Exciting News...HappySlob.com is going to be in Woman's Day!

Make sure to pick up the November 1st issue of Woman's Day magazine, ya'll. (Ooh, when did I turn Southern? Must be the excitement affecting my accent!) In a marvelous little article by Pamela Kramer, you'll find some fun and helpful tips from yours truly! Let me know what you think of the article -- and big thanks again to Pamela for including me in the magazine.

And if YOU found the http://www.happyslob.com/ site and this blog thanks to the magazine...well, a big warm welcome to you! I try very hard to keep housecleaning a fun adventure, rather than a boring domestic chore. Feel free to post comments and let me know what you think!

Quirky New Product for Germophobes

I just got word that I'm going to be given a tester product to try - one that any of you germophobes out there will adore! It apparently allows you to flush the toilet with your - FOOT! No more touching nasty toilet handles with your hands, nope, you can get rid of the nasty business with this handy new gadget that you tap your foot on.

What WILL they think of next? I should receive the product - called Foot Flush - within the next week or so, and then I'll let all of you know how it works. My husband would love this one, since he's much more a germophobe than I am...

Another way to De-Fog (Anti-Fog) Your Bathroom Mirrors

Here's a great tip from Ange, a Happy Slob Housecleaner:

"Hiya! Just wanted to let you know of another way to keep bathroom mirrors defogged: shaving cream! Spray it on, wipe it off with a paper towel, and voila!"

Thanks Ange. :) I'll give this a go and see how it works!

Take care,
Christina

Would I Forget YOU? I'm Back!

Hey everyone,

I needed a bit of a break from the blogging scene, so I took off a bit of time to sort out what direction I want to go in with the blog and site, etc, etc, etc. But here I am, back and ready to (gently) nudge you in the right direction with your domestic duties. (Duties? oooh, we sort of hate that word, don't we?)

I'm working on a fresh newsletter for this week, so please keep your eyes peeled for that too.

For today, I just posted a favorite new toilet cleaning idea - and as we Happy slobs love - it is as EASY AS CAN HUMANLY BE! I posted it over at: The Easy way to clean inside your toilet - ALMOST Hands-Free!.

Enjoy! As much as a person CAN enjoy cleaning the toilet, that is...

Wake Up Slobs: Monday Morning Reminders - It's Time for a Cleaning Burst

Wake up, slobbo dears, it's time for a cleaning burst!

Have you started this very helpful routine yet? Do you even know what a cleaning burst is?

For complete and total details, you can always head over to The Happy Slob's Guide to Housecleaning and grab yourself a copy of the coolest cleaning ebook to ever make it onto the Internet.

But...for right now, just remember that cleaning bursts are important for a few reasons:

1. They're fast and effective. Seriously, you'll shock yourself with what can be accomplished in only 5 or 10 minutes.

2. They're consistent - meaning once or twice a day. And THAT, my dear cleaning buddies, means that your home will start to look better than ever in just a week or two!

3. They make you feel good. It's true - consider them aerobic cleaning, because you'll be boogeying along to your fave cleaning music, and cleaning like a madwoman (or man - I think we have a few guys along on this cleaning journey...)

So...fess up. :) Are you guys doing your cleaning bursts? If not, and that's okay - hey, life happens - then, set a goal for yourself right this very moment of this brand new week. Set a goal to do ONE cleaning burst every day, for the amount of time you can actually budget for yourself. And then, at the end of the week, please let me know how it worked for you!

Readers Questions - Removing/Cleaning Soot from Brick Fireplace

Cleaning soot from bricks and/or brick fireplace

Joan just sent me this email:

"I have black soot, that has accumulated outside my fireplace. The fireplace is made of red/brown bricks. The soot doesn't look great to say the least. How can I clean this. Thank you." Joan/Maine

Hey Joan,

:) I know what you mean. A sooty brick fireplace isn't exactly a gorgeous sight. But, it's not too hard to clean at all, so I'll provide you a few tips to get that brick fireplace looking right as rain. Or, right as brick as it happens to be...

WARNING: There are a few wonky ingredients used in this cleaning solution. I want to provide all of you a heads up about this. For example Naphtha soap & powdered pumice are usually available in hardware stores. Naphtha soap can also be found in the laundry section of most supermarkets. If you really can't find powdered pumice, then try using sand or baking soda instead to add tha element of grittiness to this cleaning formula.

First of all, use a heavy-duty duster or vaccuum cleaner to suck up any of the loose bits of soot and dirt that have accumulated around the fireplace and on the brick itself. This will make the rest of the cleaning job a bit easier.

The rest of the tips I found on the ehow.com site on how to clean fireplaces. :) I don't have a fireplace myself, and so I'm admittedly no expert on cleaning them. But I hope these expert tips help you out:

Soot
Instructions
STEP 1: Create a cleaner by mixing a 4-oz. (125-g) shaved bar of naphtha soap in 1 qt. (32 fl oz/1 l) hot water in a plastic bucket until the soap is dissolved. Cool, then thoroughly mix in 1/2 lb. (250 g) powdered pumice and 1/2 cup (4 fl oz/125 ml) ammonia. Apply the naphtha solution with a small brush or paintbrush. Leave it for 1 hour.

STEP 2: Rub off with a stiff-bristle brush.

STEP 3: Rinse thoroughly.

STEP 4: Sponge on a solution of a few squirts of dishwashing liquid in a bucket of warm water.

STEP 5: Rinse clean with warm water.

I hope this helps! And as always, if any of you happy slob housecleaners have another tip to share with our reader on how to clean fireplaces, then email me at christina@happyslob.com. Thanks all!

Cleaning Questions from Readers - How to Clean Dried Flowers and Floral Arrangements

Here's an email I recently received from a Happy Slob Housecleaner named Mary:

Hi Christina, I have been searching for a way to clean my wreaths. They are made of dried flowers. They lose flowers very easily, but they are oh-so dusty. Please HELP. Mary


Hey Mary,

:) Relax! I promise it's not nearly as hard to clean those things as you might imagine it to be. In fact, it just takes a little air - compressed air, that is.

A little can of compressed air is a handy tool to have around the house for all sorts of delicate cleaning jobs. For example - they're mainly used to clean computer and keyboard components, but are also the perfect cleaning implement for use on - you got it! - your gorgeous little floral wreath. I have one of those that is in dire need of cleaning, too, so I'm going to take my own advice! (Haha...as always, I tell you that I don't call myself the Original Happy Slob for nothing! ;)

Anyway...all you need to do is to purchase a can of compressed air. The most likely place to find this is at a computer store, or in the computer/electronics section of any major department store. Use this and a soft toothbrush or little feather duster to get rid of all the dust. The compressed air will gently swoosh that dirt and dust away, and you can use the soft toothbrush or mini feather duster (which I've successfully found at dollar stores for - you guessed it - 1 dollar) to remove the lingering bits.

:) Hope this helps you out Mary!
Hugs,
Christina

Cleaning Question of the Day - How To Get Melted Candle Wax out of Fabric Tablecloths

We've got a very interesting cleaning question today, sent in by Sherry. Here it is:


"How can I get melted, spilled wax off a lace tablecloth? "
Thanks in advance.
Sherry

That's a fabulous question, Sherry, and a tough one. Cleaning melted candle wax is always a very UN-fun cleaning chore. I was just cleaning out an old wax tart melter thingamajiggy this morning and I managed to get wax all over the kitchen sink somehow. BUT, I learned a valuable thing or two along the way. (I usually do when I do some cleaning experiments.) I'll share those things TO DO with all of you guys.

:) Okay, so here's what I suggest - it's a three step process, and since it's a lace tablecloth, you'll need to be extra careful with it, as it's likely fragile.

1. Freeze off all the ice you can - fill a baggie with some ice cubes and apply to the fabric and pick off as much of the wax as you possibly can. This gets rid of the majority of the wax, and leaves you with less mess to cope with.
2. Put the fabric (tablecloth) onto a heat-safe surface, and put some paper towels beneath it; enough to soak up the leftover wax as it melts away. Use either a hairdryer or an iron on low and press against the fabric. The wax will melt, and it'll get soaked up by the paper towels underneath.
3. Then you should be able to launder the tablecloth as usual.

Hope this helps, Sherry! If anyone else has any no-fail cleaning tips on how to clean up spilt wax, then please do the Happy Slob thing and send it in to me to share with everyone! christina@happyslob.com