How did you go in your laundry last week? Did you give it a good scrub and re-organise things that may have been gathering in the wrong place, or dispose of anything excess?
You know, regardless how many of you are following along with the weekly tasks I've set myself, the results in our home have been wonderful.
Last week I showed you the 'before' photos of our small laundry (you can see them here) but today I am happy to share pics of a much brighter and cheery laundry room.
I bought a couple of lovely baskets - one to hold cleaning rags (the ones I made here plus a few more which were gifted from a friend) and the washing machine cleaner, and the other to hold washing powder and colour catcher sheets.
My peg apron is finished and went into service successfully last week, but then the rain came back and we've had to use the indoor drying rack over the weekend.
The peg bag which hangs beside the laundry sink was made about two years ago and holds pegs for indoor drying.
The pretty little china cup with the yellow rose has for many years been my measuring cup for washing powder. I read once that the laundry should be a place you love to be so why not use a pretty cup for the washing powder. I thought that was the loveliest idea!
I hung some colour on the walls and added plants in the room too.
The other side of the back door holds the pull out drawers my husband installed when we first moved in because there is no storage in the laundry at all. Beside it sits the indoor kitchen-scraps tub (which is eventually added to the compost) which until this weekend was see-through and an ugly sight from the kitchen which adjoins the laundry.
So glad we've swapped it for a large white lidded bucket, and I've popped a nice plant on top too.
Blossom stitched this for me many years ago and it's perfect in the laundry where it helps to brighten a very beige room (I'm not a beige girl)...I've hung it beside the window above that white bucket and plant. Previously it was in the sewing room but I much prefer here where I can see it every day from the kitchen.
Atop the drawers I have another basket with large cleaning cloths and a pretty tin with medium size cloths, some essential oils on a vintage plate which I use for cleaning, plus a jar of bi-carb and lavender oil which is sprinkled on the rugs every so often before vacuuming (smells divine and kills pet odour) and of course a spare iron.
The baskets on top of the washing machine sit over a table runner I made completely by hand when I taught myself to quilt, applique and embroider in a wintry cabin atop a mountain range in 2005. It holds deep sentiment and because it has faded so much over the years I've often thought about making it again but I know it won't be the same so I treat this one with care.
A couple of other things I did whilst going over the laundry was to make a new batch of Miracle Spray and another cleaner I use on the gasket of the washing machine.
I will decant the Miracle Spray into a spray bottle tomorrow as I'll be finishing the last of it's contents on the kitchen bench tops and around the stove top after dinner tonight.
So, I did spend a bit of money 'fixing up' my rather beige and boring laundry, but not too much.
The three baskets were bought from K-Mart at $10 each, and there's a new pink washing basket (the old one had a broken handle), also $10.
The large white lidded scraps bucket was $14.
Total of my laundry makeover was $54 and well spent. It's a far cheerier space in the home now, the tub and taps sparkle and everything is nicely organised.
This week's TASK:
Clean your washing machine - that means the lint trap, the drum, the detergent dispenser, top and sides, and also that very important gasket (if you have a front loader).
My washing machine cleaner is made from 99% vinegar and a mix of tea tree oil and lavender.
I use a damp rag to wipe the gasket (it's that rubber seal on the door of the washer)...
...and then I spray with my natural washing machine cleaner, leave it a few minutes, and with another damp rag (or two) I scrub out all the gunk which tends to accumulate every couple of months.
To finish I wipe down the inside and outside of the door and then run a hot rinse adding a cup of white vinegar inside first.
This will be my task tomorrow and once it's done I can truly say my laundry is spick and span.
Will you take the challenge?
When Blossom was pregnant with Cully May she decluttered the tiny cottage they were living in at the time and brought me a pile of old towels to see if they could be re-purposed.
I spent an afternoon adding pretty fabric trims to her old white towels by using up scraps of quilt binding left over from years of projects.
The towels were stained but still serviceable so we decided they could be re-purposed as bath mats, change table mats, cleaning cloths and dish cloths. You know, Cully May is three and half now and those re-purposed towels are still in service.
If you'd like a trip down memory lane you can see my tutorial back HERE and perhaps be inspired to give your old towels a new life?
We've had so much wet season rain that the garden is a pond and the swimming pool overflows a few times each day so Mr E has to pump out the excess water.
Of course our trees and plants love a good soaking and as this is nearing the end of our current wet season we're gratefully accepting every drop that falls from the sky.
But did you know that rain water is wonderful for your indoor plants too?
I have around 40 indoor plants now so over two days I put them outside in lots of 20 or so and left them to be completely soaked and flushed by the rain. Rain water flushes the soil in those pots and revitalises the plants. Every year I do this and the result is stronger, happier, healthier plants. It's also the only way I can get my peace lilies to flower.
I hope today's Homemakers Heart post has inspired you in some way. I am looking with new eyes at my home this year and it's giving me such joy to focus on one space at a time and make it pleasing to our eyes, and sparkly clean too.
I have a few recipes to share with you but I'll do that later in the week because my beloved is due home within the hour and I must be away to start dinner.
God bless your precious hearts and may you find His generous nature extends to more than your needs but also to your creative ideas and your ability to see them through.
big hugs
