Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!  It sure feels like this week is only slowly creeping by...

In her slow creeping stance...

Just trying to get to Friday is making me sooo tired that Pumpkin can barely stay awake!

I am awake!  Make me wear something ridiculous for Pumpkin Wednesday

Well wait, let me just rest here for a second,

Actually it would better if I laid down

I must sleep now.  You can dress me up/torture me another time

Hope you all had a wonderful Wednesday!

Pumpkin Wednesday-How to Keep From Destroying Your Sweaters

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday, I hope you all had a chance to celebrate the middle of the week!

I love lounging on Wednesdays!

At the request of one of my followers (that's so cool to say I have followers) tonight's Pumpkin Post is about caring for, and storing your sweaters!

Hello to Spring Goodbye to Sweaters!

The sweater is a complex clothing item;  it's bulky, and can require careful washing or even dry cleaning.  As we are getting closer to a complete week of warm weather, those big bulky sweaters seem less appealing to wear and more like they are ready to be stored to make way for your spring wardrobe.

My fur = sweater I can never put away for the summer

Before you put your sweaters away, make sure they are clean.  Putting away clean sweaters will prevent discoloring, bugs, moths, and general dirt from destroying your precious sweaters.

Read the labels to determine how to care for your sweaters.  (As a side note, just because your sweater might be dry clean only does not mean you should take it to the dry cleaner every time you wear it!  Dry cleaning wears out clothes, so be careful, spot clean, and try to minimize the trips to the dry cleaner.  It will help your clothes and your waller)  If your sweater is cotton or, the label says it can be washed, your best bet is always to hand-wash.  If you must use the washing machine, make sure your washer is on the gentle cycle.

One specific question my follower has is how to reshape sweaters.  I have both good news and bad news.

• Good News
• You can try to hand wash your sweater if it doesn't require dry cleaning, and lay it flat to dry in the shape it should be.  
• Bad news 
• If your sweater is out of shape, and it is old, the fibers likely are without any of their original structural integrity.  It's a similar phenomenon to when the elastic gets so stretched out the fibers sort of disintegrate.  Needless to say, you are sort of out of luck and need to enjoy your sweater in the shape it is...

The misshaping of the sweater may also be prevented by careful cleaning as well as being careful about how you store your sweaters. Sweaters should be folded neatly to help keep their shape.  Avoid putting your sweaters on hangers.  The shoulders will get stretched out very quickly.

Always be careful when adding water to natural fibers

Lastly, if you are storing sweaters for the summer, make sure everything is clean, and get yourself some breathable boxes, bags or other containers to put your nicely folded sweaters in.  Storing your sweaters in plastic may help prevent any pests from eating your sweaters, but plastic doesn't allow the fabric to breathe.

What advice do you have for caring for your sweaters?  Have you started to change your wardrobe over to your spring/summer attire?

Looking forward to a lovely Thursday!

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday Everyone!

I know you would rather stay in bed like Pumpkin,

It's best to let sleeping cats lie

but get to work/school and come home and celebrate the middle of the week!


Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Miscellaneous Monday: Spring Cleaning-Start Slow its a Marathon not a Sprint

Hello all!  I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and if you were in the Midwest, I hope you had a chance to get outside on Sunday and enjoy the sunshine.  The warm weather definitely boosts my spirits but it also signals a time to start the annual spring clean out!  I have too little attention and time to tackle more than one room/project at once, so I like to start with something easy that has instant results:  cleaning your bed!

• Now is a good time to clean your bed linens, and not just your sheets!  Wash everything, including your comforter, and all duvet covers (for those of you who have one) and bed skirts.  If your washer is a normal size, don't try to jam your comforter in.  Head on up to your local laundry mat where they have oversized washers just for the purpose of cleaning large items.  If you don't have the time to sit at the laundry mat, some laundry mats have drop off service and may charge you by the pound for your items.

• Another easy way to freshen your bed is to flip your mattress.  Make sure all the sheets and mattress covers are removed and then flip your mattress, so the top is on the bottom.  Its suggested you flip your mattress every six months in order to provide even wear and keep your back feeling better as your mattress ages.  A quick note, don't use the handles on the sides of the mattress to lift it.  The side handles aren't that strong and were designed for positioning the mattress once it is in place on the box spring.

Image Courtesy of Photostock

• Before you flip your mattress and it is free of sheets and covers, give the mattress a quick vacuum. There is a lot of dust you may never notice, and the last place you want dust is in your bed.

• Are your pillows getting stinky?  If you spent more than the average price on your pillows and don't want to part with them, read the care labels on the pillows before washing.  Depending on what the fabric is will dictate how to wash them, and how to dry them.  If you have pillows stuffed with polyester or down, you can throw them in the washing machine.  Just make sure you balance the load by putting in two pillows and run them on the gentle cycle.  You can place the pillows in the dryer and use a few tennis balls to keep them poofed up.

• Once you have washed your sheets and your extra sheet set you have to fold everything.  One of the most annoying tasks is figuring out how to fold a fitted sheet (the sheet with the elastic corners).  I could attempt to explain how to accomplish a square fold on a fitted sheet, but suggest you follow the advice of Martha Stewart, complete with photos.

Photo Courtesy of Suat Eman

Have you started cleaning your apartment/house yet?  What task do you do to make your place feel spring clean?

Looking forward to a lovely Tuesday!

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday!

Happy Pumpkin Wednesday Everyone!

I can't believe we are already into April and headed straight for summer.  I'm already looking forward to baseball, happy hour drinks on patios, summer clothes and swimming!

But I don't want to go the gym! I am so lazy!

But before we hit the warmer seasons, lots of people like to get to back in shape from the winter hibernation state.  So if you are hitting the gym for bathing suit season, or reviving your New Year's resolution, there is a bit of gym etiquette everyone should follow.

1.   Leave your cell phone at home, or in your car.  If you have to take it with you for emergency's sake, don't be on the phone while you are entering/leaving the gym and certainly not in the workout area.


2. Wear one pair of shoes to travel to the gym and change into your workout shoes at the gym.  Changing your shoes helps prevents water and dirt from being all over the gym floor.

Wear these sandals to the gym, then change into your tennis shoes

3.  It's totally fine to sweat, but make sure you wipe it up!  There is no excuse for not wiping down your treadmill, weight bench or any other equipment.  If you know you are a sweaty person, bring your own towel.

Wipe when you leave

4.  Make sure what you are wearing is appropriate...this applies to both men and women!

This would be difficult to wear while working out

5.  Don't spit in the drinking fountain.

No paws in the water fountain either!

5.  Lastly, don't forget to take out, or turn down your I-pod or other MP3 player when you greet the people who work at the front desk.



What's your gym pet peeve?  And how are your preparing for the summer season?


-Looking forward to a wonderful Thursday!