Does your tidy livin’ nightmare look something like this: You speed clean your home from top to bottom with the help of your trusty lemongrass solution and baking soda, only to realize that—*gasp*—your paper towels have left unsightly streaks across your windows. This sprucing snafu is about as much of a headache as dusting hard-to-reach nooks and crannies, but fortunately, one oft-recycled household item is here to save your otherwise pristine day.

According to one Redditor (thanks, cameheretorant112), the secret to using your glass cleaner sans-streaks is pairing the solution with newspaper instead of paper towels. Since your journal of choice is composed of denser, more rigid fibers than that of its softer paper counterpart, it’s less likely to separate and leave lint on your otherwise shining windows. And if you’re thinking: But wait, won’t the ink get all over the glass? The answer is no. HuffPost reports that, as of 2015, 90 percent of all newspapers had switched over to smear-free ink.

To get started, all you’ll need to do is spritz your windows as normal, and then put your newspaper to work. Apartment Therapy recommends beginning in a circular motion, then switching to horizontal and vertical strokes until your windows (or mirrors) are 100-percent transparent. But hey, you do you.

The verdict? When it comes to achieving sparkling windows, newspaper is clearly the winning product.

Did you know that toxic cleaning products can be as harmful to your body as smoking? Scary but true. Try swapping some of them out with this all-star pantry alternative instead.