Falling in love with shiny!

 

I am not a Bree Van-de-Kamp, the Desperate Housewife with the perfect home, but there are times when I realise that I need to do something about the layers of dust and the kitchen floor appears to be changing colour!

 Housework is something that I seem to avoid – yet oddly enough when I spend time cleaning I actually find I enjoy it. (yes you did read that correctly, the word enjoy and housework in the same sentence!)

I have fallen in love with sparkly, and it is very easy to achieve, takes no elbow grease and is not hazardous to health. It is a simple mix of vinegar and bicarbonate of soda.

 

This is not my kitchen but one that is set up in the grounds of the Weald and Down Museum in nearby West Dean, I thought it illustrates to me just how much simpler and easier housework has become. Hot water at the turn of a tap – washing machines and electric kettles, it has never been an easier time to be a housewife. I believe that simple household products that have seen years of use. This little kitchen set up goes back to early in the 1900s.

 

Looking at the simple ingredients that were at the disposal of the housewife in her struggle to keep the house free from infection – it  made me ponder just how far we have come to rely on the ‘selling power of science’ We trust the cleaning products that abound on the supermarket shelf are safe and effective to use.These companies are in business to make money, they use enough science to convince us that their product will be the best, and easiest to use.

There are no restrictions on cleaning products for the home it may surprise you they are able to sell these above what would be considered a health risk if it were sold commercially. There have been links with air fresheners and cancer risks, and I believe that if our bodies cough to expel something that has been sprayed into an aerosol into our smallest room then it is pretty likely the substance we are ingesting might not be in good health.

Its easy to get everything sparkly, just spray with vinegar and sprinkle over bicarbonate! You can scrub a little, then wash down with water. Buff and sit back and admire a lovely shine! It lasts for a few days too. No coughing, no nasty chemicals, gentle on the purse too!

ttfn x

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Re-framing

I like re-framing, it is a challenge sometimes, especially today, I was in a foul mood because I had to go all the way to Portsmouth with my documentation to get the car taxed. I was mostly annoyed with myself because I had lost my paperwork, I had also not got organised enough to get the new address sorted, and now I was up against the clock to get it completed on time before the end of the month. Grumpy, impatient and frustrated, I drove towards Portsmouth. But then in comes re-framing, it is a way of changing the way you think, I was driving along on a Monday morning, the wind blowing through my hair because I had the roof down, and the sun was shining brightly.

I realised how lucky I am really, to have a car like this, and to be driving along with the money to pay for the tax and all the other things. My mood lifted and I started to enjoy my drive.

I also had a reframing session last week, I did not have to rush, I had taken another day’s holiday and decided to take a leisurely bath. When I first took the flat I was a little disappointed that the bathroom did not have a window, the bathroom I had before had a lovely sunny window which made my little glass bottles sparkle. However, I lit a few candles and shut the door and the realisation hit me, that it was the perfect place to do meditation, because I could shut the door and be in the dark no matter what time of day.

So I no longer mourned the loss of a window in the bathroom, because not only do I have a mediation space, but it is one that I can use night or day.