Musings from Marilyn

Archive for the ‘Frugal Living’ Category

I’ll admit that I become somewhat of a hermit in wintertime.  I really believe in responding to seasonal changes, and just going with the gentle flow of what Mother Nature is presenting at any given time.  I’m learning to give up complaining about the weather; if there is one thing that you can’t do anything about, it’s the weather!  Kvetching and complaining really adds to the misery.  That being said, the weather is usually quite gray and dank in Seattle, so it’s best to just give in.

I love staying in during the winter.  I wrap myself up in assorted layers of cashmere, wool, cotton and mohair (OK, and in my leopard Snuggie ).  There is just something so comforting and cocoon-like to just be.  Not running around wildly here and there.

Recently we had a rare Seattle snowstorm that lasted a week.  It just kept snowing and snowing, with some frozen rain thrown in for good measure.  If there is any time to stay home, it is during Seattle snow.  Driving conditions are extremely hazardous with all of our  inexperienced drivers, steep hills, unplowed roads (snowplows are extremely rare), and icy streets.  So it is best to stay put.  Needless to say I was happy as a clam bundled up in the house for a week; very zen!

Of course, there is no outdoor clothesline drying for me in winter, just too cold and damp.  I have my laundry racks set up indoors and they’re consistently full of drying clothes.  As seen by the picture, my laundry got a nice view of the winter wonderland as it was drying!  With the heat on indoors, the wet laundry dries relatively fast.

Now we are back to the standard clouds and rain, but my indoor laundry racks are still getting a heavy workout.  Maybe just not as nice of a view. 

“Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy.” ~ Author Unknown

~Marilyn Huttunen

Well, I finally took the plunge and did what was the last holdout of my Eco-Friendly-Clothesline-Loving-Cold-Water-Washing-Laundry-Goddess status:  making my own environmentally friendly detergent.  I have been meaning to do this for years but finally got a nudge, okay, a push from a thread on the eBay Clothing Discussion board.  There was a lively discussion about making homemade detergent, and since I had all the ingredients (and laundry to do) I made up a batch of the powdered detergent.

There is a liquid version and a powdered version.  I chose the powdered version because frankly, it sounded a lot less complicated.  And the liquid version makes something like 792 gallons at a time and I don’t have the storage space.  Okay, I’m exaggerating a bit on the amount, but it was a staggeringly huge amount!

The powdered version is really simple:

• One bar of Fels Naptha soap – finely grated
• One cup of Borax
• One cup of Washing Soda or Baking Soda

I used the fine grate side of my grater to get the soap finely grated, kind of like Parmesan cheese.  It takes a bit of muscle but it goes pretty fast.  Then just mix the Fels Naptha in a bowl with the Borax and the Washing Soda.  Or you could mix it in a jar and shake it up (lid on, please ).  Now it’s ready to go and should look something like this:

Use 2 Tablespoons of powder per load.  Since 2 Tablespoons equals 1/8th cup, I found an old 1/8th measuring cup and keep it with the detergent.  If you are using warm or hot water, just add the powder to the load.  If you are using cold water to wash, you can put the powder into a little saucepan of water on the stove and heat until the soap melts, then add to your laundry load.

Today I washed a white load in warm water, and a dark load in cold water.  The detergent worked really well on both loads and the laundry came out very clean and soft.  Be aware that there are little or no suds, but it does clean amazingly!  There really is no scent either, just the very faint clean smell of the Fels Naptha, which I happen to adore.

It’s easy, it’s safe, it works, and it’s amazingly thrifty.  I haven’t done a cost analysis of this, but I’m sure it’s just pennies per load.  We don’t need a bunch of over-scented chemicals to get our laundry clean!  We can help the environment and help our pocketbook in one fell swoop.  So give it the old college try and you too, can be on the road to being a Laundry Goddess.  It’s fun!

~Marilyn Huttunen

This may be one of the most unusual folk remedies that I have ever used…and the easiest…and the safest.   For who knew that a simple bar of soap placed under the bottom sheet of your bed would help relieve leg cramps?

I know I had heard about this remedy several years back, but had completely forgotten about it.  But in the past year or so, I’d been having increasingly irritating leg cramps, especially at night.  Not knowing what was causing them, I tried a myriad of remedies.  I tried walking and exercising more, walking and exercising less, ibuprofen, achy muscle creams, tonic water (with quinine), homeopathic tablets, extra vitamins, and supplements.  Nothing worked!

So when I happened upon a recent article where the bar of soap in bed method was mentioned once again, I thought “AHA!” – I just had to try it.  What did I have to lose (except possibly my leg cramps)?  I unwrapped a bar of soap and placed it under the bottom sheet at the foot of my bed.  The first night, I didn’t notice much change and kind of forgot about the soap for a couple days.  Then about 6 days later, I realized that my legs actually felt much better and my leg cramping was greatly diminished!  I haven’t done anything else much differently, so I’ve just got to assume that it is the magical bar of soap that is contributing to my relief.

No one seems to know why this particular remedy works.  Some scientists say that it is the placebo effect.  That doesn’t really matter to me.   All I care about is that my leg cramps are mostly gone, and it is as a result of a completely safe and non-toxic method.  So get that soap in bed! 

~Marilyn Huttunen

Since becoming a complete and total air-drying fool several years ago, it’s amazing how the little things thrill me.  Now that summer has finally seemed to settle in somewhat in the Seattle area, I have been able to do most of my line drying outside.  Yes.  On a clothesline!

During the loooooooong, rainy winter, spring, and the first weeks of summer, I was feeling quite doubtful that I would ever be able to use my outdoor clothesline again.  Racks of laundry drying indoors filled my kitchen, bathroom, and occasional hallway.  It took days for it to get completely dry.  It was like doing the tango, maneuvering through the maze of drying racks.

It hasn’t been really hot here, but 70 degrees and a nice breeze seem to be the ideal conditions for good drying.  It’s so nice to hang laundry in the morning and actually take it in, dried, in the afternoon.  Everything is so smooth, crisp, and has the intoxicating scent of the sweet summer air. Aaaaaaaah!

Sheets and towels are especially blissful air-dried.  I may be in the minority, but I love a fresh, snappy, stiff air-dried towel!  You will never want to go back to soft, limp, non-absorbent dryer-dried-fabric softener-Bounce kind of towel after you get used to air-dried towels. Fake scented, chemical coated towels are a thing of the past for me, thank goodness.

I am relishing, and have a much greater appreciation for these nice summer days.  It’s great to put the summer weather to work; just hang and go (I am inherently lazy)!  Plus, it’s free, and I think the laundry turns out much better.   Here’s to more great summer weather! 

“After enlightenment, the laundry.”  ~Zen Proverb

~Marilyn Huttunen

I had to smile when I read that Kate Middleton was seen at the British  high-street beauty store Boots, last week.  It was before attending a charity gala dinner at Kensington palace; the one where she wore the gorgeous sparkly pale pink sequined gown by Jenny Packam.

It turns out our Kate was buying Nivea moisturizer.  Yes, that same basic tried-and-true moisturizer that has been the staple of many a woman throughout the years.  I just love this!  Well, other than the fact that it will probably be hard to find Nivea moisturizer from here on out, that is!

It’s rather refreshing that Kate’s beautiful English complexion is owed, in part, to a basic beauty product that is available and affordable to us all.  She could afford any expensive luxury beauty product, but opts to buy a moisturizer that she has probably used most of her life.

The smell of Nivea moisturizer will forever be a poignant reminder of England for me.  Several decades ago, in my more hippie/alternative years, I backpacked and camped out throughout Europe and the UK.  I can remember buying Nivea moisturizer at Boots (a store that I was completely enamored with), and slathering it on while inhaling the delicately intoxicating scent.  It was a delightfully feminine indulgence in an otherwise rather unconventional way of traveling.

So I think I’ll go buy some Nivea moisturizer for nostalgia’s sake;  I want to experience the poignancy once more.  And if it makes my complexion look like Kate’s, all the better.  Now that we know Kate is using it, there will probably be a run on Nivea moisturizer at the stores – I hope they don’t sell out!

~Marilyn Huttunen

I’ve aired my dirty laundry for about 6 years now.  Well, actually it’s clean laundry and I air-dry it on either a drying rack or clothesline!  Being a “slow dryer” as it were, I often feel as though my whole life is consumed by laundry.  Either washing it, hanging it, waiting it for it to dry, and putting it way.  Wash, rinse, repeat.  It is a rhythm that slowly weaves its way in and out of my days.

Outdoor drying becomes a huge issue when you live in the Pacific Northwest.  Especially in the fall, winter, and much of the spring.  My indoor drying racks are in constant use during these times.  Once in a great while I dare to hang laundry outdoors in the depths of winter, but it is almost always to no avail – little or no actual drying gets accomplished.

This winter and spring have been especially rough on Seattle-area air drying enthusiasts.  Out of the 132 days since January 1, only 27 days have NOT been rainy!  I may not be that great at math, but I know that it means there have been 105 rainy days.  No wonder I haven’t used my outdoor clothesline much!

Yesterday and today have been sunny though (knock on wood).  Add temps in the 60s, a brisk breeze, and you’ve got ideal conditions for successful solar-powered drying.  In fact, the laundry is dancing out on my backyard clothesline as I write this.  When you become a consistent  air-dryer, nothing brings satisfaction to your soul quite like seeing laundry flap in the wind.  And the resulting intoxicating scent of outdoor dried laundry that is beyond compare.  I love that Mother Nature does her work so wonderfully and bonus, for free!

Those of you who already air-dry know what I’m talking about; and those of you who don’t, I invite you to at least try it.  It does take a bit more patience and waiting.  But when you let nature do the work in its gentle way, you are in for a great experience.  E. B. White says it well: “We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it’s only picking grapes or sorting the laundry.”

~Marilyn Huttunen