rust.
- Use to mark labels – For instance a different color dab on different medications will help to better identify what’s in the jar.
- Use to mark family toothbrushes so no one gets mixed up.
- Let your barbecue guests mark their paper cups with old nail polish so no one’s beverages get mixed up.
- Use nail polish to mark the different keys on your keyring.
- Use hardwood floor to fill in the crannies on your hard wood floor.
- Use to label children’s clothing.
- Brush clear nail polish over luggage labels or addresses to keep from fading or running.
Image: stock.xgchnge
Wow, you actually have many that I have not thought about yet. I have over fifty bottles of fingernail polish and have used it for some really strange things.
One thing it was used for was painting whiskers and other shapes on the kids faces for halloween. It flakes off better than scrubing the eyeliner or pen off of the face.
Yeah, those are real good!! I got a couple more:
Uses for nail polish:
- Mark your dogs ears
- Serve on ice – enjoy
- Treat cuts and burns
- Spice up your food, new colors – new taste!
- Highlight stuff on your screen
- Paint your shoes
- Repair broken watches
You have a great list, but I lovetexmean’s list!
My mother used to paint over her old “button” (plain post) earrings. She’d buy cheap ones in ugly colors, then use her nail polish to make them…erm, pretty.
Here are a couple you missed.
My husband would paint over the screws in his eyeglasses to keep them frm popping out.
Also, he’s allergic to metals, so he painted over the back of his watch to keep it from irritating his skin.
glad to hear those tips
What a great list! You did a grea job. Hard work really pays off.
I have a pair of sandals with white color soles. can i paint clear nail polish over the soles to prevent them from getting dirty and fading?
One good one – paint over small cuts or abrasions to seal them. Particularly good if you’re cooking, and don’t want to get the plaster wet, or get blood on the food.
It does sting though!