Dawn + Vinegar = Soap Scum KILLA

So, you might remember this post from a while back. And if you do, you'll remember that I cannot stand soap scum. Like, it actually bothers me. I hate that we have this gorgeous bathroom, and all I can see is the soap scum that threatens to take over. And God help me if Lover and I are in the shower together (hey, we're in a water shortage) and I accidentally touch the walls. Ugh, gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about it.

I've tried it all. Kaboom. 409. Every bottle that promises to get rid of the soap scum. And I'm left disappointed every. single. time. 

So when I saw this post on pinterest, I was a bit skeptical. Magic in a bottle? Yeah, okay. But I figure, what did I have to lose? So the next time I went to Walmart, I figure I could drop $3 on a bottle of Dawn and a spray bottle. We already had a huge bottle of white vinegar, thanks to Lover cleaning his stinky Vibrams (those weird 5 toe shoe things that make him look like he has swamp creature feet).

My oldest daughter asked me if I bought the Dawn just because it had a penguin on it (I collect penguins). 

So it's pretty simple. Heat up some vinegar (I used a cup of vinegar and nuked it for 2 minutes). Then pour it in your spray bottle, add an equal amount of blue Dawn (the website comments were pretty specific about getting the blue kind), shake gently, and voila! 

Again, that's a one to one ratio of white vinegar to blue Dawn. I measured out a cup of each originally, but only used about half of my bottle. So next time I'll just do a half cup of each. The whole point is that the white vinegar is heated up, and while I haven't used it with it being room temperature and don't know if it'd work just as well, I'd rather just make it fresh each time. Especially if it's going to give me super clean results.



Here is what we're dealing with. Gross, right? You can't tell me you'd want to touch that in the shower either. EWWWWW. 

Do you know how hard it is to take a pic of soap scum? I finally figured out that I had to place the camera on the door and face it down with the flash on. 

Isn't that gross? I know I already said that, but man. Ewww. 

So the website said that you can spray it on and leave it overnight for tough stains. But have you ever tried to spray on a cleaner on a vertical surface? What's the first thing that happens? It all slides down. BUT, with the vinegar Dawn spray, it's a bit thicker, almost like a watery gel, and it stayed on the glass where I sprayed it. Yeah, a few places dripped, but it was staying. Holy crap. 

I let it sit for 2 hours, came back in with a sponge and some warm water, and wiped it off. And holy crap. 

Yes, that is an unedited (except for the watermark, obviously) photo of the same area. And that isn't soap scum at the bottom, it's the reflection of the shower floor (you can see the drain). Isn't that crazy? Lover came in to see it when he got home from work, and he said "Holy shit, it looks freaking new!". It totally shocked me when I walked in the bathroom this morning when Lover was taking a shower. Usually it looks like he's standing behind a frosted glass door where all you can see is his head. But this morning, it was completely clear. Like brand spanking new.

So if your nemesis is soap scum, give it a shot. It'll cost ya under $5 even if you have to buy everything, which is cheaper than the other cleaners that aren't working. 

No, I'm not getting paid to post this. I wish I was! But ya know, Dawn making people, feel free to send a big ole check my way.   http://lifecraftsandwhatever.blogspot.com/2012/01/dawn-vinegar-soap-scum-killa.html

Spring is here!

Doesn't it feel good? It's warming up here in Southern California (well, it's always warm...but you know.) We hit the beach for the first time this year on St. Patrick's Day. Charlies' first time there and it was good. We stayed & watched the sun set. Anyway, the beginning of Spring always reminds me of when I used to work at Williams Sonoma  (about 10+ years ago) they used to simmer this amazing concoction on the stove and it made the whole store smell amazing. I feel like I've blogged about this before. Maybe I have or maybe I just thought about blogging about it but didn't. Regardless, I make this concoction every Spring and it makes the house smell like heaven.. You need a small stockpot filled about 2/3 full with water. 1 lemon, sliced, and a few sprigs of rosemary (on a cold dark night, armed with scissors, I did a little snippy snip of rosemary from the apartment bldg next door. Don't tell a soul!) Then add 1-2 tsp of vanilla:(can I get a HUZZAH for taking the picture while pouring the vanilla???)

I let it simmer all day long, adding water as needed. You can use the same mix for about 2 days; after that it gets a bit stanky if you know what I mean.) It's this wonderful scent of citrus with the warm vanilla and the rosemary...ack...the rosemary just ties it all in. Your home will smell mahvelous!  http://morganmoore.typepad.com/one_more_moore/2010/03/spring-is-here.html#comment-6a00d8341c51ba53ef0120a9772f44970b

Red or White...towels that is

I'm currently working on a coffee table I picked up from a garage sale, but today I was struck with a great idea for this wine rack I picked up from the Idaho Youth Ranch for just $7 (the original price tag said $22.95...nice). So I took a break from the coffee table to try it out.

Most people would put their favorite Merlot or Chardonnay on this beautiful wine rack....

 Not this girl. I think it makes a much cuter towel rack! My bathroom needed something like this. Now, I shouldn't have to worry about my husband yelling across the house to bring him a towel because he forgot to grab one (keyword: shouldn't). Super easy and inexpensive...my favorite kind of project : )

http://itsrusticliving.blogspot.com/2011/09/red-or-white-towels-that-is.html

Art in the Hall

This project has been on my to do list for a few months now. While the boys were at VBS last week, I finally got out my supplies and started working on it.

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The clothes line for the boys' art has been hanging in the hallway for a few years now, but it always seemed kind of boring...you know, except for all the cute art hanging on it. So after I got my Cricut in January, I knew that I had to find the perfect quote to hang above the boys' art.

What do you think?!?
I decided on this Pablo Picasso quote a while back when I did a blog post using the quote. I printed it out just to make sure that I got all the letters cut correctly. Then I went to work {or really the Cricut did} cutting out the letters on black vinyl.

I laid out all my letters and then worked out the spacing. I used transfer tape to line up the words and then attach them to the wall. I also drew a pencil line on the wall to help keep the quote as straight as possible.

Now the hallway seems much more complete!

I love what a little bit of vinyl and a little bit of time can do for a space!

Do you have any vinyl words or decorations in your house?

{For those of you that have asked, you can click here to see a little bit more detail on how to make the art clothesline.}   http://the-wilson-world.blogspot.com/2010/07/art-in-hall.html