Sewing a Perfect Seam

Blue painters tape is fantastic, but even better, Molefoam!  It gives an excellent ridge for the edge of your material.  One of my students commented that it would leave a residue behind, but if you use painters tape WITH the Molefoam there is no residue.  When sewing 1/4" seams, this is especially nice to have!

Molefoam from Walmart foot section, and this was a little thicker than what I'm used to buying, it was perfect.

Peel back the backing on the Molefoam and lay the non-sticky side of some painters tape on it.  Trim the edges and along the edge of the tape.

Stick the blue sticky side down along the guide on your sewing machine.

Put your presser foot down so you get as close to the needle as possible but without placing over the feeds.

See?  Perfect 1/4" seam.

When you're not using it, just stick it on the side of your machine.  When the tape wears out, you can just replace it.

~Jen

Tip of the Day ~Laundry Odor Eliminators!~

Stinky laundry? I can relate! From stale odors you cannot seem to get rid of, to, well, let's face it B.O.(body odor) Peeeeeyewwwwww!!!! I have teen boys, so I can really relate, and I have tried so many different items to help, and found a few that actually work for me. So, I am passing it on to you-for freshness sake!

Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent

I found several homemade laundry detergent recipes online, and I've been washing my own laundry using just this basic recipe.  I have really dry & sensitive skin and prefer this over any "free" detergents on the market.  I haven't noticed any dulling or issues getting stains out.  I have never used anything but liquid detergents since I had babies in the house.  So, I was nervous switching to the powder.  But I prefer this over the liquid now.  I put one scoop(1 Tbl.) into the detergent compartment for my HE front loading machine.  My clothes smell really nice, it's not overpowering.  I LOVE doTerra Essential Oils, Lemon, Wild Orange, or Lavender, or a combination.  I buy mine from my sweet friend Crysty, HERE.

Basic Recipe:

1 cup Borax

1 cup Washing Soda

1 bar Kirk's Castille Soap(or Fels Naptha)

10-15 drops doTerra Lemon Essential Oil

The first time I made this I used Fels Naptha soap, it's a large yellow bar, found in the laundry aisle, and specifically designed for laundry.  It's really hard and took some muscle to grate it.  I ordered the Kirk's Castille Soap online from Amazon.com, I love that site.  It was easier to grate and a smaller bar.  It's designed for use on people with sensitive skin and rinses clean.  It also has a coconut oil base.  Neither bars suds very much, so this is safe for the HE washers.  I have read you can also use Ivory soap or Dr. Bonners.  I chose to try using this powder recipe because it just seems a little more concentrated than the diluted down liquid recipes for homemade detergent.  Just a preference, I have no idea if one is better than the other.  

~~~~~

 Grate the bar of soap on a sheet of wax paper and pour into the base of your food processor.  Add 1 cup Borax, 1 cup Washing Soda, and 10-15 drops of your favorite Essential Oil.  Process until very fine.  Your house will smell unbelievably clean right now.  

Divide the contents between 2 16oz. canning jars.  Use 1-2 Tablespoons, depending on how dirty your laundry is.  I have never used more than 1 Tbl.   

The jar on the left is the Fels Naptha version(which is why it's a little yellow in color), and the right is the Kirk's Castille soap recipe version.  Takes up so much less space.  Store extra jars above in the cupboard.   Use fabric softener if you wish, or a dryer sheet.  

This is my laundry treatment area.  Baskets and bar from Ikea.  

~Jen

Cheap and Easy Stovetop and Grates/Burner Cleaners

It works!!!

Minimal effort, patience, and cheap.  I have a combination stove top, it's ceramic and propane.  I don't really love it, but it came with the house.  It looks nice when it's clean, it looks beautiful when it's clean.  And all I used is baking soda(Part I) and ammonia(Part II)(not together, I'm sure there is some kind of warning about that). I've bought expensive stove top cleaners, eh.  My favorite by Scotch was discontinued years ago.  I tried baking soda, it's a mild abrasive, but cuts grease, and voila.  Just use a damp non-scratch abrasive pad and baking soda.  Baking soda costs nothing compared to store cleaners. 

I read HERE, about putting your stove top grates into a Ziploc bag with a little ammonia and letting it sit overnight.  Her pics were really amazing and I was willing to try anything.  Lemishine in the dishwasher helped a lot, but in the past I'd have to use oven cleaner to get the grates clean, and that was still a ho-hum result. Well, the ammonia in the bag worked.  I have double grates and they wouldn't fit in a Ziploc bag, so I just used a plain old plastic trash bag, poured a few Tablespoons of ammonia into the bag and then sealed it up by folding the end over and sealing with a clip.  Set them out on the porch overnight.  The grates do not need to be sprayed with the ammonia, it's the fumes from inside the bag that break down the gunk on the grates.  After 24 hours(I got busy), I pulled one out and DO wear gloves for this.  I took a sturdy dish brush and scraped off most of the black gunk(boy am I embarrassed for you to see how awful this thing was!).  I rinsed it off with hot water and poured a few Tablespoons of baking soda in the corner of the sink.  Use a non-scratch abrasive pad and pick up a little baking soda with it's wet corner.  It took very little scrubbing power and the rest of the cooked on crud was off in seconds!  Really, hardly put any effort at all into it.  And baking soda, what a great tool!  Baking soda has become my favorite cleaning product now next to Mr. Clean Erasers.  Oh, tried the Mr. Clean Erasers too on the stove top and grates, and it took several of them and they never really cleaned them as well as the baking soda and ammonia technique.

Before:

 

Put your grate into the bag and pour a little ammonia, I poured about 2 Tbls.

Fold the bag over and snap with a clippy.  Allow this to set overnight/24 hours or so in a nice warm sunny spot.  The fumes will break down nasty baked on food.  And don't ask me how, but I somehow got paint on one of mine, instantly came off after months of cooking it in even more. 

It does not come out as clean as what it pictured below.  Put some gloves on!  Get as much off with a scratch proof nylon brush, scrubby, sponge, etc...  At this point you will probably remember like me that you need to call to get your roots done.  Sprinkle some baking soda on the areas that still need a little TLC and scrub with brush or sponge.  Rinse and voila. 

After:

Check out that shine!  Baking Soda only baby :)

Just like new, back to the day we moved in 4+ years ago.

~Jen

{Tip Of The Day} Getting rid of stinky hands

Ok, so some of you may already know this, but if not- I am here to help you get rid of the dreaded onion and garlic smell off your hands!

Take a spoon, & some running cold water. Rub the spoon under the water for a minute or two with your hands and walla it's gone!

Crazy I know. I have tried soaps and other things without much success and I hate those smells on me too. This really worked for me. Hope it does for you too.

(I may have to try this on my tongue now? I love onions but sometimes the after taste kills me, and my husband!)

Have a great day!



~V

{Tip of the Day} Fun Camp Songs

Fun Camp Songs for you Family this Summer!

W H I T E C H O R A L B E L L S R O U N D

White choral bells upon a tender stalk. (2nd group starts)
Lilies of the valley deck my garden walk. (3rd group starts)
Oh don't you wish that you could hear them ring.
That will happen only when the fairies sing.



W O R M S
First you get a bucket, Then you get a shovel,
Oh, how they wiggle and squirm.

Chorus: (repeat after each verse)
Long, slim, slimy ones, short, fat, juicy ones,
Itsy, bitsy, fuzzy, wuzzy worms.
Nobody likes me, Everybody hates me,
I'm gonna eat some worms.

First you pull the heads off, Then you suck the guts out,
Oh, how they wiggle and squirm.

(CHORUS)
Down goes the first one, Down goes the second one,
Oh, how they wiggle and squirm.

(CHORUS)
Up comes the first one, Up comes the second one,
Oh, how they wiggle and squirm.

(CHORUS)

{Tip of The Day} Family Cleaning made fun!

What does.......

Equal?

A Cleaning Party!


I have have 4 kids (well 3 at home now) and I know how hard it is to get them to do their chores everyday. I have a few huge whiners in the mix too-they do their job eventually- but boy I want to be like NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs & smack them in the back of the head sometimes! :p

I found something better though, something that keeps my conscience & my house clean anyway.

{Tip of the Day} Ceiling Fan Seasonal Directions...

Because I have a broken heater right now and was freezing to death I thought I'd post my new understanding to ceiling fans.  I've never understood which way and gotten very confused.  I found a site that put it in plain English this morning and here is what I found.  Most ceiling fans have a little switch somewhere above the blades on the motor where you can reverse the directions.  It's little and usually not labelled, it would be nice if they did this though.  The 3 fans I have upstairs have switches that go left to right, and the 2 downstairs switch top to bottom, they're all different.  In the cool months, if you change the direction of your fan to clockwise(if you're staring up at it), it will push the warm air above the fan down the sides of the walls, warming the room with very little draft.  In fact it got very warm on the sides of the room quickly.  If it's going counter-clockwise when you're looking up, it will push the air down through the center of the room, causing a draft and pushing the warm air up the sides of the walls, thus cooling the room.  So, there you have it.  And it's working wonderfully with my tiny space heaters in my vaulted ceiling living room.  In fact, I'm sweating now.  :)  Wish I figured this out 2 days ago!

Jenne

{Tip of the Day} Eyelash Curling

If your eyelashes automatically curl, do not read this, it will be a waste of your time, and I do not like you now anyway! So :P!

Do you have flat eyelashes like me? Mine are also so light colored I have to wear mascara just to get my eyes to "pop" and not look so boyish!

I have worn false extensions before too, it was nice not to have to curl and put on mascara, but in the end it was more a pain then worth it, not to mention pricey! I have worn just regular falsies which is fun every once in awhile, but I needed a solution for everyday wear. My eyelashes are hard to curl too, least they do not keep a curl well, but I finally found some simple answers that work for me, and I hope they do for you too.

"Before"

1. Clean off your eyelash curler. (I use cover girl's cheap one-it has been the best one I have tried by far)

2. Use your hair dryer-yes, your hair dryer! Heat the eyelash curler up for about a minute or less.

3. Touch it with your hand to make sure it is not too hot-if it is shake it a little to cool off-you want it warm for it to work. Now curl your eyelash like normal, squeeze it shut and count to 20, then release. Now curl your other eyelashes on your other eye. If the curler has cooled down too much by then, put the hair dryer back on it for a few seconds.

4. You can re-heat your curler one more time if you want a stronger curl-if not skip to number 5.

5. Put your mascara on.

"After"

Walla! You now have sexy, fun curled eyelashes! Works great and it doesn't cost a fortune.

{Tip of the Day} Dishwasher Help **edited

Ok, if your like me and live in one of the 16 or so States (Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin) that have banned Phosphate back in July (although Casca*de and other companies have banned it from all of their products now-so other states basically do not get it either) and you have hard water - your dishes have come out dirty, icky and your pots look grey, and your black utensils have a white film on them, as do your glasses. Basically they look like this:

Gross huh?!

Well, to help our enviroment out- they have taken it out of the dishwasher detergent. I am all about helping our enviroment, I recycle more now than I have in the past, and I try to use natural cleaners, but I have to say this is annoying. First I thought it was my dishwasher, I mean I use the same soap I always have. Then I thought maybe I didn't have enough rinse aid in there? Yet for months it didn't change, it only became worse till I saw a news clip on others complaining too. "Way to announce to us consumers of the change back in July people!" So, it was a relief to know I was not the only one and why, but now what?

I just learned a few new tricks to help:

**You use these WITH your regular soap.

1. Try a teaspoon of baking soda in your wash.
2. Try a teaspoon of white vinegar.

If 1 & 2 do not work enough:

Try 1 T of Baking Soda mixed with 1 T of Borax

Now if all those fail I read that you can buy TSP (Trisodium Phosphate) at Low*s (hate promoting but it's the only place that sells it I am told) and use a 1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons of it in your wash to replace the phosphate.

Critics say that most of the phosphate we use gets filtered out from the water treatment plants anyway, so? It's up to you how you feel about it, not judging, and I hope no one judges me either. :)

Tip of the Day! Hope it helps.

**Editing to add:

None of the above tips worked for me, although I have not tried the TSP.

What did work was....

Lemi-shine

This stuff has no phosphates in it either, but it worked better than all the other stuff I had tried. In fact it removed a lot of the white build-up I had on some of my dishes, it was awesome! I used it in the main wash container of my dishwasher, and put my regular soap in the pre-wash container. If you do not have a pre-wash container, use half your soap, half Lemi-shine in the main wash container.

I have very hard water- some day I hope to have a water softner, but in the mean time I recommend this. It works in the dishwasher with your regular cycle, and you can use it to clean your washing maching, garbage disposal, or other places with hard water issues.



Good luck!