Archive for September, 2009

Now that Summer is over, the kids are back in school and the Wedding is over, I am looking to starting some new projects.  I would love to make an Autumn table runner and a new wreath for my front door (I love the wreath above from Martha Stewart.)  I better start thinking about Halloween Costumes.  And I want to make a Halloween dishtowel and pillow.

Dare I even talk about Christmas projects?  I can’t walk into a quilt shop without getting hit with Christmas Fabrics….  I saw the most wonderful fabrics for flannel pajamas for my children.  I also have wanted to make a pattern out of the retro styled advent calender I made last year  … it is just like the one my husband had when he was a boy.  And there are also Christmas present ideas rattling around in my head that I want to get started on.

I want to start on a wall hanging quilt for my son’s room.  I am thinking of designing something with a monogram “B” on it.

I have so many projects I am excited about, I can’t wait to get started.  It’s going to be a busy Fall.

I have really hard water, and it can make life difficult in the cleaning department.  I get hard water plugging up my kitchen faucet, leaving deposits in my tea kettle, and on the walls of my shower.  It’s not fun.

I could use all kinds of harsh chemicals to deal with it… but I don’t.  Because, like a lot of good cleaning solutions, the simplest one is often the best.

It’s white vinegar to the rescue.

This morning when I turned on the kitchen sink… I noticed the water was spraying a bit awry.  It happens when the little holes get all plugged up with hard water deposits.

So, I filled a little container with white vinegar and let it soak for a few minutes.

Then I pulled it out of the water, wiped it once with a sponge and that was it.  No scrubbing required.

Then because I had white vinegar in the container, I used it to soaked the tray of my water dispenser from the refrigerator, and the base of my faucet in the bathroom… waste not.

When my tea kettle gets bad, I just pour in some white vinegar and swirl it around.  Then I let it sit overnight.  The next morning I give it a rinse and it is back to being black.

I use diluted white vinegar in a spray bottle for spot cleaning carpets… and undiluted vinegar for spraying the walls of my shower and as a rinse after scrubbing my tile with baking soda.

It is pretty much my  indispensable cleaning friend.  I buy white vinegar in bulk, because there aren’t many things handier for cleaning (or making great salad dressings.)

Did I mention that it is very cheap?  Especially when you buy it in bulk at a store like Costco.

You might also enjoy reading Pioneer Woman’s account of how white vinegar saved her hair.