Friday 3 May 2013

Facts of Life: Laundry

I was a bit surprised by the amount of interest over the tins on my desk on Wednesday.  Then I remembered that it was because you thought I was going to alter them.  Aha. No. 
I covered up the printed bit that said coffee and sugar on each respectively.  As you can see, I had already done the same on a larger one that was originally printed 'dishwasher tablets' that I got as a total bargain.   And then I felt a bit guilty about the lack of effort and thought you'd probably want a little more from me.  So I cheered them up a bit.  They are still tins for use in my laundry room  And indeed, they are already in use.  My 'room' is the width of the washing machine and sits between the bedroom and bathroom upstairs.  It is not grand, but I do have to look at it every day, so I decided to do away with ugly. And I do love the retro tinware that's suddenly so available.  After all, as a crafter, storage is the next hobby!

 I'm pretty sure you weren't expecting this sort of detail though.  I know that over time, I will get used to knowing exactly what is in which tin.  But what about that glorious day Lord, when persons other than me put a load on to wash?  How confusing will they find it, and worse, will they have to ask or ring me?  Or even worse, guess?!  So, I labelled them..coupla buttons, Stazon and a mini alphabet.  Sorted. And my blood pressure returns to normal control freak levels.



Now, I just need to sort out the liquids.....and get my life back!  I'm linking this to Annie's Friday Smile...because frankly, it's the sort of thing that makes me smile about other people.  I'm turning into Suzy Home-maker!
Have a lovely weekend!

25 comments:

Annie said...

Hehehe Thats brilliant Julia. Such a pretty waste of time eh? :-)
Fab results though.
Thanks for joining in the fun...you certainly made me smile.
Hugs,
A x

Di said...

OMG Julia - now I really am worried about you :) You have TWO different wash powders for whites and coloureds? Ha, Len's lucky if I don't chuck a red top in with his whites! Did it once and he had some very fetching pale pink shirts for the office.

Mind you, those tins are fabby - and so cheering. Will you be adding balloons on streamers clad with bunting to your ironing board next?

Have a lovely weekend!

Hugs, Di xx

Twiglet said...

I am so impressed but also feeling a bit lacking in the creative utility room storage. Mine just get stuffed in the cupboard in the pack or bottle. I love Di's idea of bunting on your ironing board - now that would cheer up a boring task!! Thanks for the smile. x Jo

misteejay said...

Love your tins Julia - they certainly brighten the 'laundry room'.

Not sure how I could brighten up my converted coal cupboard which I grandly refer to as a utility room LOL

Toni xx

Craftychris said...

These are so cool! I like containers too. Last month at a vintage fair I bought a 1970's butter dish which now houses my twine. There is another fair tomorrow - I wonder what I will find! xx

pearshapedcrafting said...

Now that would make me smile! They look fantastic!
Chrisx

Gill Edwards said...

you can never have too much storage Julia. Nice job

Gill x

Deb said...

Love your cute laundry tins and good idea to label them! I only use liquids here, come to think of it, I never see powdered stuff here anymore, maybe I am just not looking! Funny after almost 4 years I am still finding the differences between UK and US!
Debxx

Kim said...

Very nice! I think you did a great job altering them. But I'm with Deb; I haven't seen powdered detergent since I was a kid;(and I didn't know there was a difference for whites and colors! LOL!) and my big jug of Era has a nice spigot built in; if I tried moving it around, I know I'd make a mess! LOL! Have a great weekend.

Helen said...

Very pretty... am I allowed to say I just couldn't be bothered...(Nor do I have separate washing powder for whites and coloured stuff)...but then it does live in the cupboard under the sink so any prettifying would be wasted! They look fabulous though - and I hope someone does your laundry for you as a reward! Ha ha ha...chance would be a fine thing.

Ohhh Snap said...

By my standards, those tins are altered lol. Lovely and functional, can't get better than that. I *might* have a problem because there are days I experiment with fonts and pens whilst writing my shopping lists : D.

Caro said...

That is fantastic! Definitely made me smile....I know what you mean about someone else actually putting a wash on LOL! Thanks for sharing. Caro x (#5)

Darnell said...

Oh, well done, Miss Suzy! I might actually not abhor laundry if I stood at that cheery spot to do it!!

fairy thoughts said...

Hi Julia
and i thought i was ocd about the contents of my airing cupboard, everything has to be folded exactly the right way and put in the right colour pile. . . sad I know but a girls gotta do....and it did make me smile ... so job done
janet

Nan G said...

TeHe you definitely have me smiling! Makes doing laundry bearable...cool!

Claire said...

Lovely storage Julia & I'm astounded you use 2 types of washing powder, I feel like I've been doing it wrong all these years ***hangs head in shame*** lol ;D
C xx

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Sorry I missed WOYWW this week. I'm taking a much needed blogging break. I will be back for the anniversary, though.

Had to laugh at you considering yourself a control freak and Suzy Homemaker. But those tins will make short work of laundry, at least. Much better looking than my sad, refilled-many-times plastic container.

Have a super weekend.

roffeycreations said...

Smile I did - love how we a spurrd onto be "extra" creative by our lovely peers at WOYWW - ...Mxx

Unknown said...

Different powders for whites and coloureds? My family are lucky if I manage to separate them at all! You must be a very good housewife. :D

KatzElbows said...

Beautiful. So much nicer to look at than the originals.

Queenie Jeannie said...

Quite lovely!!! And perhaps could even make laundry...fun??? *smile*

I'm fighting fit again, thank you so much for the well wishes!

Jan Gartlan said...

Cute tins! A great idea

Lisa-Jane said...

Loving those tins! They'd look at home in my own laundry room with that cream colouring. These sorts of things make me happy :-)

MiniOwner said...

Yep cute tins. :o) We have similar posts today about guilty shopping. I love your 50s stuff.
Sue x

shazsilverwolf said...

I have to admit, my washing gets sorted into Black( most of it), non-black, and work shirts. They only get separated out because they always smell of oil!
Shaz xxx