Miracle Wrinkle Remover!

This is one of those confessions that makes people question whether you have a life: I iron sheets. I iron dishtowels too but somehow that seems less heinous. I don't even like ironing (although it's much pleasanter now that I can watch TV while I do it and, oh yeah, have enough head room to actually stand up straight). 

I've been reading Home Comforts, and the author keeps going on about ironing sheets. My initial reaction was precisely the one I mentioned above, but eventually--and I don't know what came over me--I said "That's it--I'm trying it." 

And it is awesome. 

 I'm not saying ironing the bedsheets rocks my world, but damn they turn out soft. They don't even stay wrinkle-free for more than a night, but the softness lasts. Current weather dictates the use of flannel, and the iron turns that humble fabric into something far less prosaic. So now I iron sheets. 

I've made this confession to few people, laughing in embarrassment whenever I have mentioned it. But as I was standing at the board earlier today, I got to thinking. One of my pet peeves is how everyone seems to be constantly on the run*, always busy, never slowing down. I'm not pointing any fingers here; I'm president of the local chapter of Type A personalities. The thing with ironing, though, is that it's not a fast activity. You can't speed it up or rush it or make it exciting. It forces you to slow down, to be aware of what you're doing, to move with care and deliberation. It gives you time to think (never a bad thing in my book). 

And in the end, you've accomplished something, whether that's improving your appearance with a wrinkle-free shirt or adding some softness and comfort to your life. I don't know, but as far as I'm concerned, the life you have has to be measured by more than how full your day timer is. And you could do worse than breaking out the ironing board every couple of weeks. 

 *I'm not sure if it's a hazard of adulthood or just the age we're living in, but either way, I think we might all need to collectively slow down and take a breather once in a while.

Cheap Thrills

I usually keep liquid Coffee Mate on hand to add to my crack iced coffee, but the cold weather lately has even me seeking out warmer beverages (I'm the nut who orders iced drinks and who craves DQ Blizzards during snowstorms). On a whim I experimented with what I had on hand and discovered that Caramel Vanilla Coffee Mate goes really well in hot chocolate (particularly Mexican hot chocolate) and Green Tea Chai. I'm sure it would work in regular Chai as well. Tasty, warm, and cheap--what more could you ask? Now to solve the mystery of why I'm still finding pine needles all over the place a week after we took the tree down...

(Edited to add picture. Follow me on my main site: AspasiaSBissas.com)

Trends for the New Year!

 

Hello, all--hope you had lovely holidays and a promising start to 2009! 

I love magazines, particularly decorating and garden mags. The photography alone is often worth the cover price. Even better is when publishers offer free trial issues to try to entice you to subscribe. After reading Canadian House & Home's January 2009 "Trends" issue, I'm really glad I didn't have to pay for it. 

Right from the Editor's Page, I knew I was in for an unpleasant time. Quoth the editor attempting to justify trendiness in tough economic times: 

"At the end of the day, trends are about creating a sense of change and giving us a chance to experiment and reinvent ourselves." 

This one brought out a snort of derision from this reader. Apparently one's existence is based on one's belongings, and a reinvention of self requires little more than buying new stuff. Excellent--we can all forget about taking classes, breaking bad habits, trying new things... we can just go shopping instead! But only as long as you follow the trends; simply changing something isn't enough--you have to change it the right way.

The next item that made me mentally twitch was the following decorating tip: 

"If you love a colour, if it makes you happy, then go for it--even if it's not a trend colour..." 

Thanks for the permission! 

Can you imagine painting and re-painting your house according to the whims of fashion? Not only that, but choosing colours you don't even like simply because they're trendy? I sure couldn't. If you're not decorating your home the way you like it, you're really doing something wrong. 

The article "25 Things to Eat, Cook, Buy and Read in 2009" was laughable. But at least now I know that tea is out while coffee is in; "butter is the new cheese"; the hot new carbs are whole grains; and food blogs are cool. 

The silliest article was the one in which design "insiders" predict how we'll be living in the near future. Seeing as how so-called insiders are the ones who once predicted we'd be driving flying cars and eating meals in pill form by the year 2000, you can't really take their predictions seriously, but I have to wonder: do they? Do they honestly believe the future's going to be full of virtual dinner parties (you interact with your guests onscreen, thus avoiding the "hassle of travel") or that book lovers are going to replace their libraries with one or two electronic readers in order to save space? Does the U of T philosophy professor (somehow labelled a design insider) who prophesizes the demise of the car really think that anyone outside of major urban centres is going to give up driving? 

(Even in Toronto, a city with excellent public transit, just try to get from, say, Midland and Kingston to Bayview and Cummer without using a car. It can be done, but only if you've got several hours to spare for a trip that's around 25 minutes by car.) 

His reason is worth a mention, as well. It won't be higher fuel costs or environmental concern that ultimately does in the auto; nope, according to our expert, 

"Creative workers no longer want to spend hours upon hours commuting." 

I'll let my blog readers ponder that gem. 

Meanwhile, if this article is to be believed, the future will be inconvenient, ugly (judging by the few included photos), and dull. For those reasons alone, I'm sure their vision of the future will stay in the realm of bad dream. 

How's this for a trend for 2009: figure out what you like and then do it. With apologies to the people trying to sell magazines, I think I'll pass on the subscription and design my future on my own...

(Edited to add photos and to improve formatting, Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com)

 

Clingy

Our house used to be covered in ivy. We know because it's still there, cut back to ground level, but bits of it still cling to the brickwork. I wish we could let it grow back, but even a minor amount of research proved it would be a bad idea. Ivy climbs by rooting into what it's climbing on. This, obviously, causes major damage over time, destroying bricks and masonry, and potentially letting pests in. 

I've got it into my head to replace it with a less-obnoxious climber. There's something romantic and beautiful about a building swathed in greenery. That's probably why people let ivy have its destructive way in the first place. Seeing its evergreen leaves peeking out from the snow around the foundation, however, almost makes me want to reconsider. 

I haven't done any research yet on other climbers, but I'm intrigued by Virginia Creeper (see the pretty colour it turns in autumn!) Luckily, there's still ample time to look into alternatives. I will not rest until these naked walls are suitably adorned :)

Advice?

Does anyone know whether placing a plant--in a glazed ceramic pot--on the radiator will harm the pot in any way? I know the plant, a French lavender I brought inside for the winter, will enjoy the extra heat, but I'm concerned the glaze could be affected or even that the pot might crack. The rad is pleasantly warm at the moment, but it can get fairly hot. The plant really gets the best sun on there, though. Any advice you guys can share would be most appreciated! 

Mirror in the Bathroom

Given the sheer number of things that can go on in and around one's house, it's funny what can cause you to break out the exclamation marks. 

We got a bathroom mirror! 

Or, more precisely, we finally hung the bathroom mirror. When we moved in, the main bathroom was lacking a mirror. For over a year we've been making do with a tiny hand mirror, albeit a magnifying one (look at all those pores...) Although the bathroom was mirror-less, the foyer came equipped with a lovely large mirror by the front door. I surmised that it would be perfect in the bathroom. I was right. 

Meanwhile, we entertained ourselves with endless deja vu as we spent the year repeating the same conversation with various people: "Oh, you need a mirror? I know a place where you can get a great deal." "No, we have the mirror--we just need to hang it." "Oh..." Followed by a perplexed silence as the other person ponders just how lazy and/or incompetent we are. Granted, although it turned out to be fairly easy in the end, it seemed like a big deal--big enough to put us off taking care of it. When you're not particularly handy, century-old plaster walls seem an insurmountable challenge (especially when you're used to modern drywall). Never mind that so-called hardware stores have screws and sinks for every type of surface but plaster. But that's another rant. 

(FYI--metal screw sinks, the kind that look like ginormous screws themselves but have a hole in them in which, once they're embedded in the wall, the actual screw gets placed, work just fine. Use a drill and work carefully to avoid crumbling the plaster. They, of course, can be found in the "drywall" section of the nails, screws, and fasteners aisle.) 

The "new" bathroom mirror looks awesome. It's got odd rivets on its sides, which makes me think it used to belong to a dresser. The frame is dark wood. The glass is scratched and a little cloudy, with a few of those black spots that mean the silvering is wearing off. It's exactly what the otherwise all-new bathroom needs to keep it from looking too sterile. It completes the space. 

And now I can fix my hair in the bathroom! 

Better still, I ended up solving the bathroom waste bin quandary. If you'll recall this post: Trashy, I was in need of nice-looking bins that didn't require a second mortgage. I decided to go ahead and buy the marble one I'd found, only to go back (repeatedly) and find the store never again had it in stock (just the matching accessories and a mocking space on the bottom shelf where the bins had once been). It was clearly not meant to be (also, I ended up using my gift card on clothes). So yesterday, I happened across square, solid bamboo waste bins...for a reasonable price...and the store happened to have exactly two of them. No photos, but they look great, and if we should want to upgrade later on, they'll work in the downstairs washroom as well. 

Our next consideration now is what colour to go with when we eventually repaint. Much as I like dark hues, I don't think dark brown (see photo above) is exactly the ideal shade for a bathroom. Here's what we're working with: Shower and surround tiles Floor tiles I'm thinking a deep, rich plum would work well. Suggestions?

(Edited for clarity and to update link. Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com) 

Hitting the Links

 

A quick post to tide us over until I have a chance to write something a little more substantial... 

Anyone in the Toronto area interested in home delivery of local/organic fruits and veggies, I highly recommend Mama Earth Organics. We've been using them for a few weeks and we're really pleased with both the service and the quality of the food. A small box ($25 to $27) is just about right for two non-vegetarian people. There are several other options as well, and you can customize your order. You also have the option of adding other organic foods to your order, such as bread, cheese/dairy, and coffee. Yay for eating better! I'm not affiliated with Mama Earth in any way (other than being a customer), but this next link comes from my sister. 

If you'd like to support the maintenance and upkeep of the Queen's Park Legislative Assembly (aka Queen's Park-- a beautiful heritage building), shop at the gift shop's new website (bet you didn't even know they had a gift shop!) My sister runs the shop (among other things) and set up the site. Proceeds go back into the Legislative Assembly (including the building itself). Just in time for the holidays, there's lots of nifty stuff (mostly from local artisans) to choose from. Support the Legislative Assembly...before the city of Toronto decides to tear it down and put up condos.

(Edited to add photo and update link. Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas..com)