Storing Jams & Pickles

This tip on storing pickles & jams on lower shelves is especially helpful during warm weather and when you crank up the winter heat too.

Bobbie Pins For Hems

I wish I would have found this issue of Modern Woman Magazine earlier this summer when my daughter was doing theatre costuming at Trollwood... Bobbie pins would have been easier to control than pointy pins.

How To Soften Hard, Lumpy Sugar

Have problems with lumpy &/or hard sugar in summer? Aside from getting the Kool-Aid making children to properly reseal the canisters, try this vintage tip:


From a 1952 issue of The Workbasket (sorry I can't remember the exact issue; I had a boo-boo with my computer while scanning & was lucky to save the 30 or so scans, even if they were no longer in their proper folders).

Reuse An Old Umbrella To Dry Your Clothes

This would have been nice to know when I was in college; those flimsy fold-up racks for drying clothes took up a lot of space in the tiny dorm room -- especially when you consider the few times you actually put them to use. I imagine a broken umbrella would work nearly as well, giving an old umbrella new recycled life.

Crochet A Powder-Puff Top

Authentic vintage crochet instructions for making a pretty cover for your powder puff; 1952 issue of The Workbasket.

Laundry Lines

I love hanging clothes out to dry -- sheets & linens smell especially nice this way. And it's a nice way to save money & energy, skipping use of the dryer. But people (who shall remain nameless; but they know who they are!) complain when I line dry jeans & towels, complaining that they are too stiff & scratchy when dried this way.


I have two ways I cheat and (unless they read this!) the complainers are none the wiser.

First, line dry the items (while they are away & can't see) and then I either:

* put them on "air" in the dryer for just two minutes, to add the "fluff" magic

or

* hand "fluff" by rubbing each item, relaxing the fibers (just crumple and rub the jeans or towel on itself) and then fold them.

It may add time to your day, but it saves you money -- and the arguments *wink*

Image credits: Laundry Hanging Out to Dry, photographic print by Nina Leen.

How To Remove Grass Stains

More from that vintage Eddy's Bread booklet; this time, removing grass stains from white fabric:

Truths About Fruit Tree Seedlings

From a vintage issue of The Workbasket, the truths about getting fruits from fruit trees: don't get seedlings (unless you can wait years!), get grafted fruit trees.

Pennsylvania Dutch Shoo-fly Pie Recipe

This recipe for Pennsylvania Dutch Shoo-fly pie was found in Pot Luck.

Keeping Clothes Damp While Ironing

I fell in love with this vintage figural elephant clothes sprinkler bottle, so I looked for other vintage clothes sprinklers (even saved the search at eBay). Such fun ways to keep from being ironing bored!

Retro Recipes For Marriage

In contrast to the many products inspired by or incorporating vintage & retro images of female domesticity that only really offer humor, Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife: All the Dishes You’ll Need to Make from the Day You Say “I Do” Until Death (or Divorce) Do You Part, by Nava Atlas, offers some wisdom with the chuckles. Read my review here!