Amazon.com |
In most homes, women tackle the cleaning and the laundry. We
have our favorite mops and soaps, and somewhere between the scrubbing and folding, we
long for a self-cleaning house. But compared to the housekeeping grind of the 1800’s,
today’s philosophy and methods are simpler. Take a gander at some of the humorous
logic from back then, courtesy of …And
You Think You’ve Got It Bad. I’d wager you wouldn’t wish for a
self-cleaning house again, but I’d be lying.
Cleaning Tips:
While painting,
keep the room well ventilated and eat acid fruits. Any woman with a mechanical
turn of mind can paint.
To rid your
home of moths, take common lamp-oil and wash the floor all over. It smells “loud”
but will be gone in about two days. So will the moths.
Bellows, courtesy of objectlessons.org |
To clean a
papered wall, cut a large loaf of two-day old bread into eight pieces. Blow dust
off wall with a bellows, rub a piece of bread down the wall in half yard
strokes. Begin at the top of the room until upper part is cleaned then go
around room repeating process until all has been gone over.
Laundry
Tips:
According to …And
You Think You’ve Got It Bad, wash day is Monday, and should be completed by
10 a.m. One should prepare the wash water Saturday night. Soft water works
best, but if you don’t have soft water you can soften a barrel of well water by
pouring a half-peck of boiled hard-wood ashes (and the water used to boil the
ashes) into the barrel water. You’ll know enough has been added to produce the
desired effect when the water takes on a curdled appearance and soon settles to
perfectly clear. If milky in appearance, add more ashes and lye, but not too
much as it will affect your hands in an unpleasant manner.
To stiffen
linen cuffs and collars, add a small piece of white wax and one teaspoon of brandy
to a pint of fine starch.
Victorian Vanity Set courtesy of Pinteret |
Clean a silk
dress by first brushing with a velvet brush. Grate 2 potatoes into 1 quart of
water. Let stand to settle, then strain it off quite clear. Sponge dress with
potato water. (The velvet brush is the long brush at the top of the photo)
After reading
these hints, I think I’ll stick to my All laundry soap and Snuggles fabric softener
and hire a painter when needed.
...And You Think You've Got It Bad by Barbara Fairchild Gramm can be purchased at Amazon.com
Original Cover |
4 comments:
These are funny. I wonder if they actually work lol.
I have no clue and have no desire to try. But it is fun reading about them. Hugs, Kristy!
Ashes to wash clothes? Hmmm. I don't think so. Thanks for an amusing piece, Julie--makes wash day seem like a breeze.
Mine, too, Andrea!
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