Keep the Cleaning in Perspective: 5 Tips to Help You Get Started

I was thinking about it this morning, while my husband and I were enjoying a lovely cup of coffee together (well, he's not a coffee drinker - he was drinking tea instead) that life is about so many other things BESIDES the house cleaning.

So, today's post is all about keeping your cleaning in CONTEXT with the rest of your life. For example - if I'd had to choose between emptying the dishwasher this morning, or having a nice lazy chat with my husband - I would choose the lovely chat each and every time. He matters a whole lot more to me than a few lousy cleaned-up dishes.

So, here are a few tips to keep your cleaning in perspective...and at the same time get started with the Happy Slob's Housecleaning Methods and keep going with it once you have started.

1. Buy a copy of my book: The Happy Slob's Guide to Housecleaning . It's the logical first step when you get started with my easy 3 Step Cleaning Solution, because you'll have all the help you need whenever you want it. Delivery is INSTANT, so you'll get the info you need the moment you pay for it.
2. Start gradually - I often recommend starting with one daily cleaning burst in the morning or evening...and then going from there.
3. Don't get too discouraged - Hey, life happens! As a matter of fact, it happens on a daily basis, so sometimes the bathroom won't get as thoroughly cleaned, or the leaves in the yard won't get raked on a particular day. Try to remember the things you have managed to accomplish during the day and focus on that instead. Haven't been able to accomplish much? That's okay too -- just aim for a small goal the next day and accomplish it.
4. Reward your good efforts - Let's say you manage to do a cleaning burst each day for a week AND one of the focus rooms. :) Hey, I'm very proud of you to start with. And you should be too. Reward yourself in some small, but meaningful way -- maybe treating yourself to a luxury coffee at your corner coffeeshop, or splurging on some lovely new perfume.
5. Get the Family Involved - Family or roomies apply here - get them involved and DON'T NAG! Instead, show them that you're committed to this new way of cleaning. Watching you will often be enough to help them try more -- and then praise them for their help. Hey, wouldn't YOU feel more motivated to help more if you got lots of praise afterward? Reward your family or roommates too, when they've helped out around the house. Little gifts, their favorite baked goodies or other little 'thank yous' should suffice nicely.

Keep the cleaning in perspective, slobbos. :) So many other things matter more than a pristine floor or crumb-free countertop. Just keep trying, and you'll amaze yourself with how much you can do.

P.S. :) No, this isn't an excuse to not do any work...I just get a lot of emails from you guys when you get discouraged, and I wanted to give you a little pep talk to get your day started on the right foot.

A Sweet Note of Thanks from Tazz

A sweet email I received from Tazz:

"Just a note to let you know how much I appreciate your labor of love and how helpful your tips are me. You are doing a wonderful job and I send you my thanks and appreciation."

Thanks so much Tazz. :) Your email made my day...and I just wanted to share it with everyone.
Hugs,
Christina

Buy Christina's book: 'The Happy Slob's Guide to Housecleaning' today!

Crazy Cleaning Tips: Cleaning with Coke/Coca Cola

Maybe you love Coke, and maybe you don't. But I've got a secret for you - Coke is a fabulous cleaner! Coke works especially well for cleaning stubborn toilet stains - ewwwww, right? I know - but it's true! Coke has phosphorous acid, meaning that over time it can eat through metal. (Thankfully the acid in our stomach is mighty too!)

To try using Coke to clean the toilet, simply pour one can of regular Coke into the toilet bowl. Let the Coke sit and do it's stain-fighting action thing for about 45 minutes. Give it a good scrub out with a toilet brush and then flush the toilet - you'll see an amazing difference.

Coke can also be used to clean tub and tile - if it works on a ceramic toilet, it should work equally well on those sufaces. :) Now, I never drink the stuff (I'm more an orange juice or iced tea kind of gal) but I'm going to get some and try this out and let you all know how it works!

Hugs to you slobbos,
Christina

Happy Slob Cleaning Tips Galore

A GREAT Tip for Keeping Socks Together in the Laundry

Deanna wrote:

I burned out the motor on my washing machine, when it
sucked a sock into the pump. After that I got the
large delicates bags, and gave one to each person to
put their socks in when taking off. Now they just go
into the washer in those. It keeps all the socks
together so theoretically no more lost socks (ha ha),
and they don't get sucked into the pump on the washer.
And also it saves time when it comes to sorting and
folding the socks..a 2 for 1 tip :).

Thanks Deanna - I love those 2 for 1 tips, and isn't it frustrating when those mysterious socks just wander away? :) This absolutely helps solve the Missing in Action Sock Mystery! Thanks for sending this in!


Helpful Household Hints Everyday

Cleaning Screen Doors - Easy Solution

Hi all,

You know how screen doors get sort of matted with dirt, and pretty disgusting? Well, an easy way to clean them is to take your vacuum cleaner and using the upholstery attachment (or just the regular extension attachment) suck all that dirt and muck away! It'll leave you with a nice clean screen door.

Remember -- I love hearing your cleaning stories, jokes and adventures, so send an email to me anytime at christina@happyslob.com


The Happy Slob's GUIDE to Housecleaning - the Manual You Need to Get Started

Does Vinegar Kill Germs and Mold?

This is one of the most common questions I get asked, since I'm a huge fan of using vinegar as a cleaner...

(A simple Very Vinegar Cleaning Recipe -- 1 part white vinegar to 4 or 5 parts water, swished together in a clean plastic spray bottle. You can add a few drops of dishwashing liquid to that if you so choose. More cleaning recipes available all the time at http://www.happyslob.com/cleaningrecipes.html)

Does vinegar kill germs and mold?

The remarkable answer (and truthful one) is - YES!

Heinz company spokesperson Michael Mullen references numerous studies to show that a straight 5 percent solution of vinegar—such as you can buy in the supermarket—kills 99 percent of bacteria, 82 percent of mold, and 80 percent of germs (viruses). He noted that Heinz can't claim on their packaging that vinegar is a disinfectant since the company has not registered it as a pesticide with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). However, it seems to be common knowledge in the industry that vinegar is powerfully antibacterial. Even the CBS news show 48 Hours had a special with Heloise reporting on tests from The Good Housekeeping Institute that showed this.

Cleaning the Floor even with Physical Limitations

If you have any sort of physical limitation that prevents you from easily cleaning your floor, I have good news for you. :) It needn't be as difficult as you might imagine to wash your floors. Here are a few helpful tips to encourage you to give it a try:

• Keep a chair nearby for when you get too tired
• Try doing small sections of your floors at a time. As we Happy Slobs always say - lots of little efforts equal great results in the end.
• A super easy way to wash the floors -- put on a clean pair of sports socks and spray some vinegar spray cleaner on them. Just use your feet to wash the floor - scuffling along in your socked feet. You'll get your floor amazingly clean pretty quickly this way!
• You can use a mop to clean the floor - while sitting in a chair! You can use a wheel-y office chair for this purpose, or just move a regular chair once you've finished a section.
• Try using one of the new all-in-one mop/cleaners which make cleaning even easier. And since the mop and cleaning solution are all in one, you won't need to haul around a lot of equipment to get those floors nice and clean.

Reward yourself for the efforts you make. :) Any effort at all is worth far more than no effort whatsoever. Try to focus on what you CAN do, rather than what you feel you can't. And hey - I'm very proud of you!

Christina

Oops - forgot the link to that Lavender Linen Spray Recipe!

:) As mentioned in my previous post, this is a lovely way to add a natural scent of sleepifying lavender to your bed:
http://www.happyslob.com/lavenderspray.html

So simple to make your own - why spend a ton on pricey commercial sprays?

Easy & Fast Bed Making Tips for Happy Slobs

Hi all,

What's nicer at the end of a long day than crawling into a lovely, cozy bed? It's not nearly as hard as you might think to get that wonderful reward every night! Here are my simple steps to making a bed:

• Start with clean linens -- it seems obvious, but you'll need to wash those sheets every week or two. (Every week is best.)
• Remove top sheet (the un-fitted one) and any blankets or comforters. My favorite way to keep bedmaking REALLY fast & easy is to have a fitted sheet, a top sheet and then a big old fluffy duvet. Too many blankets really cramps my Happy Slob Style.
• Spread the top sheet on, tucking in around the edges
• Throw the cozy duvet on (okay, if you have other blankies - put those on first!) and straighten it up
• Fluff up your pillows and add that on the top of the bed, along with any decorative cushions. Yes, I do like lots of extra pillows to make my bed seem luxurious.
• Want an extra lovely touch? How about a little spray of Homemade Lavender Linens Spray? Just spray a bit on the bed and it makes it smell amazingly sleep-worthy. :)
• Want to surprise your loved one? Whether it's your mate or your child, try popping a little gift on their pillow while they're away during the day and see the surprise and joy on their faces when they realize you did that for them - JUST because you love them so much! (A little wrapped chocolate would do nicely!)

Directory of Household Hints

Do you love household hints as much as I do? I've discovered and created many MANY household hints over the years and now they're getting their own online home at: Household Hints Directory.

Please drop by and bookmark the page and visit often as I'll be posting these on a regular basis. :) And if you're a hint collector, then please send me a few of your favorites to add - you can email them to christina@happyslob.com

Thanks!
Christina

Homemade Oxy Clean Recipe

I'm excited about this one. :) Because I know that a lot of you still like using this stuff - but I've come up with an alternative for you to try! Big thanks to the reader who submitted this homemade cleaning recipe.

HOMEMADE OXYCLEAN
* 1 cup hot water
* 1/2 cup baking soda
* 1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide
Mix ingredients. To use on clothes, soak the clothing in it for 20
minutes to overnight; then wash as usual

I plan on trying it for the 1st time tonight! If any of you give it a try, please post your results here or send them to me at christina@happyslob.com . Thanks!

Uncluttering Mini Projecf of the Day...and LOOK UP!

We're just so used to seeing our homes through our eyes. Which, of course, makes a lot of sense -- we can't exactly BORROW someone else's eyes to use.

Or...CAN we? When tackling a decluttering project, try your hardest to look at the area you're working on as if you're seeing it for the very first time. If you saw it in someone else's home, what would be your 1st impression? (Yikes, harsh I know!)

And...LOOK UP. There is a surprising amount of space to be used when you look UP in your homes. For instance, one of my next uncluttering projects is to tidy the tops of my kitchen cabinets, where there's LOADS of extra storage space just waiting to be utilized. :) Right now it's a rather untidy assortment of pots and boxes, but I plan on making it look 100x better!

Today's Decluttering Mini Project

Choose one drawer or cabinet to work on - empty it out COMPLETELY and then:

1. Trash the junk
2. Reclycle whatever you can
3. Give away what is useful but that you don't need
4. Return the items you DO need to the drawer/cabinet tidily

When re-organizing, keep in mind to keep often-used items closest to hand. For instance, when I decluttered my bathroom cabinet, I kept all the day-to-day items nearest the front so we can just grab them whenever we need them without sending out a search party! For us, that means that my husband's electric shaver, my hair stuff, and band-aids (hey, we're both clutzes) are now in easy reach whenever we need them!

New Oxi Detergent Balls - Have YOU Tried Them?

I haven't had an opportunity to try those new snazzy Oxi Detergent Balls yet. I'm curious if any Happy Slob Housecleaners HAVE. Please let me know YOUR opinions, so I can post them here on the blog for all and sundry to see! (Email me at christina@happyslob.com)

A Good Morning Routine

For most of us, our morning routines are easy to sum up in a single word: MADNESS!

So, what is a Happy Slob Housecleaner to do? Simple. You need a routine. And a morning cleaning burst will help tremendously to get the day started right.

Make it a goal this week to work on streamlining your morning routines. Make a list of what you need to get done every morning, and then work on adding at least a few minutes of time for a cleaning burst in there somewhere. :) Keep it realistic - if you really CAN only spare 5 minutes, then great! Also decide what you can accomplish in that time, and what will have the greatest impact on improving your day.

Find simple tips to streamline your morning routine, by doing things like:

• Having the kids' clothes ready the night before
• Doing your NIGHTLY cleaning burst the night before, so there's less to do and worry about in the morning
• Get bowls, spoons, plates, etc ready and on the table so that breakfast is a breeze
• Decide on your own outfit for the next day the night before
• Getting up 10 minutes early to have quiet time to yourself to just relax

Have more morning tips, slobbos? :) I'd sure appreciate them! Email them to me at christina@happyslob.com OR just post a comment here on the blog.

Hugs,

Christina

2 Easy Ways to Disinfect and Clean Toothbrushes

Now, once your toothbrushes are really old and icky, then it's time to clean them like this and then send them off to your Cleaning Kit as helpful mini cleaning tools.

But, for disinfecting, sanitizing and cleaning your toothbrushes now (the ones you just want to clean thoroughly and re-use) try these two tips:

1. Soak in hydrogen peroxide for about fifteen minutes, and then rinse with boiling water and allow to cool before using. (Or else risk a burnt tongue - yyyyyyouuuuch!)

2. Sanitize your toothbrushes in the dishwasher. Yep, it's true - it really does work! It sounds sort of icky, but this was a tip sent in to me by a reader, and I think it's brilliant. Even though it might look like you're a bit eccentric to visitors when you reach into the dishwasher and remove a...toothbrush. :) But we slobbos tend to care very little about eccentric impressions!

When in Doubt - Try Baking Soda

When in doubt about almost ANY type of cleaning job or stain, there is very little that can go wrong when you try baking soda.

I use a baking soda paste to clean tough stains off the wall, to scrub sinks and tubs clean, to deodorize the kitty litter box, to clean the carpet (and freshen it up at the same time) and much more.

Get yourself a HUUUUUGE box of baking soda, because as a Happy Slob Housecleaner you're going to need it. :)

Hugs to you all,
Christina

PS. You can also feel GOOD about using baking soda to clean. It's easier on the health of you and your family and pets, and healthier for the environment too.

Do you guys know about this?

Do all of you know that in addition to this fabulous blog, I have a very different blog at The Kitchen Crafts 'n' More Blog ? If you've never taken a moment to visit, please do so today! I post new recipes & household hints almost every single day. :) I gladly take submissions too, so if you have a recipe or idea to share, please email it to me at christina@happyslob.com

Happy Slob's Bargains: Shoes and Bath Stuff

:) Both make me smile! On my Happy Slob's Bargain Blog today I share two STUNNING pairs of shoes at amazing discounts. AND...three picks to jazz up your boring bathroom, at an amazing price. Enjoy!

Speaking of Vinegar: Great Apple Cider Vinegar Tip for Winter

My husband is currently suffering with a nasty cold, and I've been researching natural remedies. :) I happened to find this one that I wanted to share with all of you...

When you first begin to feel a cold coming on - drink a little apple cider vinegar (1-2 tbsps) in a bit of water a few times a day. Apparently it helps to balance your body's natural pH, which gets misaligned when you have a cold. You can also use it in lukewarm water as a throat gargle to reduce sore throats!

A New Way to Use Vinegar: Freshen Up Bread Boxes

After a while, bread boxes begin to smell a bit musty and stale. An easy solution is to wipe down the inside with diluted vinegar - about half water and half vinegar. Leave open to dry. :) It'll freshen the box right up!

Hooray: A Natural Essential Oil to Kill Dust Mites

This isn't an entirely pleasant thought, but it sure does keep a Happy slob changing the bed linens - dust mites live in our bedding, and if we don't do a proper job cleaning the linens, well...let's just say it's not very pretty.

Many people are very allergic to dust mites too, adding a new dimension to this cleaning dilemma. How can you successfully get rid of dust mites? (In fact, it's important to get rid of their eggs and droppings - the source that causes the true allergic reaction in most people.)

New research shows that eucalyptus oil is a fantastic, natural way to combat these microscopic foes. According to one allergy newsletter, soaking your bed linens in this mixture will kill 99% of dust mites, compared to only (gasp!) 2.4% when washed normally:

• Soak the blankets/sheets for 60 minutes in this solution:
• 6 tablespoons eucalyptus oil , 1 1/2 tablespoons regular liquid clothing detergent, all together in 13 gallons of water.

Hope this helps all you allergy sufferers! If you don't have allergies, but still like the idea of killing all of those nasty little critters, try adding a tablespoon or two of eucalyptus oilto your regular laundry. It should also help a lot.

A Few Simple Ways to Use Essential Oils for Cleaning

Now that you know how to buy essential oils, you'd likely appreciate a few handy ways to use these naturally extracted oils! ;) Your wish is my command. Here are a few simple ideas for using essential oils in your day-to-day 3 Step Solution Cleaning Routine

1. In your dishwashing liquid - Add a boost of delicious, natural scent AND antiseptic properties to your plain old dishwashing soap. Add a few drops of essential oils such as oregano, tea tree oil, or lavender to accomplish this. This soap can also be used for other things besides washing dishes - it's great, for instance, for washing down walls.
2. Washing the floors - Yes, we love our regular vinegar cleaner for washing down floors. (About 1 cup in a bucketful of water will do the trick nicely.) But, adding a dozen drops of lemon oil will add extra grease-fighting power AND will make things smell a lot fresher than that pickle jar vinegar alone! You could also try orange essential oil, if orange is your citrus scent of choice (as it is mine lately.)
3. Added to our Very Vinegar Spray - Again, about 12 drops of lemon essential oil will add a special citrusy boost to our regular Very Vinegar Spray, the Happy Slob's cleaner of choice. (For any newbies -- it's just 1 part plain white vinegar to about 4-5 parts plain water, swooshed together in a clean plastic spray bottle.)

Visit http://www.happyslob.com - the Happy Slob's home online!

Finding Good Essential Oils (for Cleaning) at Reasonable Costs

Essential oils are well, essential for healthful, natural cleaning. :) Meaning that we happy slobs love using real EOs in our cleaning formulas! But, how can you find good quality essential oils at a decent price?

Here are a few tips to help you on your search:

• Online sources can offer excellent prices - so keep this option in mind when buying EOs.
• Purchase relatively small quantities, so that you can use the oils while they're still fresh and potent.
• Purchase oils that have been contained in amber or cobalt colored glass bottles. Clear bottles will not protect the delicate oils from damage.
• Price is not THE only option - paying a little more can often mean getting a far better product. Well worth the extra cost!
• eBay is a great source for essential oils -- try a search for EO or essential oils, or the name of whatever type of oil you're specifically looking for.
• When dealing with online essential oil vendors, send an email with your questions. Reputable and knowledgeable dealers will gladly write back and be able to answer your questions.
• Once you find a good supplier of EOs, stick with them. :) It'll be a long and happy (and healthy!) relationship.

So Many Pies, So Little Time...

A delicious diversion for you. :) How about doing a little baking? On my Pie Recipes Blog I've just listed some amazingly delish new pie recipes for you to try:

• Amaretto Fudge Pie
• Apple Delight Pie
• Banana Caramel Pie
• Bake sale Lemon Meringue Pie
• Almond Topped Pear Pie

and many more! It's freezing cold HERE today - perfect pie baking weather. :) Yummalooo!

What is a Great Comfort to YOU?

I'm trying to figure out what some of my favorite rewards for a cleaning job well done are...here are a few of mine:

• A hot bubble bath with candles on. Especially vanilla or Orange Smoothie bubble bath, thank you very much.
• Gourmet chocolates in some pretty box so that it feels ultra pampering.
• Good books. I have the bookshelves to prove how comforting I find books! :)
• A big mug of steaming hot coffee.
• A pampering treatment at the spa. (VERY occasionally - a nice splurge treat once in a blue moon.)

Now - how do the rest of you treat yourselves when you've stuck to your 3 Step Solution to Cleaning?

Post a comment and inspire all of us to treat ourselves!

5 Reasons Why You Need the Happy Slob's Guide to Housecleaning

1. Because you're a WEE bit of a slob. :) Just like I am naturally; yet I still taught myself how to clean.
2. It's the friendliest cleaning book ever written. I'd rather poke myself in the eye than make you feel bad about not being a cleaning guru! (And REALLY - if you could be a guru, wouldn't you rather be a more glamorous guru than a cleaning guru???)
3. It teaches you glorious, simple ways to replace all the chemical cleaners in your home with natural options. :) It's worth it for that reason alone.
4. Because I'll be eternally grateful to you for your lovely generosity. :) No, really I will.
5. Because you'll learn simple, new ways of looking at housecleaning. It's laid back, fun and functional all at the same time. Your home will look better, you'll feel better BEING at home, and your family will notice the difference.

Read more reasons why you need The Happy Slob's Guide to Housecleaning

Clean out that Purse/Handbag/Knapsack/Wallet

:) I'm getting rather bossy now aren't I? I just re-read the subject line and that sounded like a direct command. Sheesh. I'm rolling my eyes at myself - so feel free to join in on mocking me.

Today is a great time to clean out the wallet/handbag that you use the most often. I just did this today and it prompted me to remind all of you guys to give it a go, too. Dump the contents out (how DOES so much junk get in there in the first place???) and recycle or throw out the stuff you really don't need and reorganize the rest. Your purse/handbag/knapsack/wallet will look a lot better for this bit of effort. AND, you won't embarrass yourself by having unmentionables fall out at the checkout! (I had this happen recently. That poor young male cashier will never be the same...)

Stain Removal: Getting out Nasty Yellowish Stains from Shirts

When you talk about attractive, the first thing that pops into your mind is likely those huge, garish yellow stains under the arms of your favorite light-colored shirt. NOT! Oh, I hate those stains. It always makes me feel like I'm an over-perspiring freak!

But, it's often the chemicals in anti-perspirant that are the cause of those stains; not your fault at all! And, they're not as hard to get rid of as you might think:

In the sink or a bucket (or whatever other container you so wish to choose) pour in a cup of vinegar and fill the bucket with enough cool water to submerge the garments. Let it soak for a half hour of so before throwing it into a regular load of laundry. Some people even suggest adding 1/2 cup of regular table salt to the mix for good measure. (To the bucket I mean, not the laundry load.)

If you don't have time to do this, dab the stain with undiluted white vinegar before washing, and it should also help get rid of the ugly yellow underarm stain monsters! Be gone, you beasts!

Have a tip to share? Or, anything else you're just DYING to see on the Happy Slob blog? By all means, send it on to me (Christina) at christina@happyslob.com and I'll do my darnedest to get it on the blog pronto.

Using Shelves for Organization: 3 Types of Shelving to Try

Here are some suggestions to get your creative organizational juices flowing, slobbo dears. :) Remember, the type of shelves don't matter as much as the fact that you need to figure out WHERE to put them, and WHAT needs to go on them.


In the Bathroom - Glass Shelves
Oh, the bathroom. It's supposed to be our spa at home, right? An oasis of peace and serenity...yeah, right! For most of us it's a cluttered, disorganized mess. :) That will change with a bit of decluttering AND a few handy shelves to house the stuff you really do need and use.

Glass shelves in the bathroom will fit just about any decorating scheme - from traditional to modern. They're a beautiful, almost floating way to display items. Here is a beautiful one:




Get inspiring ideas on using shelves like this from home decorating stores and decorating magazines. (You don't even need to buy them if you don't want to -- just borrow some from the library!)


In the Kitchen:
Anything from French-inspired wrought iron shelves to more classical wooden shelves are fabulous in the kitchen. They can become handy spice racks, a place to store your favorite cookbooks, or even extra storage space for cups and glasses. Here's one style that caught my fancy on my search:




It's an on-the-wall wine shelf! Fab usage of space,if you ask me! ;) And there's still enough room to hold a few plants to add character and a burst of greenery to your kitchen space.

(P.S. I have to say - I find Ikea a fantastic place to get inspired for shelving in the kitchen and around the home! If you have an Ikea around where you live, it is well worth a visit.)
In the Study/Library
Let's be honest - most of us don't have a separate study or library! (I certainly don't.) But, shelving is the logical and beautiful way to show off your collection of books, without cluttering up your home.


Anywhere Else


On my search for fantastic shelves, I found this unique option: a wall-mounted shelf with built in baskets. Wonderful for storing clutter away when you're not ready to deal with it yet!

Clutter Stresses Me Out, Man

Too much junk in your home? We Happy Slobs LOVE collecting stuff. And, the emotional, sentimental slobs among us (hey, I'm guiltier than most!) attach all sorts of memories and emotions to even the most UN-sentimental of junky items. Therefore, we seem to collect inordinate amounts of STUFF that clutters our homes and our lives.

But, ask yourself this: "Does all this STUFF make me happy?" "Do I find my home a restful place to be?" Or "Am I stressed out by all this clutter?"

Clutter DOES stress us out, so be a bit relentless when dealing with it. Today's tip on DECLUTTERING and ORGANIZATION is: use shelving.

Shelving can make previously unused (and un-thought of) space very functional! Once you've decluttered a space (meaning you've gotten rid of the stuff you really don't need) then you need to re-organize that space to make it functional. Shelving is a fantastic way of utilizing this space. So, today, I'm sharing with you three of my favorite shelving types that you can use all over your home. :) You'll find that in the next post - enjoy!

Hugs to you all,
Christina

Removing Musty Odors from Fridges and Freezers - Beyond Baking Soda

Sure, baking soda is a Happy Slob Housecleaner's best friend. And, of course it's fabulous at removing odors naturally - which is why you see so many boxes of open baking soda inside the fridges of the world.

But, did you know there's another amazing way to reduce musty, smelly odors in your fridges and freezers? Coffee grounds! Pour some coffee grounds into a cheesecloth sock (sounds fancy, huh? it's just a square piece of cheesecloth that is tied up with kitchen twine or string) and attach somewhere in the interior of the fridge or freezer.

Those coffee grounds will amazingly soak up all sorts of icky smells. :) And hey, if at first there's a little coffee scent in the fridge - that's a GOOD thing in my book!

Hugs to you slobbos,
Christina

P.S. Did you guys know that I have a Coffee Blog with more coffee hints and tips? TONS of delightful recipes to try too - just for the caffeine dependant among us. :)

Cleaning is Fun - and Pretty Darn Cheap, too

Hey all,

:) How are you guys doing today? I was sitting here drinking my cup of tea, and pondering what to talk about today on the blog. Then, an idea popped into me wee little mind -- cleaning is actually pretty decent therapy, PLUS it's cheap.

Not sure what I mean on either count? Well, if I'm feeling a bit frustrated with life, scrubbing the sink or toilet is actually quite a tension reliever. And - have you ever thought about how CHEAP it is to do all of your own cleaning using the Happy Slob's Housecleaning Methods? Basically, we rely on our own steam power (coffee induced, no doubt), and the rest is cheapo products like baking soda, vinegar and even literal steam! (Steam is one of my favorite tools for getting the shower clean - quicker and easier than using TOO much elbow grease, if you ask me.)

So, even though we happy slobs might not be entirely THRILLED all the time to clean, at least we know there are all sorts of benefits. And hey, tension release and saving a few bucks are pretty decent side benefits to a cleaner, more serene home.

Get Your Cookware Sparkling Clean - a Product I LOOOOOVE

At the kitchenwares shop where I work, we sell a ton of Barkeeper's Friend Cleanser. All-Clad recommends it for their posh pots & pans, to get it truly spotless and sparkling. It's amazing to clean out sinks. And...many swear by it to clean the tops of their smooth top ovens. One can of this stuff does a whole lot around the house.



A hint for you? Pick up a few cans of this stuff when you order some, because undoubtedly your friends will snag a can from you when they come visiting! hehe





Do you have a use for Barkeeper's Friend? Send it in to me, and don't be shy! I love hearing from slobbos around the world. ;)


Here are a list of more uses from the Barkeepers Friend website:
http://www.barkeepersfriend.com/Special.htm

Removing Rust Stains

Got rust? Get rid of it! It's really not terribly becoming, just trust me on that one.

:) A handy tip sent in by a reader:

"To get rid of rust stains, make a thick paste of borax powder and fresh lemon juice. Rub on stain and then buff away."

Thanks for the tip! If you have a cleaning tip, funny story, or idea to share, send them in to me at christina@happyslob.com -- I'll gladly post it here on the blog for everyone to read and enjoy!

Mini Cleaning Kits for Bathrooms - Why, When & How

Hi all! Glad to be back and blogging again - I have a few moments while my family who're visiting are out at a football game. Well...more than a few moments I suppose. :)

Personally, I don't have the luxury of an extra bathroom. One bath does well for my husband and myself, but if you have one or many extra bathrooms, then this tip will be a great one for you:

Create a mini cleaning kit for each bathroom!
Why?

If guests pop by unexpectedly, then you're always ready to clean up a spare bath quickly and easily.

What do you need in a Mini Cleaning Kit?
Not a lot. :) A few cloths or rags, a few scrubby sponges, a box of baking soda (or commercial powdered cleanser if you prefer), a bottle of our Very Vinegar Cleaner and you're set for nearly anything. Add to that a wad of newspapers to clean the mirrors - and remember to keep a toilet brush behind each toilet. You don't really WANT to trudge that nasty toilet brush around to different bathrooms, now do you? :) I didn't think so...