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How to Clean Cookie Sheets (Goodbye Grime!)

We’re partial to the lived-in, well-loved look of a sheet pan, but if your pans are verging on unusable as opposed to “rustic,” it might be time to give them a deep clean. After years of use, baking sheets eventually build up layers of burnt-on oils, grease, and just bits of food, which become tougher with each bake to remove. The good news? Stains on your baking sheets shouldn’t affect how your cookies bake or vegetables roast. The only bad news is that they don’t make for an appetizing presentation (win some, lose some).

If you’re ready to tackle your needs-some-love sheets, try one (or all!) of the below methods to get them right back into shape (for the most part) before holiday baking is upon you.

9 Kitchen Must-Haves That Make Great Holiday Gifts

We’ve teamed up with LifeStraw to make your holiday shopping a cinch this season with a lineup of thoughtfully designed gift ideas for the kitchen—starting with the LifeStraw Home water filter pitcher.

As a food editor who also cooks a lot, I’ve put…

As a food editor who also cooks a lot, I've put all sorts of kitchen gadgets, cookware, and culinary tools to the test in my own home. Some didn’t quite meet the mark (the hands-free automatic stirrer was a nice idea, in theory), while others became staples that I simply can’t make a meal without (like my go-to chef’s knife and cutting board).

How to Fix Drafty Windows Before Winter Weather Arrives

When I purchased my first home—a 100+ year old farmhouse—one of the biggest issues we had to deal with was the windows. They were the house’s original single-pane windows, and as you might suspect, they were extremely drafty, rattling around in the win…

Not only are drafty windows inconvenient, but they can have a big impact on your heating bills during the winter. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that heat loss through windows is responsible for 25 to 30 percent of residential heating energy use, which means that fixing drafty windows can help lower your monthly utility costs. The good news, however, is that there are several ways you can stop cold air from seeping into your home, many of which are easy and affordable to implement before winter arrives.

5 Reasons I Don’t Want a Bigger Home

When I set out to write a book about small spaces, I wanted to find people like myself who had chosen to live in a smaller space (not ones who were forced to by circumstance). I was just as curious about why people were living small as I was about how they made it work. My own family could have stretched our budget to get a bigger apartment or we could have moved out to the ‘burbs, but we made a conscious choice to buy a smaller place close to where we work. We wanted to stay in the city we love, minimize our commutes, and keep our costs and stress low. As the years have gone by, I realized I don’t really want a bigger home. Here’s why I think my family will be living small for the long haul; maybe my reasons will help you see your small space in a new light:

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1. A small home keeps our costs low

Every time my husband and I start talking about looking for a bigger apartment, we quickly conclude that we don’t want to spend any more money on housing than we already do. Living small has given us financial freedom. We’re not alone in our thinking: When my book came out it was the very first weeks of the pandemic. I checked in with the individuals and families featured in my book to see how they were feeling about their small spaces now that they were spending all their time in them. Again and again, they told me they were so grateful to have rent and mortgage payments that they knew they could handle even in uncertain times. My husband and I both found ourselves temporarily unemployed and were so grateful our monthly nut was low (and that we had savings because we hadn’t been spending every penny on a bigger mortgage).

15 Stylish Desk Accessories to Make Your Office Shine

This list of the best, most stylish desk accessories is a little selfish, as it comprises all the white, gold, and acrylic office supplies that I stock in my own home. Away with dowdy black accessories and in with modern, elegant pieces. After working from home (err, couch) for the last two-and-a-half years, I want my office to feel like an extension of my aesthetic. So I’ve been on a relentless quest to replace plastic file bins with chicer versions (like this stunner from Ballard Designs) and make my Zoom background look equally snazzy. Plus, the prettier the space, the longer I’ll want to stay there working, right? Right…

From Our Shop

Modern Table Lamp $270–$420

More Styles

Yamazaki Steel & Wood 3-Tier Storage Rack $178

More Colors

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Neat Method Grid Storage Basket $34–$49

More Options

1. Ballard Designs Livy File Box, $159

There’s nothing (and I mean nothing!) exciting about organizing paperwork such as taxes, pay stubs, and other important documents. The one thing you can control? Making those forms look good. That’s where this contemporary file box comes into play. It’s made of high-quality acrylic and accented with gold handles, giving it a modern vibe that will make you want to put it on display (and maybe, just maybe, tidy your forms once and for all).

The Best Countertop Convection Ovens, According to Experts

A countertop convection oven is a workhouse in the kitchen. It can quickly reheat a cheesy slice of leftover pizza. It can roast potatoes to get them nice and crispy. It can bake ooey-gooey chocolate chip cookies or toast a simple piece of bread to be …

Convection ovens use a fan to circulate hot air around whatever food is inside. This creates a consistent cooking temperature throughout the whole oven, meaning that your food will heat up evenly. And, because of their size, countertop convection ovens heat up pretty quickly. From toasting to broiling, a countertop convection oven can handle a variety of cooking functions making it a versatile addition to any kitchen appliance collection. While you certainly can live without it, if you have any counter space to spare, a countertop oven will make your life a lot easier.

How to Use a Clothes Steamer Properly, According to the Pros

If you need to de-wrinkle a dress shirt but don’t feel like breaking out your ironing board, a garment steamer can get the job done just as well… if you know the right way to use it. Clothing steamers use hot steam—typically 200 degrees or more—to smooth out fabric and release wrinkles, and many people find them easier to use than irons, as there’s less risk of scorching your favorite clothes.

However, the best clothes steamers are only effective if you use them properly. If you don’t, you may end up with water splatter everywhere and just as many wrinkles as you started with. To ensure you get professional-grade results with your new garment steamer, we asked laundry experts Jonathon Reckles of CD One Price Cleaners and Alicia Sokolowski, president and co-CEO of AspenClean, for their best clothes steaming tips—here’s what they had to say.

The Best Milk Frothers for Creamy, Dreamy Foam

I need multiple drinks at all times. There are practical ones (hello, water) and just-for-fun drinks, like fizzy kombucha and sweet, syrupy soda. Plain and simple, you’ll rarely find me without a beverage—or two or three.

I put great care into settin…

I put great care into setting myself up for refreshment success. That means tools and accessories that make drinking anything better, like glass straws, fun cups, and when I’m in need of caffeine, a reliable milk frother.

Dry Your Own Herbs and You’ll Never Have to Buy Bottled Again

Can You Dig It is a monthly series by Kristin Guy in which a real-life garden DIY is tackled with style. Whether you’ve got an expansive outdoor plot or just a few houseplants, Kristin will inspire you to grow even more with easy-to-accomplish projects…

Can You Dig It is a monthly series by Kristin Guy in which a real-life garden DIY is tackled with style. Whether you’ve got an expansive outdoor plot or just a few houseplants, Kristin will inspire you to grow even more with easy-to-accomplish projects and horticultural know-how.

When you think about preserving summer produce, pickling and canning are typically what comes to mind. Drying tends to be an afterthought, but it can be just as powerful for saving summertime flavors! There’s something calming about the drying process, too—you quite literally have to slow down and be patient—and you can easily create your own drying tools to make this ritual even more special.

The Best Mandoline Slicers for Anyone With Zero Knife Skills

One of my favorite scenes in Ratatouille is when Remy makes the humble title dish, creating perfectly uniform slices of eggplant, tomato, and zucchini using a mandoline slicer and placing them in a casserole dish, tossing the slices in like he’s dealin…

One of my favorite scenes in Ratatouille is when Remy makes the humble title dish, creating perfectly uniform slices of eggplant, tomato, and zucchini using a mandoline slicer and placing them in a casserole dish, tossing the slices in like he’s dealing cards. The final product is a thing of beauty, and it totally made me want a mandoline.

A mandoline is a handy kitchen tool for when you want uniform slices for aesthetic or practical purposes (like if you’re making homemade french fries and want them to cook evenly), or if you’re slicing ingredients in bulk. Sure, your chef’s knife can do it all, but if consistency is the name of the game, or you’re looking to make super thin slices, it’s much easier on a mandoline.

Neat Method Rattan Basket $42–$52

Outdoor Stacking Storage Containers $32–$148

Collapsible Storage Bins $90–$110

1. A small home keeps our costs low

Modern Table Lamp $270–$420

Yamazaki Steel & Wood 3-Tier Storage Rack $178

Neat Method Grid Storage Basket $34–$49

1. Ballard Designs Livy File Box, $159