photo by exfordy

DEAR SARA: How do you arrange in drawers those many plastic containers and lids? They take up so much room and are hard to “match” up when you need them. — Vickie E., New York

DEAR VICKIE E.: I don’t have a good solution for organizing lids in drawers. A drawer is a solution more than a problem for me. Some of mine are stored in a deep cabinet drawer that’s located under my wall oven. I keep cookware lids that I don’t use as often inside of my giant stockpot. I do have some additional suggestions for lids that might otherwise be shoved into cabinets.

– Place a dish rack in your cabinet and simply place lids standing up to have easy access to them.
– Use a tension rod, place it from front to back in the cabinet, and tuck lids between the rod and the wall of the cabinet.
–You can hang a towel rack and slide cookware lids behind it if your lids have large enough handles, so they don’t slip through.

Thinner plastic lids can go directly on their containers, or you can organize them vertically in a magazine rack or mail sorter. You can make a magazine rack from a large cereal box by cutting it on a diagonal on both sides and sort lids by size. As for the plastic containers, I nest some of them and stack the others. Square and rectangle containers are much easier to organize.

DEAR SARA: What do you consider the most durable, cleanable and reasonably priced fabric for sofas and chairs for a family-room setting? I’ve had beige leather, which is almost impossible to clean, and rough fabrics that pill after a few years. Thanks. — Carol, e-mail

DEAR CAROL: I have four kids under the age of 9. Our couch and love seat are olive green in color and ribbed chenille fabric. We’ve had the set for just shy of eight years, and it’s just starting to show a little wear on one cushion cover. This is after years of sticky fingers, spilled drinks, climbing, lounging, accidents, illness and pets, etc. Read: heavy use. Each cushion has a cover that unzips and can be washed. I steam cleaned the rest on a regular basis. Others might disagree with choosing this fabric, but I’m surprised at how well it has held up. I plan to use slipcovers and then reupholster later. The brand we bought was Broyhill. I’d buy this type of fabric again or microfiber or washed denim slipcovers.

DEAR SARA: I saw an ad at freecycle.org. Here it is: “I cleaned out a friend’s pantry, and have about 12 plastic shopping bags of food: cans, boxes, jars and most of it is outdated, up to two years expired, but none of it is in bad condition. There are beans, soups, pasta, sauces, baking and some specialty items, but nothing really weird. If you can take it all and are willing to try most of it or pass it on, please reply.” I am tempted, but do not want to make my family sick. Would this food be OK? — Janis, Maine

DEAR JANIS: The ad makes me wonder why they aren’t taking the food if it’s any good. Expiration dates on food are different than sell by, best before and various other dates. An expiration date is just that. It’s considered spoiled after that date. Of course, many people consume it anyway, but I don’t suggest it unless you want to risk food poisoning. Going by the types of products the ad mentions, it seems most would have best-before dates. Best-before dates mean that the product’s best quality, flavor and nutrients is before the stated date, but isn’t immediately spoiled after the date. It’s a quality issue. Your safety isn’t at risk. Simply check for bulging or dented cans, and inspect the remaining food packaging. You have to use your own judgment on whether you feel comfortable eating it. But not much is lost by picking it up, since it’s free.

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