Unexpected Uses For Dental Floss, The Multi-Tasker In Your Medicine Cabinet

If you ask your dentist, they'll probably say flossing is as important as brushing your teeth. But they never explain that dental floss can be used for other purposes. While floss is thin, it is unusually strong and has various uses that you might find come in handy.

Try removing old pictures from albums with floss so they're not accidentally damaged. Or use floss to hang Christmas ornaments when you run out of hooks. Did we pique your interest? Well, there are more hacks to learn about if you keep scrolling.

Cutting Soft Cheese Has Never Been Easier

Cutting Soft Cheese Has Never Been Easier
Natasha Breen/REDA&CO/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Natasha Breen/REDA&CO/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Soft cheeses, such as goat cheese and brie, can be a bit difficult to cut with a knife. The cheese is so sticky (in the best way) that it does nothing but latch onto the cutting utensil. Even specially designed cheese cutters have difficulty with the softer varieties.

So, the next time you have a nice cheese platter, think about cutting the soft cheese with some dental floss. The strong string will cleanly slice right through without any sticking! And you don't have to wash it afterward, either.

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Jimmy Floss Under Warm Cookies To Get Them Off The Pan

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Jimmy Floss Under Warm Cookies To Get Them Off The Pan
Whitney Hayward/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
Whitney Hayward/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images
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We get it; warm cookies right out of the oven are too delicious to pass up. But what if we told you there is a way to get the oven-fresh cookies off the baking pan without having it turn into a mess of crumbs?

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Try taking a piece of dental floss and gently running it between the pan and the bottom of the cookie. Once the cookie is un-stuck, it will easily slide off. Pro tip: use unflavored floss.

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Clean Dust Out Of Tight Spaces

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Clean Dust Out Of Tight Spaces
Michael Smith/Newsmakers/Getty Images
Michael Smith/Newsmakers/Getty Images
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Getting into tight and confined spaces to clean is never an easy task. Dusters never seem to be able to reach the far corners of places, like underneath the keys of a keyboard. If you're a neat freak, we recommend using this simple dental floss hack.

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All you have to do is grab your floss and wrap it around two fingers as if you were about to use it on your teeth. Then, jimmy the floss into the tight space to extract dirt and dust!

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Floss Is Strong Enough To Hold Lightweight Artwork

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Floss Is Strong Enough To Hold Lightweight Artwork
Thomas Frey/picture alliance via Getty Images
Thomas Frey/picture alliance via Getty Images
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If you're decorating the walls of your home with various pictures or ornaments, think about using something other than braided wire as a hanging tool. And when we say "something else," we mean dental floss.

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It might sound strange, but floss is strong and stretchy, making it a great option for hanging things on the wall. And unlike wire, floss won't leave scratch marks on the paint! It's pretty much a win-win all around.

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Arts & Crafts Jewelry For The Kids

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Arts & Crafts Jewelry For The Kids
Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images for NYCWFF
Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images for NYCWFF
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If you're looking for a fun arts and crafts project for the kids this weekend, look no further. All you have to do is grab some dental floss out of the medicine cabinet and various shapes of pasta from the kitchen.

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Voilà! You now have the ultimate jewelry station setup. If you want to make things more interesting, think about incorporating some paint and glitter. You know, to spruce up the pale yellow color of the pasta.

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Silence Annoying Leaky Faucets

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Silence Annoying Leaky Faucets
BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
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Say goodbye to the annoying leaky faucet that is keeping you up at night with its obnoxious dripping sound. Until you have the time to look closely at the leak, there is a little hack that will allow you to sleep in peace.

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Take some dental floss, tie it around the head of the faucet, and make sure it hangs down to the sink's basin. This way, the water droplets will silently slide down the floss instead of noisily dripping into the sink.

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Bind A Roast For Cooking

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Bind A Roast For Cooking
Vince Talotta/Toronto Star via Getty Images
Vince Talotta/Toronto Star via Getty Images
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Roasts and filets are some of the many foods that are traditionally tied off while cooking. If a holiday rolls around and you're making such a dish without cooking twine anywhere in sight, think about running to your medicine cabinet instead of the store.

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A great alternative to cooking twine is dental floss, since it's strong and will hold the meat together. Just make sure the floss is unflavored and doesn't have a waxy finish. No need to have the wax melt onto the food in the oven!

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Slide A Ring Off With Ease

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Slide A Ring Off With Ease
Amy Sussman/Getty Images
Amy Sussman/Getty Images
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People who wear rings know that when your fingers swell, it is all but impossible to remove the piece of jewelry. Thankfully, there is a nice little dental floss hack to make removing rings from swollen fingers easier.

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All you have to do is grab a strand of floss and wrap it around the finger, from the top of the ring up to the nail. Don't worry, it won't cut off your circulation, but it will temporarily make the digit small enough to slip your ring off.

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Make A Stand-In Hair Tie When You're Desperate

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Make A Stand-In Hair Tie When You're Desperate
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Arthur Elgort/Conde Nast via Getty Images
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Those with long hair tend to agree that there are times when you just need to pull it back off your neck. The unfortunate flip side to that coin is that some of those times don't include you having a hair tie.

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If this situation rolls around, think about strolling over to your medicine cabinet and grabbing the dental floss. You can tie some floss around your hair until you can locate that hair tie that's been MIA for a few months.

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Remove Old Photos From Albums Without Damage

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Remove Old Photos From Albums Without Damage
Pool COCHARD/GAILLARDE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Pool COCHARD/GAILLARDE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
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It's a pain when you're trying to remove old photos from an album, only to accidentally rip one because it's stuck to the translucent page. Well, say goodbye to destroying old family photos with this dental floss hack.

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Much like getting warm cookies off the pan, you're going to want to take a piece of dental floss and gently slide it between the back of the photo and the album page. This way, the picture easily pops off!

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Slicing Cake Has Never Been Easier

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Slicing Cake Has Never Been Easier
DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images
DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images
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Slicing cake can be oddly messy. Knives can only do so much when it comes to cutting through the sticky frosting and hard sprinkles. But there is a way to make sure your delicious masterpiece gets the straight cuts it deserves.

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Take a piece of dental floss that's longer than the dessert. Then, all you're going to have to do is press the floss down into the cake to create a clean cut. Don't use mint floss!

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Keep Your Luggage Locked

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Keep Your Luggage Locked
Tony Avelar/The Christian Science Monitor via Getty Images
Tony Avelar/The Christian Science Monitor via Getty Images
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Nowadays, a lot more people use locks and zip-ties to secure their luggage while traveling. Unfortunately, those two items aren't necessarily household items, so it's a good thing there is another solution.

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You can take a long piece of dental floss and tie it around two side-by-side zippers. Then, cut the floss to an appropriate length, so it doesn't get tangled up anywhere. The floss is strong enough that people won't be able to break into your luggage!

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Use Floss As A Make-Shift Clothes Line

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Use Floss For A Make-Shift Clothes Line
Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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If you ever run out of room on your outdoor clothing line, there is a simple and effective solution. The first step is grabbing your dental floss from your medicine cabinet. Then, you're going to want to wrap the floss around two stable objects, at least a few feet from one another.

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The floss is strong enough to hold wet garments! With this hack, you're never going to have anxiety over running out of hanging space again.

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Support Climbing Plants In Your Garden

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Support Climbing Plants In Your Garden
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Altan Gocher/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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Climbing plants are a great addition to any garden. It gives the area some much-needed height variation from the ground-level plants. The only problem with climbing flowers and vines is that they can easily break if not secured.

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That's where some handy-dandy dental floss comes in to play! When your climbing plant reaches a certain level, tie a tiny bit of floss loosely around its stem and a wooden dowel. This way, the plant can continue to climb without the risk of breaking.

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Floss Works As a Great Substitute For Fishing Line

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Floss Works As a Great Substitute For Fishing Line
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Mark Stahl/Getty Images
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If you're in the middle of packing for a fishing trip and realize you're out of fishing line, have no fear! Instead of running to the store before high-tailing it to the lake, think about using a substitute for the line.

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Not only is dental floss strong enough to reel in a fish, but you can use the empty floss container as a way to store live bait! This little hack will have you off to the lake to grab the best spot without a stop to slow you down.

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Create Decorations For Parties And Social Gatherings

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Create Decorations For Parties And Social Gatherings
DAVID BREWSTER/Star Tribune via Getty Images
DAVID BREWSTER/Star Tribune via Getty Images
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With this dental floss hack, there will be no reason for you to go out to a craft store to buy over-priced wire or strong string ever again. Instead, we recommend heading over to a CVS or Walgreens and picking up a few containers of dental floss.

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You can use the floss as a means to string together popcorn decorations, hang banners, and even create floral garlands for different types of parties and social gatherings.

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Floss Can Help You Start A Blazing Campfire

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Floss Can Help You Start A Blazing Campfire
Gideon Mendel/Corbis via Getty Images
Gideon Mendel/Corbis via Getty Images
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If you're having a hard time starting a campfire or bonfire, think about using some dental floss to help start the flames. Thankfully, using the added material is quite easy, as long as you have floss in your camping gear!

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All you're going to have to do is wrap some waxed floss around the kindling. The waxy material is highly flammable, so once you light it up, the blaze will be well underway.

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Throw Away The Sewing Thread And Use Floss

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Throw Away The Sewing Thread And Use Floss
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images
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Sewing on a coat, shirt, or pant button is no easy task, especially when the flimsy sewing thread keeps snapping. The whole process is way more aggravating than it has to be. So, instead of fighting with horrid sewing thread, we recommend using a different material.

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Dental floss is not only stronger than thread, but its color is very agreeable and matches pretty much everything. Long story short: toss the thread, and buy a lot of floss.

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Hanging Christmas Ornaments Has Never Been Easier

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Hanging Christmas Ornaments Has Never Been Easier
James D. Morgan/Getty Images
James D. Morgan/Getty Images
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Long gone are the days of running out of ornament hooks and having to decide which decorations are fit for the Christmas tree. Instead of running to the store to grab another box of 500 hooks, think about running to your toiletry kit instead.

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Dental floss is a great substitute for hooks. The floss is strong, so it can take the weight of any ornament, and it will save you the hassle of having to hold an "ornament draft" for the tree.

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Fix Your Broken Glasses Until You Buy A New Screw

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Fix Your Broken Glasses Until You Buy A New Screw
Jacobsen /Three Lions/Getty Images
Jacobsen /Three Lions/Getty Images
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One of the more annoying things for people with glasses is having the tiny screw connecting the arm and front frame come loose. The screw is so tiny that if it falls on the floor, it's pretty much a goner.

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But the lost screw is no reason to walk around blind. A temporary fix is to grab some dental floss and thread it through the screw and frame hole. It's not the best, but at least it will hold your glasses together for a bit!