Jolie Kerr is a cleaning expert, advice columnist and author of the New York Times bestselling book, My Boyfriend Barfed In My Handbag ... And Other Things You Can’t Ask Martha. Her flagship column, “Ask a Clean Person”, debuted in 2011. Here on Lifehacker, we’ve launched a new iteration of it, focusing on parenting and all the messes it brings.

Tips and tricks come at you when you least at expect them. Just last week, I was unwinding from a hard day of hacking food with an episode of the new Queer Eye, when food expert/T-shirt aficionado/new Ted Allen Antoni Porowski told whatever straight dude he was working on (they all blend together) that a little coconut oil would de-stink even the most garlicky hands.

Whether you're frugal, environmentally conscious, or just love an efficiency challenge, there are a lot of reasons to save your food scraps. Well, mostly to make stock out of. And to compost the rest. But some of your scraps are good for more than just boiling for soup -- they can also be the starting place for a clever air freshener.

If your kitchen didn't come with an exhaust fan, you may feel like you have to forgo cooking certain foods that tend to linger, smell-wise. Luckily, your frying and high-heat searing days are not behind you, as there are several strategies you can implement to de-stink and freshen up after a particularly pungent meal.

The human nose can detect more than one trillion distinct scents, but it isn't so great at picking up your own odours. There's always a chance you reek something foul and just don't realise it. If that's a fear of yours, here's how you can find out for sure.

I have a nice pair of over-the-ear, noise-cancelling headphones that I wear almost every day. The thing is, I wear them for so long they often develop their own damp, humid atmosphere. And sometimes they get a little smelly. Gross, I know, but I've found an easy solution.

There are a ton of products that can fight odours and freshen up your place, but you can also make your own pretty easily. This DIY baked air freshener smells great, is easy to make and uses up leftovers.

Your sense of smell is one of those things you can easily take for granted. If you want to improve the sensitivity of your nose, here are three useful tips to keep in mind.

If you're a cat owner you know how stinky litter boxes can get. Turns out the odour-fighting power of bicarbonate of soda can help you out there too.

If you're looking for a simple way to fight off funky odours in your home, all you need is some car vent air freshener sticks.

Refrigerators can start smelling pretty funky after a few years of use. If you want to rid your fridge and freezer of lingering smells once and for all, this deep cleaning regimen will get the job done.

You buy some fish at the store, toss it in the fridge and forget about it for a few days -- until a very distinct smell reminds you that it's there. Don't toss it out just yet. It's still edible and there's a few ways to make it smell and taste more appealing.

A bad case of garlic breath can ruin a date, even if you both have it. These foods, if eaten after a garlic-y dish, might be able to save the day.

From fried fish to a filthy litterbox, most smells in your home are fairly easy to pinpoint. There are, however, more insidious aromas that linger and seem impossible to eliminate, no matter how many bottles of air freshener you unleash. To keep these odours from taking over your home, first you have to identify them.

Video: Silica gel packets come with some food, electronics and other products, but you probably toss them in the bin. Well, if you're tired of your gym bag smelling like old meat, here's a reason to save them.

Some shoes are better to wear without any socks, especially in the summer months. Whether you like to wear flats, boat shoes, sandals or loafers, here are some tips to help you keep your shoes from smelling nasty when you strut your stuff sockless.

You can do all kinds of cool things with citrus peels other than tossing them. Next time you peel an orange, lemon, or grapefruit, toss those peels in your dishwasher.

Video: We've talked about other ways to get rid of household smells, but who would have guessed you could add fresh onion to your odor-fighting arsenal?