Dear Heloise: A friend of my mother decided to downsize to a townhome after living in her large family home for years. She decided the things that she wanted to take with her, then hired an estate sale company so as not to deal with the things that she had amassed and no longer needed over the years. After the sale was over, she called a local charity to come pick up what wasn’t sold. — Eliza Jones, in Lakewood, California

CLEANING THERMOSES

Dear Heloise: The bottom of my stainless steel coffee thermos was getting yucky. I filled the thermos halfway with water, then put one denture cleaning tablet in it. I left it standing for several hours, then shook it and rinsed it well; it was so clean! — Carolyn S. Johnson, via email

CAT LITTER BOX ODOR

Dear Heloise: If I could add a solution to the cat litter box odor question, it is to buy a new litter box. If the old one smells, it is not worth the effort to clean it when a new box is not that expensive. Here are some other suggestions:

— Use a clumping unscented litter. Some scented litters release a smell when in contact with urine, and this can be worse than the actual urine smell.

— Clean out all the clumped litter and feces often. If I’m around, I’ll do it two or three times a day. But make sure to do it at least once every day. Add more litter to replace what was removed.

— Every two to three weeks, I throw out all the litter, even if it still looks good. Then I wash the litter box with a mild soap, rinse it well, and let it dry before refilling it with brand new litter. Cleaning will do more to help than adding fresheners.

I am a retired feline veterinarian in Oklahoma. — C.E., via email

REUSING GREETING CARDS

Dear Heloise: Someone gave a hint about reusing the backs of old greeting cards for note-taking. I reuse the fronts instead! I cut off the fronts with their lovely art and glue or staple them onto plain gift bags. Sometimes I add little three-dimensional floral or butterfly stickers, too. Voila, a lovely custom gift bag!

Also, the fronts of old Christmas cards are great to apply to Christmas packages to dress them up. They can be used as a large gift tag, too. — Deb, in Arizona

THE FRENCH TUCK

Dear Heloise: A shirt tucked only into the front is called a “French tuck.” I suspect it was started by fashion ad photographers who wanted to show off how the jean or skirt front looks while the model is wearing a top that’s meant as an overblouse. — Lee B., via email

PET PAL

Dear Heloise: The top left is Ariel (an English Bulldog), who is 14 months. To the right is Tinkerbell (an English Bulldog), who is almost 8 years old. Next is Nala (a Frenchie), who is 5 years old, and Elsa (a Frenchie), who is nearly 1 year old.

I also have a question: What is the best homemade solution to clean dog urine from pillows and bedding? The little ones are almost potty-trained, but sometimes they have accidents. — A Reader, via email

Thanks for your letter! Hopefully my readers will sound off with their solutions to your question.

Readers, to see Ariel, Tinkerbell, Nala and Elsa, as well as our other Pet Pals, go to Heloise.com and click on “Pet of the Week.”

Do you have a furry friend to share with our readers? Send a photo and a brief description to Heloise@Heloise.com. — Heloise