Fir tree sap and maple syrup are not the same sort of sticky. One is resinous the other sugary. Don't drag or rub the bread, blot with it, dab dab dab.... It is intended to get the smallest splinters before they find human skin. And I suggest it works better with glass ornaments, shattered goblets. Use it after the larger pieces have been collected. NOT a fail if done correctly. And that is a "holiday hat" as long as it's a winter holiday. Bet it's lovely and warm.
You missed the point of the toilet paper thing around the roll of wrapping paper. Yes a rubber band can do the job just as well if the intention is just to keep it from unraveling. Which it isnt. With the toilet paper thing, you keep it from unraveling while at the same time you are able to pull paper from it through the slit in the toilet paper thing, effectively making it a dispenser.
Whoever thinks of doing the wine-glass-candle-holder hack: DON'T!!! Wine glasses are not made at all to withstand the stresses the heat of a candle produces. Given the quality of your glass, it might crack or even burst. So, get something that's thick and doesn't burn. Or metal. Metal is mostly a good solution. Or earthware.
Agreed, I won't even turn my wine glasses upside down. The rims will chip, but an ordinary drinking glass that goes in the dishwasher might become a candle holder some day.
Maple syrup was a really bad surrogate for tree sap. Tree sap sticks to you, quite literally, like superglue. Simply washing your hands won't get it off.
If you are using a condiment bottle for frosting, I recommend heating up some water and letting the bottle of frosting sit in it for about five minutes. Makes it about a hundred times easier. At the store I work at, this is what we do.
I wrap our Christmas tree lights around a folded-up newspaper as we take them down. It keeps them from tangling and is a lot easier to store than a coffee can would be!
I'm not sure if I'm just deliriously tired from staying up writing essays but... I completely lost it for this video. There was an honest to goodness giggle fest over here.
I work as a wedding stylist and the whole candles and wine glass thing is hugely popular, so many couples are requesting them as centrepieces and candle holders. Also the mason jars with sand and candles are just as popular but not for snow, mostly beach weddings, its crazy lol :)
I like how he was initially really close to pinning the nose correctly at the end but then he immediately screws up and overlaps one of his previous attempts. :P
John, you're too funny. I've used the bread life hack before and it works, you're supposed to press down on the bread, not use it like a broom :) Also, the candle holder life hack is an idea I found earlier this year, I'm thinking of using them as centerpieces in my wedding!
Sam Atwell heh... how do Americans differentiate what we call chips and what we call French Fries? Sounds like you just called them all French Fries?!?
wacka here chips mean chips and French fries French fries. I don't think anyone calls one the other. I guess it's one of those thing that are country specific
Bass M. I spoke to an American and he clarified... you call crisps - chips, you call french fries - french fries... and you call chips - steak fries ... in English we just have:- new4.fjcdn.com/comments/3345395+_4074b95525b3405986d8f301fa95f32b.jpg
A better way to decorate cookies or cakes is to use the decorating tips available in any bakery craft section (and on baking aisles). There's usually a small pack of three tips that can be found as cheap as the squeeze bottles would be. Instead of using the expensive pastry bags, cut a small hole in the corner of any ziploc type bag and insert the tip. 🎄
The coffee can and light string thing totally has merit. I put the plug end inside. I did that last year (with a large cardboard tube I got from the recycle bin at work), and my lights unrolled perfectly this year. I was able to unroll it around the tree by myself, too. I'd call it a 100% pass. A little patience to take it off the tree and roll it up as you go more than pays for itself when you are setting up for the next year.
Honestly, with the candles and wine glasses, I'd probably opt to put the candle IN the glass instead of on top of it. Maybe even add salt or whatever to it - like with the Mason jars - to create a nice, stable base for the candle. But, to each their own. I use ribbon when I wrap gifts. (I don't just slap a bow on and call it done!) So, I just tie some of that around the rolls to keep the paper from unraveling. Even yarn or twine would work. And, as suggested, I am sure a rubber band would be fine, too. No reason to start a minor craft project just to hold your paper in place unless you're really desperate and have nothing else available. The lights on the coffee can technically work. But, yeah, I am sure it's a bigger pain in the butt than it's worth. One year, I used old bits of cardboard for wrapping/storing lights. I even cut notches into the sides of the cardboard to help hold the lights in place. That worked well enough. But, the following year, I went out and just bought a bunch of small extension cord reels. They're really durable, they work much better than cardboard, and they were less than $2 each.
For the icing, just sit the bottle in a glass of hot water for a few minutes first, it'll soften up the icing. I use it for decorating with chocolate fondant all the time at work.
in what world is maple syrup the same as fir tree resin?? that's like saying "LIFEHACK: put salt in a mason jar to look like snow. but we don't have any salt, so let's use paprika! wait a minute, red snow???? FAIL."
The proper way to store Christmas lights is to wrap them around a piece of cardboard. Cut off the side of a box to make a flat rectangle. Holding the rectangle in landscape mode, cut a notch along the top no more than 2 inches from one corner (the upper left corner). Put one of the ends into the notch to hold it in place. Coil the string of lights around the board toward the other side (the right side) as snugly as you can, but not so tight that you bend the cardboard. Space each new loop around the box close enough so that you can prevent tangling. When you run out of lights, make another notch to hold the other end. Voila.
The coffee can trick works better if you take the lid off of the can and hold the can with one hand, while wrapping lights with the other hand, using a winding motion. :D
They actually make reels and storage containers for Christmas lights. My family has some and they're really easy to use. Just go to Amazon and search for Christmas light storage. One container that comes with three reels is fifteen dollars, so not bad!
I love the video. Though the "tests" could have been more thorough. For instance, bread to pick up bread...press the bread into the glass, don't wipe it. maple syrup/toothpaste...perhaps rub hands under running water? Icing in a condiment bottle...cut the bottle tip to be larger.
As far as Broken Glass is concerned. use duct tape. It's easy. strips of duct tape will pick up absolutely all the glass on the floor. much safer than trusting bread or a vacuum.
Here’s my holiday hack. Everyone gets the same present. I make a huge batch of my secret BBQ sauce, can it, and put a pretty bow on top. Everyone gets a jar. I go through a weekend’s worth of stress instead of weeks. Plus I always have extras just in case.
The best thing to remove sap from your skin is butter. I use it on my son whenever he comes in from climbing trees. It also works to get gum out of your hair!
John, you continue to do injustice to some of these hacks- I cannot tell if they really fail or your implementation is intentionally poor- who washes their hands without water? I suppose the toothpaste is intended to act as an abrasive and it needs a surfactant in order to properly be tested- don't you agree?
Also, I like doing the Mason Jar trick with Wine glasses instead! Have the wine glass upright, half full of salt, and put in the candle. It's gorgeous. Don't use your best wine glass.
I miss shows hosted by this extraordinary man
It's two in the morning and I am watching a bestselling author rub maple syrup into his hands.
I love the internet.
For the tape isn't it just easier to fold a bit of the tape back on itself making a little tape flap.
You lose a bit of tape every time you do that though.
DragonSneeze But I don't want to waste my bread tabs on tape!
PajamaMan
I would like to know what you're doing with your bread tabs when the bread is gone. Do you have a craft project going?
chitheatergirl01 i.imgur.com/2fPxh1X.jpg I wouldn't exactly call it a craft project
PajamaMan Why....?
I'm sure the recipient would be thrilled when they realise you used a chips bag to wrap their present.
I feel like Life hacks should become its own show. That would be neat.
I just love all of John's reactions to things. Like his face when he's putting cookies in the box.
Priceless.
Fir tree sap and maple syrup are not the same sort of sticky. One is resinous the other sugary.
Don't drag or rub the bread, blot with it, dab dab dab.... It is intended to get the smallest splinters before they find human skin. And I suggest it works better with glass ornaments, shattered goblets. Use it after the larger pieces have been collected. NOT a fail if done correctly.
And that is a "holiday hat" as long as it's a winter holiday. Bet it's lovely and warm.
In response to life hack I prefer to store my cookies in my stomach.
Well said sir
I love watching John try life hacks! These videos are the best!
You missed the point of the toilet paper thing around the roll of wrapping paper. Yes a rubber band can do the job just as well if the intention is just to keep it from unraveling. Which it isnt. With the toilet paper thing, you keep it from unraveling while at the same time you are able to pull paper from it through the slit in the toilet paper thing, effectively making it a dispenser.
true and also rubber bands tend to tear the paper
I can hear TheWife(tm) now: "Did, did you wrap my gift in an old chip bag? What makes you think it is OK to wrap gifts in trash?"
Whoever thinks of doing the wine-glass-candle-holder hack: DON'T!!!
Wine glasses are not made at all to withstand the stresses the heat of a candle produces. Given the quality of your glass, it might crack or even burst.
So, get something that's thick and doesn't burn. Or metal. Metal is mostly a good solution.
Or earthware.
Agreed, I won't even turn my wine glasses upside down. The rims will chip, but an ordinary drinking glass that goes in the dishwasher might become a candle holder some day.
I always wanted to receive a present covered in salt and chip grease. :p
John's disappointed face at the end with the scarf over his mouth and the hat on his head made my day...
John went full out Canadian with his fur tuque and maple syrup moisturizer!
i thought a tuque was one of those knit caps with a wool koosh on top
+Timothy Creighton toques are anything that's not a baseball cap.
Woot, I'm more canadian than I was before I read that
Happy Holidays and thank you.
I really liked the way John presented it, made my day! thanks !
John seems 100% done with the holidays and life hacks, which made this hilarious
awwww look at john getting all crafty. you go john
Maple syrup was a really bad surrogate for tree sap.
Tree sap sticks to you, quite literally, like superglue. Simply washing your hands won't get it off.
Maple syrup is not a substitute for tree sap, maple syrup IS tree sap.
one day we will see the mythical creature that is Meradith
Holy crap, he's so hammered... Best job ever.
If you are using a condiment bottle for frosting, I recommend heating up some water and letting the bottle of frosting sit in it for about five minutes. Makes it about a hundred times easier. At the store I work at, this is what we do.
I wrap our Christmas tree lights around a folded-up newspaper as we take them down. It keeps them from tangling and is a lot easier to store than a coffee can would be!
I love these doofy life hack episodes more than anything else. It's sad but wonderful.
Love the channeling of fellow Hoosier David Letterman at :57.
John Green is my favorite person to watch on TH-cam and Life Hacks is my favorite program to watch on TH-cam.
I'm not sure if I'm just deliriously tired from staying up writing essays but... I completely lost it for this video. There was an honest to goodness giggle fest over here.
"This was a pass but my personal work was a fail."
This is the perfect way to end every Mental Floss Life Hack video.
I miss these so much! These kind of videos are the reason I subscribed! Please do many many more 😀
i had so much hope for the ping pong christmas lights
Freddy T Me too. I was so dissapointed.
I work as a wedding stylist and the whole candles and wine glass thing is hugely popular, so many couples are requesting them as centrepieces and candle holders. Also the mason jars with sand and candles are just as popular but not for snow, mostly beach weddings, its crazy lol :)
I like how he was initially really close to pinning the nose correctly at the end but then he immediately screws up and overlaps one of his previous attempts. :P
This resulted in me laughing harder than I have in a very long time. Thank you John.
He's so freaking adorable.
I don't know what it is in this video, but John has never been funnier. Absolutely hilarious, I laughed the entire time.
John Green on TH-cam a cure to any bad day.
I love you John. Haha you are so funny. Keep being yourself. He's awesome. The crew is also awesome for the great clean video!
John, you're too funny. I've used the bread life hack before and it works, you're supposed to press down on the bread, not use it like a broom :)
Also, the candle holder life hack is an idea I found earlier this year, I'm thinking of using them as centerpieces in my wedding!
your lifehack videos are my absolute favourite, pleasepleaseplease do lots and lots more of those!
I'm watching in around August and I'm already getting a lot of ideas for Christmas decorations.
John, rubber band/hair tie on wrapping paper rolls can easily leave marks. The LED bulbs for the ping pongs have to be bright and multi-color.
I'm literally laughing hysterically at his confusion when he can't find his nose on the reindeer.
Love the Christmas themed- mental floss theme haha
Life hack 1 had a part 2... put the crisps from the crisp packet, back in reversed packet... present sorted!
American translation:
Life hack 1 had a part 2... put the chips from the chip bag back into the inside-out bag... there is your present!
Sam Atwell heh... how do Americans differentiate what we call chips and what we call French Fries? Sounds like you just called them all French Fries?!?
wacka here chips mean chips and French fries French fries. I don't think anyone calls one the other. I guess it's one of those thing that are country specific
Bass M. I spoke to an American and he clarified... you call crisps - chips, you call french fries - french fries... and you call chips - steak fries ... in English we just have:- new4.fjcdn.com/comments/3345395+_4074b95525b3405986d8f301fa95f32b.jpg
wacka What you call chips are alternatively potato wedges if you're in the South.
One of my favorite series John Green life hack test :)
I laughed at the part with the maple syrup and tooth paste. :D Made my day. :)
For the cookie icing, try microwaving the icing for like 5-10 seconds before piping it. Makes it a lot easier on your hands.
My new favourite mental floss video
A better way to decorate cookies or cakes is to use the decorating tips available in any bakery craft section (and on baking aisles). There's usually a small pack of three tips that can be found as cheap as the squeeze bottles would be. Instead of using the expensive pastry bags, cut a small hole in the corner of any ziploc type bag and insert the tip. 🎄
1:38 the original Dalek's dome lights were made the exact same way. Just a fun fact.
Apparently
Though I suspect the BBC used brighter bulbs than John's Christmas lights.
***** Exactly! I heard that they used christmas lights but evidently not; either that or they were *way* brighter back in '63.
TheRecreator There are different types. They could have been Christmas lights.
Best life hack test video so far, John!! Very entertaining while still being informative. (I laughed most of the way thru it!) ;)
John was so close initially but then he had to go for where the other noses were. Nice.
These life hack videos are my favorite. You've gotten make more of them John
Do more life hacks, they're some of my favorite videos
The coffee can and light string thing totally has merit. I put the plug end inside. I did that last year (with a large cardboard tube I got from the recycle bin at work), and my lights unrolled perfectly this year. I was able to unroll it around the tree by myself, too. I'd call it a 100% pass. A little patience to take it off the tree and roll it up as you go more than pays for itself when you are setting up for the next year.
Whahaha, I died several times during this video, but the genuine "Where did I put it" made it irreversible.
wouldn't a zip-lock bag with a corner cut off by a few millimeters make a better icing dispenser?
yes
I feel like John had a bit of the egg nog before this video. love you guys at mental floss
Haha he totally seems half cut in this video! It is in keeping with the christmas spirit
Honestly, with the candles and wine glasses, I'd probably opt to put the candle IN the glass instead of on top of it. Maybe even add salt or whatever to it - like with the Mason jars - to create a nice, stable base for the candle. But, to each their own.
I use ribbon when I wrap gifts. (I don't just slap a bow on and call it done!) So, I just tie some of that around the rolls to keep the paper from unraveling. Even yarn or twine would work. And, as suggested, I am sure a rubber band would be fine, too. No reason to start a minor craft project just to hold your paper in place unless you're really desperate and have nothing else available.
The lights on the coffee can technically work. But, yeah, I am sure it's a bigger pain in the butt than it's worth. One year, I used old bits of cardboard for wrapping/storing lights. I even cut notches into the sides of the cardboard to help hold the lights in place. That worked well enough. But, the following year, I went out and just bought a bunch of small extension cord reels. They're really durable, they work much better than cardboard, and they were less than $2 each.
It's all so Christmasy 🎄🎅🎄🎅🎄🎅🎄
For the icing, just sit the bottle in a glass of hot water for a few minutes first, it'll soften up the icing. I use it for decorating with chocolate fondant all the time at work.
in what world is maple syrup the same as fir tree resin??
that's like saying "LIFEHACK: put salt in a mason jar to look like snow. but we don't have any salt, so let's use paprika! wait a minute, red snow???? FAIL."
For those xmas lights, it's easier getting those cheap extension cord things for keeping them organized to wrap the xmas lights on
AW MAN! GREAT BILL TULL REFERENCE!!!
Anyone else think John dropped an f bomb when he said "It's just a funny hat?"
The reindeer pin was fantastic.
i've never heard of tooth paste for relieving tree sap but hand sanitizer works amazingly
for Christmas lights I just get one of those extension cord spools
I love this guy.
John sounded like he had the sniffles.
Great video, I thoroughly enjoyed it
Nothing says Happy Holidays like an inverted empty bag of potato chips. Just give me the chips!
The scarf you used as a blind fold is the same as the one i got my sister for christmas last year!
I love these life hack videos. But in my head it's called: "John Tries To Do Things: Holiday Edition".
John is definitely a few drinks down in this video.
The proper way to store Christmas lights is to wrap them around a piece of cardboard. Cut off the side of a box to make a flat rectangle. Holding the rectangle in landscape mode, cut a notch along the top no more than 2 inches from one corner (the upper left corner). Put one of the ends into the notch to hold it in place. Coil the string of lights around the board toward the other side (the right side) as snugly as you can, but not so tight that you bend the cardboard. Space each new loop around the box close enough so that you can prevent tangling. When you run out of lights, make another notch to hold the other end.
Voila.
Exactly how I do it to.:-)
For the frosting coming out of the condiment bottle: it'll be easier for the frost to be squeezed out if you cut the tip off.
you were so awkwardly adorable in this episode hahaha
2:45
if you had one more candle, it would have been fork handles
Terrible. Terrible, terrible pun. *shakes head sadly*
+Kishore Shenoy i just facepalmed so hard, my hand went through my skull
Both people seem to think you're just making a bad pun rather than a reference to a brilliant two Ronnies sketch
The coffee can trick works better if you take the lid off of the can and hold the can with one hand, while wrapping lights with the other hand, using a winding motion. :D
I love that your version of holiday cookies is Chips Ahoy
They actually make reels and storage containers for Christmas lights. My family has some and they're really easy to use. Just go to Amazon and search for Christmas light storage. One container that comes with three reels is fifteen dollars, so not bad!
this was the funniest episode in a while, many thanks my friend
I love the video. Though the "tests" could have been more thorough. For instance, bread to pick up bread...press the bread into the glass, don't wipe it. maple syrup/toothpaste...perhaps rub hands under running water? Icing in a condiment bottle...cut the bottle tip to be larger.
As far as Broken Glass is concerned.
use duct tape. It's easy.
strips of duct tape will pick up absolutely all the glass on the floor. much safer than trusting bread or a vacuum.
yes more lifehacks please
Here’s my holiday hack. Everyone gets the same present. I make a huge batch of my secret BBQ sauce, can it, and put a pretty bow on top. Everyone gets a jar. I go through a weekend’s worth of stress instead of weeks. Plus I always have extras just in case.
The best thing to remove sap from your skin is butter. I use it on my son whenever he comes in from climbing trees. It also works to get gum out of your hair!
John, you continue to do injustice to some of these hacks- I cannot tell if they really fail or your implementation is intentionally poor- who washes their hands without water? I suppose the toothpaste is intended to act as an abrasive and it needs a surfactant in order to properly be tested- don't you agree?
Hmm surfactantant... Yes i most indubitably agree
totally agree, many he marks fail are that way because of him or poor planning
Even if that would have worked the way he did it, maple syrup is nowhere near as sticky as tree sap.
*****
and tree sap is much more viscous than syrup- almost bordering on a solid depending on temperature.
Yes, and it also dries. If it's been on your hands for a while, it's pretty much solid.
I like how some are just fails because he doesn't like them. lol. So fun.
Also, I like doing the Mason Jar trick with Wine glasses instead! Have the wine glass upright, half full of salt, and put in the candle. It's gorgeous.
Don't use your best wine glass.
I use a clothes hanger (with little hooks in the shoulder area) to wrap my Christmas lights up and it has been doing a fine job.
This video made me laugh so hard. My roommate probably thought I was crazy.
Love life hacks!
To take care of the stickiness of tree sap, use Noxema.
A history focused video next time? Sweet!
for some reason John looks younger in the holiday hat. i want more life hacks
Me too I watched this video many times too!!
The ping pong ball hack is much prettier with colored lights ☺️