Bar Keepers Friend review, aka Finding Joy in the Small Things

   Call me a nerd, call me a homemaker, call me silly, but I danced a little dance when I discovered Bar Keepers Friend (and no, I'm not getting paid for this).  I discovered it….under my kitchen sink.  I had bought for some unknown reason a year or more ago, thinking it was a good thing to have for stainless steel stuff.  I have an old porcelain sink I got second hand.

   I love my sink. It's got the two different size bowls, it's deeper than the regular sinks nowadays so I can fill my huge stockpots, and it's a bright white. I've seen other sinks that are that crazy avocado green, a weird orange, rose pink and all kinds of other colors that were thankfully already out of fashion when I was growing up.  Except my sink doesn't stay bright or white.  Silverware, knives, cookie sheets and the like put gray marks all over the sink, and things like coffee and tomato sauce stain it.  There were only two ways I knew how to keep it white.  One was the fill up the sinks with bleach water and have them sit overnight. I have two little-ish ones and pets, so this wasn't optimum, but what I used the most.  The other way, courtesy of my aunt, was a Magic Eraser. I use a lot of scrubbing and a whole Magic Eraser when the sink is full of marks, so it isn't the cheapest option, and I'm not really sure what those things are made of.  Not exactly natural or sustainable.  In comes this beauty:

   I was actually moving the Bar Keepers Friend container to look for a Magic Eraser when I noticed it said "Porcelain"across the top. Wait, what? Let me look at that. 'Works on kitchen sinks to clean knife marks'.  Wait, WHAT?  This has been here, unopened, for how long? Oh my heavens.  Let's try it.

   Glorious!! Left is after a couple shakes of Bar Keepers Friend, and 2-3 minutes of medium scrubbing.  Right is what both sides looked liked.  I clean my sink everyday - those are all marks that don't come out with soap and a scrubber.  A few more shakes and another minute or two, and…

   Wa-la!! Time for the happy dance!  I tell you what, maybe it's just me, but there is something wonderfully pleasing about a nice, clean, bright white sink.  Bar Keepers Friend is now my go-to.  I don't remember if it was Messie's Anonymous or not, but somewhere, a lady wrote about emptying and cleaning the sink every night so you don't have that mess to look at.  Along the same lines as making your bed in the morning, so when you walk into your bedroom, the biggest piece of furniture is neat.  Makes a big difference in both cases.  Yes, I am a nerd, I am a homemaker, and I can find joy in the smallest things. Like an efficient sink cleaner and a pretty white sink. 

Joyfully yours,

K

Becoming a Cleanie

   Herein lies the struggles to become a "Cleanie" - someone whose home is organized, clean, and peaceful.  I tend to use a lot of different methods for completing things, and getting my home organized and spit-spot (thank you Mary Poppins) is no different.  The main method I'm starting now is the Messies Anonymos system by Sandra Felton. I am a Messie. On her 0-10 scale, 0 being horrible housekeeper, 10 being model home at all times housekeeper, the quick test puts me at 3 1/2.  Ouch.  I look at my house, and although I'm not happy with it, didn't seem that bad.  But I know why. My kitchen island is mostly clear, but my penninsula is totally cluttered.  My floors are mostly clear, but have piles of things, projects halfway done and the like, against the walls. The clothes in my closet and dresser are sorted, folded, and hung up in their place, but I have folded laundry on the back of the couch and all the clean sheets are stuffed under the bed. Yes, my house isn't a total wreck, but for me, it leaves things to be desired. And "me" is the one I'm trying to satisfy.
   Let me add here, that along with having some organizational issues, I have 2 kids in school - which means lots of papers - and am in the process of a major, ongoing (like 9 years now) house renovation. Like, gut the entire house and start from scratch, then move in before it's done and try to keep working on it while we live inside of it kind of renovation. Add to that, my husband and I are both great dreamers and starters, not so much on the finishers.
   Excuses you say? They used to be. I called them reasons. "The reason my closet isn't organized is because I don't have all the hanging space I need." That seemed reasonable.  But really, it was "The reason my closet isn't organized is because I haven't done it yet."  And really, that's the reason for all the messes. I mean, messes happen. Life happens. What's the point of pots and pans if you don't use them to cook awesome food? Decoration?-I think not. So in order to have that good food, messes happen. But it shouldn't be "last night's dinner dishes are still there this morning because it was a lot and we had company and I was tired and..." No. Last night's dinner dishes are still there because I haven't cleaned them yet. So I said goodbye to that, I commit to Sandra's idea as a mantra. That when it needs to be done, just do it then. No to-do list entry for washing the pot when I put leftovers in the fridge. No to-do list entry for wiping down the table after it's cleared, or actually putting the laundry away after it's folded and sorted by bedroom (and even drawer in the dresser - I've at least been good at that) instead of leaving it the laundry basket for two or three days.
   Time to just go and do it.