Effortless way to clean your gas stove grates

Cast iron gas stove grates can be a real problem to clean. I have a sure fire way of cleaning them. But before I get into it here is an embarrassing before picture.

WHAT YOU NEED
An ammonia based cleaner ( we have Handy Andy here)
Black garbage bags
A pressure sprayer ( or regular hose with sprayer attachment)

Put some ammonia cleaner onto the stove grates and place them into the garbage bag, lay the garbage bag outside in the sun for a couple of hours.

Remove from bag and spray clean. Seriously, minimal effort and so clean, it even gets that weird sticky feel them off.

All you need to do now is let them air dry, then put them back, give them a wipe with a damp sponge and that's it. Easy right?

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Stencil wall Tutorial

I thought I'd share on old blog post of mine of a stencil wall I did in 2013, the reason I'm sharing now is more for prosperity. We are going to knock that wall out and add on a dining room, so my orange wall will be no more. I'm fine with that, it had its time and place and now it's time to move on. Oh and by the way its not nearly as lumo  as it looks, its really more of an Etsy/blogger orange :)

To stencil a wall can be a monumental task- depending on the size of the wall of course. The first wall I bravely/foolishly tackled is a 3.5m x 3m wall with a window of 1.80 x 80cm.

The stencil I chose can be found  here:http://jonesdesigncompany.com/decorate/painted-wallpaper-a-tutorial/. I printed it off and kept the printed size-I didn't enlargen it.

I then traced off the template onto cardboard and cut it out. You can use an old x ray/card or anything you like that is stiffer than regular paper.

For the first wall I chose a warm orange (Bacarat by Plascon) and painted the entire wall with that. The actual stencil colour is Corner Stone by Paint Warehouse in Port Elizabeth. (It's a colour we have painted through out our house.)

before

step one: orange paint

 

the template

the start of something big

the second row to show how the templates join

I started at the bottom left side and worked left to right in rows. I traced the stencil onto the wall in pencil and then used a number 7 flat paintbrush ( the kind kids use in art class will do) to paint just inside the lines. I used my index finger as a spacer between each template and joined the “stems” in the columns as such.

I found I couldn't work at it too long or my eyes would feel like they were crossing. All in all I think it took about 3 weeks of working most days for an hour or so.

more progress and how I reached the top

Finished! But still a tiled floor

with our wooden floors :)

The second one I did is a smaller piece of wall between two cupboards where the future changing table will be placed. This time I used Corner Stone as the main colour and Aqua light (also Paint Warehouse) as the stencil colour. 

 

showing how I paint each template

mini wall done

I love my feature walls and the satisfaction that I did it even more.  

If you have any questions feel free to ask :)

Shared with Sew Many Ways, try it, like it , joyful homemaking, saving 4 six

Sunday busy Sunday

Today has been full but I feel like I haven't done much today. I did the usual laundry, dishes, making breakfast, making lunch, cooking supper, brining laundry in and Sunday is clean bedding and towel night, so that got done too.

I have a pictorial of how to change a duvet cover quickly and easily by yourself, I call it the burrito method. Seriously there is no easier way.

1. Lay out your duvet cover inside out with the snaps/buttons (open the snaps/buttons) at the head of your bed, place your duvet inner on top of it. Make the four corners match as best as you can.

2-6 start rolling your duvet and cover pancake/burrito style, try keep it quite tight and even.

7. Once its rolled up it will look like this at the sides.

8. There should be an end on each side that is sewn shut, and an open flap with the buttons/snaps. Flip the closed bits over the rolled duvet, ( so stuff the duvet roll into the cover, the cover should now be right side facing.

9. Keep tucking the duvet into the cover, your burrito/pancake roll will now be right side facing. Snap up the buttons/snaps.

10. Grab onto where the end of the duvet meets the snaps/buttons and start shaking. Its important to hold in to both the duvet and cover otherwise you'll land up with a lump of duvet in the middle of the cover.  Keep shaking until its all shaken out. And TA DA!

I hope that makes sense :)


I did a quick maintenance of my sewing machine and over locker and I think my overlocker is worse off than before :( I seriously could just cry. It needs a good old service and tension fixed.

Our garden helper did an amazing job today, he finished taking down the fencing in our front garden, uprooted two stumps so I can get my succulent garden finished, he planted the lavender, he did some mowing and trimming and taking small invasive trees out.

'M' went to get our fan wired up, we had success with the wiring but no installing yet. Luckily it hasn't been overly hot.

I ended the day off with kassler steaks, baby marrows, baked potatoes and the next disk of 'Two broke girls'

What a first week it has been. If I can keep this up for the next 51 weeks I'll have accomplished a lot!

I plan to blog more recipes and tutorials in the coming weeks.

Shared on: Round Tuit, hodge lodge moments, Nora spaulding, be a warrior queen, haifisch, mummascribbles
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