Back in the fifties in Los Angeles, when TV was a new and novel thing, there was a live program…everything was live then…in the afternoons, called Handy Hints.

There was this Betty Ferness type in apron, and high heels of course…. didn’t everyone wear high heels in the kitchen? …. and she offered up little treasures for the little housewife.   Sort of a primeval Martha.

Well, I feel like starting a new show or column, because I just found the most Awesome Handy Hint, something that Everyone will use one day or another… or this very day.     Ready?….

My daughter and her family are gone just now, and I am housesitting, taking care of her animals, and sometimes spending time in the house, as it is cozy and provides a rich environment for me to enjoy, that I don’t have in my little nest.

I was working on a bunch of large fabrics, tablecloths, pillows and afghans, to sell in my Etsy store on line.   I was using the table to iron them on, very handy, and the next day as I removed the many layers of fabrics I had used as a ironing pad, and also to protect the table…. Much to my Horror, there was a big White area that I had created with the steam iron!  I mean Big.  I mean Giant Family Sized Pizza Big.

Oh Goddess, she was going to Kill me.   I might as well go back to Brasil, because this is her new table, and she Loves it.

I tried oiling it, thinking the heat had somehow bleached or dried it out.     I thought about the different ways I paint and stain things that I repair and sell.   I thought about a lot of things, but mostly how she was going to kill me.

I thought about Google.  Oh God bless Goodle.  The Google Gods were there with me that day, and I will now share one of the more Amazing Handy Hints ever.

The whiteness is from the moisture trapped under the finish.  The trick is to drive out the moisture with heat.  They suggested a hair dryer, which I tried for a while.  A very long while.  Then I tried the other suggestion….. an Iron!  Funny, huh?  Fight fire with Fire!

No steam, of course, but cover with a cloth…. I used a clean dish towel, not terry, but smooth and thick…..and iron on MEDIUM, below the steam setting.

At first I went back and forth.  Later I found that I could leave the iron on the area for up to 10 seconds at a time.    It took quite a bit of time, because of the size, but although at first I was not believing it was working, slowly shade by shade the stain faded, and…..VOILA!  it Works!!!

So go to that old white moisture mark on that precious wood something-or-other, and be prepared to be amazed.

It’s like MAGIC!