Almost too late for a spot of/ on spring cleaning… just scraping in, where did that time go?
Anyway,
I like to think I am a pretty clean person though my husband might try to change your mind… it’s true housework does my head in [so Groundhog Day!] but restoring objects to their former glory puts me in a happy place. Customers in my shop often ask ‘are these replica?’
I take this as a compliment because I like these lovely vintage objects to look as good as new [or better than today’s made-in -China new] and I don’t want to be a musty cluttered junky space. Unless of course there is a gorgeous patina showing so much history and years in the making, for example brass, I leave these well alone.

Here a few old favourites for clean shiny brightness.

I can’t stand stickers on things, I’ve been a label peeler long before I started drinking beer. I need to get all that tacky sh!t off, like now!

Eucalyptus Oil is the best sticky residue remover. Go Aussie!  This versatile natural product has so many great qualities. One of them is not, however, as the myth would have it, making Koalas stoned. They do sleep a lot [up to 22 hours a day] because Eucalyptus leaves contain toxins and take a lot of energy to digest, but they are not high. Except for high, from like being up in trees, off the ground you know…

Umm, off on a tangent already…
So this amazing cleanser will clear your head, and more.  It’s brilliant for colds, flu, aches and pains.  [Diluted inhalation and external use only]  It’s also a natural antiseptic and deodoriser. Cleans floors, spot treats grease and other stains and is really good for washing woollens and clothes in general. Add some [a cap] to warm water. Simple.

Erase permanent texta and pen marks [among other stains] with a little Gumption and or a Magic Eraser.
Both so effective. Wipe it all away.

I apply my personality in a paste.
Clementine, Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind

I’m no Shannon Lush or Lady Macbeth but I also know a thing or two about making fabric stains a distant memory.
There’s nothing like a little sunlight to get out that maddening damn spot. Or to brighten the soul for that matter.

If it’s a rusty spot you need real sunlight, a lemon and salt. Squeeze on the juice, add salt and leave the material outside for a few hours. This works, trust me.

If it’s grease or paint or anything else, try Sunlight in cake form. Sorry to say, you can’t eat it. But it is good… Pure Aussie Sunlight. Soap that is, made in Australia, still. Gold! There’s a reason why it’s still going strong after all these years.

Ah, peaceful happy goodness.
But just don’t clean your life away…

Dust If You Must

Dust if you must, but wouldn’t it be better
To paint a picture, or write a letter,
Bake a cake, or plant a seed;
Ponder the difference between want and need?

Dust if you must, but there’s not much time,
With rivers to swim, and mountains to climb;
Music to hear, and books to read;
Friends to cherish, and life to lead.

Dust if you must, but the world’s out there
With the sun in your eyes, and the wind in your hair;
A flutter of snow, a shower of rain,
This day will not come around again.

Dust if you must, but bear in mind,
Old age will come and it’s not kind.
And when you go (and go you must)
You, yourself, will make more dust.

by Anonymous