2. Line-dried two loads of laundry. I am really getting my indoor laundry drying down PAT! It only takes 10 minutes or so to hang up a load of clothes. First I get out the collapsible drying rack, and then set up the clothesline. That involves tying one end of my line to the first hook. Then I run the line zig zag across the room, threading it through two more hooks, pulling the line very tight and then tying the remaining end onto the fourth and final hook.
Time Saving Tips for Indoor Line Drying
Sort clothes while they are still wet. To save time in actually hanging up the clothes, I sort out the socks and underwear (for the drying rack), and then separate my clothes from Hubs' clothes in different piles BEFORE hanging them up. This only takes a few seconds, but hanging them up in order will make folding and putting away MUCH faster. Then sort out the pants and hang those up first, because they take longest to dry. If I can, I put the jeans on my "overflow rack" in the shower. That way it doesn't put as much stress on my line (jeans are the heaviest) and also leaves more room for the shirts.
Put thicker, heavier clothes close to the fan. When I do hang up the shirts on my line, I do Hubs' pile first and then mine. I also put his larger shirts close to the fan, and my smaller, lighter shirts on the far end of the line, because I know they will dry faster. Before I leave, I turn on the ceiling fan to help with air flow, and turn off the lights. Then it is usually 24 hours before everything is dry.
Keep your line close to your closet(s). Putting away the laundry is a breeze. First I go to the bathroom to collect the jeans and any other items in "overflow"- towels or sweatshirts. Then I return to the bedroom with clothes in hand. Jeans can be immediately put away. Then I take down all of Hubs' shirts and fold them, and put away. Then I take my shirts down, fold them, and put them away. Lastly I fold the underwear and pair all of the socks hanging on the drying rack. It is so nice because the line is in our bedroom and all of our clothing storage is right there. No half-folded piles on the couch anymore.
Make tear-down simple. My final step in the laundry process is taking down the line. I have a modified milk jug clothespin holder that I can hang right on the line. Then I can take the clothespins off and put them in the jug, just pushing the jug along as I go. When the pins are all collected, I untie both ends of the line and wrap the cord up around my hand. Then the cord goes into the jug/holder with the clothespins. And my line is completely cleaned up! After that I just have to put away the collapsible drying rack, which is stored in my craft room just around the corner. I love how fast this system is. Even though the clothes take longer to dry, my hands-on time is less than with a traditional outdoor system. That's because all of the drying, folding, and putting away takes place in one area.
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3. Made jello with my $0.12 per serving apple juice. This was not actually frugal. I figured that with the cost of Knox gelatin powder, each serving of juice costs a whopping $0.36 per serving. Plus, the jello turned out grainy. Right now I am mixing it into my tea instead of snacking on it. So, that was kind of a frugal fail. I think popsicles would be a better frugal use for cheap fruit juice. If anyone has a source of bulk gelatin powder for less than $1.00 per oz. please let me know.
4. Used a $10.00 off coupon at Bulk Apothecary. I bought a new soap mold (yay!), some phthalate-free fragrance (like the pomegranate one I mentioned last week), and some lanolin.
5. Remember the Materia Medica free herbal course I signed up for in January? After a bit of slacking, I read through all of the lessons and made a binder with all of the printables in it. I believe the course was only free in January, but I have access to it until April. I will be growing several new herbs in my garden this year, so I would like to study a little more in order to get the best use out of them.
So, that is about all for the week! We have a family wedding, travel, car shopping and the birth of some goat kids coming up, so I have been a little distracted as of late. I'm praying that my goat has her kids soon so we can at least get that out of the way!
Til next time,
-Bethany
*This is not a literal paper business card. Hubs is self-employed, so we separate "business costs" from "personal costs" for tax purposes. I use our debit card for household purchases, and we use the business credit card for pre-tax business purchases.