laundry room Archives - Page 6 of 7

ceilings, DIY, DIY tools, Do It Yourself, drop cloths, Home & Auto Maintenance, laundry room, painting, Tutorial

Scraping Your Own Popcorn Ceilings – It’s a Messy Job, but Someone’s Gotta Do It!

Many of you guessed correctly that I would be scraping my own popcorn ceilings.

It wasn’t hard to do, but it also isn’t for the bad neck or bad back sufferers. Normally I hire out this job — but because our laundry room is so small — it seemed silly to pay someone else to do the work. Now that it is done, I’m really glad I decided to tackle this project. The sense of accomplishment and the resulting smooth ceiling is HUGE!

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you live in a house that was built around 1978, take several small samples of your ceiling and test it for asbestos before you begin. Even though the cutoff date for asbestos in popcorn texture was 1978, the inventory could still be bought from store shelves well into the 1980’s. Do yourself and your family a favor, If you have asbestos popcorn contact a professional who is trained in asbestos removal to handle the job. If you want to learn more, you can read more about our experience with asbestos remediation.

Demolition Day

This past weekend I was able to make some serious progress on our laundry room. Yeehaw! Sometimes in order to make a room pretty, you have to make it uglier first. That was certainly the case with this project. If you are just joining me, a few weeks ago the nice folks at Flow Wall sent me a custom wall system to install in the laundry room. The FlowWall system of storage will look something like this: Read more

March 22, 2012/8 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Build It, distressing, DIY, DIY tools, drill, elmer's glue, Gift Ideas, Home Decor, laundry room, milk paint, painting, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, power tools, Product Review, Trash to Treasure, Tutorial, Upcycling, window dressing

White-washed Window Box from a Wine Crate

The other day I was ~~wandering aimlessly~~ shopping at Costco and spied an empty wooden wine crate. The angel stamped on the side was beckoning me to take her home. Actually, I read Funky Junk Interiors’s post about making tool boxes last year and have been looking for just the right wood to make one. The angel may not have calling me, but I wasn’t about to leave the store without her.

I thought about tucking it under my coat and making a break for the front door, as I was sure there were other crafty ladies eyeing up the lonely wine crate. But, I resisted the urge and asked the manager if I could have it, and he graciously let me take it home. I was exuberant because I’ve been missing my rustic wine crate that Cherie won. Read more

March 5, 2012/47 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

accessories, cabinet, chandeliers, decor, Do It Yourself, Home & Auto Maintenance, Home Tour, laundry room, new light fixture, organizational tips

Plans to Update My Laundry Room with Flow Wall System

You know that beautiful laundry room I showed you last year? Yes, this one:

Well, it isn’t so pretty right now, and honestly I strategically didn’t photograph the ONE wall in the laundry room that isn’t….so….pretty. Can you blame me?!

But, that is all about to change! I’ve been working with a Flow Wall System representative to come up with a plan for my laundry room wall.

Within half an hour of sending him my measurements (of my laundry room, not my body measurements – LOL), he sent back multiple possible configurations for our room.

I can’t even begin to tell you how fantastic it is to turn over the planning to someone else for a change! Of course, being the planner that I am, I had to tape up a few paper templates to help visualize how they would work in my space.

The Flow Wall System looks like it is going to be a snap to install (and I will definitely let you know for sure!) Here is a short 60 second video to show you a little more about Flow Wall System:

Here are my beautiful plans for the laundry room using the Flow Wall System sketches as inspiration.

1. Flow Wall medium wall mounted storage bins to hold the iron and ironing supplies

2. Flow Wall small storage hook to hang ironing board on

3. Flow Wall white coated wire shelves for extra storage and drying clothes

4. Flow Wall jumbo decor bins in cream to corral detergents, spot cleaners, etc

5. Waverly Pom Pom Play Spa fabric for a faux roman shade

6. Spray painted brass chandelier inspired by Modern Parsonage

7. Flow Wall cabinets to hide my unsightly mess

What do you think? Do you like the design? I’m probably going to scrape the ceilings and repaint in there too. The exact wall color will have to wait until I get the fabric. I’m particular about color like that. More on my color snobbishness next week. Until then, I hope you have a great weekend.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Flow Wall Systems. I have been compensated for my time and will be receiving some complimentary products. However, the ideas and words are all my own. I was not told what to write or what products to write about. I believe you have the right to know when a post is sponsored. Regardless of whether a post is sponsored or not, I believe in honesty, truthfulness, and complete transparency in my posts.

February 17, 2012/20 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Before and After, DIY, Do It Yourself, Fix It, Home & Auto Maintenance, laundry room, no-iron wrinkle remover, stain remover

Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets

I’ve been keeping a secret from y’all and I just can’t live with it anymore. I have a miracle stain remover recipe that has time and again proven to work on some of the most stubborn stains. Plus, find out why we don’t need dryer sheets anymore!

Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets

Recently, Pretty Handsome Guy came back from a business trip with a stained button-down shirt. It had wing sauce on it AND it had been allowed to settle for a few days AND he hadn’t pre-soaked it or used any stain remover. (Have I not taught him anything?! Sigh.) I thought for sure the shirt was a goner. But, I decided to put my miracle stain remover recipe to the test. Low and behold after 24 hours of soaking in the concoction, the stain was magically gone! No scrubbing, it was simply gone. Can I apply for a magic wand now?

I can’t lay claim to the recipe. I found it on our local “Mommy” message board back when I was a new mom. But, this recipe has worked on more stains than I can count.

I mixed up a batch today to try on one of my son’s shirts that got blueberry jelly on it. My mom tried to wash it to get the stain out, but it was still there after laundering. Normally once a stain goes through the dryer it is set in. But, that didn’t deter the me from trying my Miracle Stain Remover. Sit back and learn young Jedis (we watched Star Wars last week, so it is on my brain.)

Miracle Stain Remover…

Ingredients:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

1 scoop of Oxi-Clean
1 scoop of Liquid Clorox 2
1 scoop of Cascade powder dishwashing detergent (or another powered brand.)

Fill your basin with warm water then add the Oxi-clean, Clorox 2, and powdered Dish Detergent. Give it a swirl and mix until the powders dissolve and bubbles form.

Place the stained garment into the mixture, being sure the stain is submerged. After two hours you can take a peek! My stain was gone.

For tougher stains, let it soak overnight. Remove the clothing to behold the miracle! Normally I will throw the garment into the wash, but you could simply rinse and dry it.

And, this formula is also safe for colors as well!

Laundry Detergent…

In the spirit of sharing, I also have this recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for only $1.25 per year! I mean, have you seen the price of laundry detergent lately?! 200 oz. for “gulp” $35! Whereas the recipe I made yielded 250 oz. for….are you ready for this…$0.61! This is a 97% saving on detergent by making your own.

And the best news is that it is safe for HE washers. You only need 1/4 cup per load. Click Here to Get the Recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for $1.25 per year!

Drying clothes…

And since I’m talking laundry today, this post wouldn’t be complete without mentioning my secret weapon for drying clothes.

I use two of them! They may look like medieval torture devices or rabid animals, but these little hedgehog dryer balls have completely kicked our fabric softener sheets to the curb! I haven’t used dryer sheets in over 9 years now! At first I was concerned about static (the bane of my hair’s existence), but then a friend told me that you can eliminate static by not letting your clothes over dry. Simply shut off the dryer when your clothes are about 95% dry. Don’t let the dryer run and run and run until the clothes are piping hot and there isn’t a spot of dampness on them. Instead, let the moisture sensor (if you have one) do its job and it should shut off right before the clothes are dry. The waistbands in jeans or sweatpants may feel slightly damp, but everything else feels dry. And most importantly, pull out fleece, polyester, or synthetic clothes about halfway through the cycle.

The dryer balls (you should use two) work together to punch, separate, fluff, and dry your clothes. They also help keep wrinkles to a minimum, but I’m not afraid of a few wrinkles (see my no iron solution to wrinkles post.) The Dryer Balls cost less than $10, but the cost savings of not using dryer sheets is definitely worth it. Plus, you don’t have to stress about the chemicals that are in dryer sheets. These little wonder balls (I can’t believe I just typed that) last for a long time, but it’s good to have three in case one hedgehog loses a nose (it can happen.) I have been using mine for over nine years. They start to get darker on the nubs from dye in your clothing, but it doesn’t transfer and it doesn’t hurt their effectiveness.

I hope you found these laundry tips helpful. Please share with a friend!