Well, this is funny. Mama is in our laundry room having just taken papa’s shirts out of the dryer where they tossed and turned for a few minutes only. They are still damp and she is stretching out the front where it buttons into a straight line and now she’s putting it up against the door jamp and pulling from right to left very fast to create heat and the heat from this gesture will straighten out the button and button hole sides of the opening of the shirt and it won’t have to be ironed!!! So there she is, just rubbin’ that shirt front back and forth and I can see that it’s about to ignite, haha!
Wow. I wonder if she’d do that with me if I were damp, to straighten out my fur?
So many things like this come up when mama’s around, because her mama was full of household tricks and this one is really useful. But you have to get the shirts or blouses or whatever you’re straightening out of the dryer after just a few minutes, and of course, this works best with 100% cotton or silk or linen. Sometimes those synthetics, mama says, just don’t take to being treated firmly on a door jamb!
This laundry trick sort of falls into the category of how to save time in the house doing little dumb things that will make the day longer for things to enjoy other than laundry or cooking or gardening or whatever (all of which mama enjoys anyway–well, maybe not the laundry thing) but little tricks mean a lot.
Like:
Cold vegetables are easier to peel than room temp ones (artichokes, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, you name it)
A refrigerated egg will not crack when boiling if you start with warm water in a pan on the fire an set the timer for 9 minutes. A perfect soft-boiled egg.
Save all your bread crumbs when you cut bread and put them in the salad bowl for a crunchy addition.
Always flatten raw chicken breasts and they’ll cook in half the time.
Sprinkle fish with salt, in the kitchen sink, and it will stay fresher until you cook it.
Deep-fry or sauté peelings from any vegetable for a crispy appetizer with drinks (eggplant peels are great this way, according to mama’s stepdaughter).
Cover squid or octopus or chicken in milk before cooking and they’ll be tender as butter.
Well, I’m about idea-ed out right now but I’ll have more for you as I observe the workings of this household over the next few eons!
The trick to having a happy kitty is FOOD!!! It’s after my dinner gong!!!
FEED ME!!!! (please)
Your Mama left out the most important home helper tip of all Loulou!
It is – Prepare a large, fresh piece of fish for the cat, daily. Cook the fish in a little milk or butter, then when it cools, offer little pieces of the fish to the cat, until the little cat is full. Do not be impatient, allow the cat to eat at leisure.
That should sort it Loulou
Luff Mungo
Suzanne, your comment shows up on my blog. I don’t know why WordPress is asking you for a password.
I know you are having trouble leaving comments on my blog, so I thought I’d see what happens when I try to comment on yours…
No problem, Beverly. And if mine show up–great!!!