Kim's Favorite Things

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So the shoes in my last post were fun, but certainly not practical - in Taos, or in my lifestyle. I can just see myself tottering along in the gravel and mud trying not to damage my cute shoes. I do have some cute shoes, mind you, but they patiently wait in the closet for a night on the town, or out of town, when there's more pavement than sagebrush.

As I wander through my days, I notice things that make things easier and happier. Like Oprah, I have an ever-growing list of Favorite Things. The difference in our lists is that mine is mostly practical, and almost always inexpensive. You wouldn't be all that excited to be on my "show" the day I'm giving away all my Favorite Things. No big TVs or cars or spa vacations. Heck, I'd like to win some of those things! But in your own life, without all the lights and cameras, I think you might enjoy some of my finds as much as I do. So I'm going to start sharing them with you, one at a time, as I notice them or discover them. I hope you'll enjoy Kim's Favorite Things...

First up, a Thing I use often. In fact I use it almost every time we have a sunny day, which is quite often in Taos. It's this dandy little PRESSA folding, hanging, dryer-thingy from Ikea. And it costs a whopping $4.99. I bought it when we were RVing, and did a lot of hand washing of laundry, but it's proven to be super useful back in our house.


We have a washing machine, but no dryer. Well, that's not exactly true - we have a "solar dryer," which some people call a "clothesline." We don't really have room for a clothes drying machine, and to be honest, I would feel sort of silly using one when we have all this perfectly good sunshine, which actually dries the clothes faster than the machine, and makes them smell wonderful too. Besides, I actually enjoy going outside and hanging things up with wooden clothespins. The downside is, I can't do laundry on cloudy days, but so what? This isn't Seattle. And in the frozen winter, even on sunny days wet clothes would freeze rather than dry out there, so I hang them around the living room, where they dry quickly by the huge south-facing windows.

But back to the PRESSA. A full load of wash will quickly fill up my two outdoor lines, and this little gizmo adds a lot of extra hanging space, with 16 little springy hooks that hold tight to things like socks, undies, and cloth napkins. What else can I say? I love this thing.

The sad part, for me at least, is you can't buy it online. You have to go to an Ikea store. I got mine when we were passing through Salt Lake City last year, and I wish I'd bought two. If you happen to go to Ikea to get one of these, will you please pick one up for me? I could really use it in the kitchen, to hang up washed plastic bags for re-use.

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Today on PositivelyVegan - Chef Bo Rinaldi

Comments

  1. KatherineOctober 13, 2011 at 9:57 AM

    You are my husband's dream girl...well, that is after ME of course! You're so practical about how you live your life, and I'm all about inexpensive, too. We do have a dryer, but if my Steve had his way, we wouldn't. Like New Mexico, Colorado sunshine is abundant! Huge brand new IKEA store in Denver, too.

    I'm with you on the shoes. Very cute indeed, especially those black tile booties, but working from home, my uniform of the day is jeans, t-shirts, and flat shoes. My feet rebel if I try to push them into heels these days. *sigh**

    ReplyDelete
  2. Zoe NelsonOctober 13, 2011 at 10:26 AM

    Well, that is one cool gadget! If I'm at an IKEA, I'll get one for both of us. (Watch out -- you'll probably be getting several of these in the mail.)

    I love my clothesline. I have a retractable one that will stretch from my shed to the house. It rolls up inside itself when I'm not using it. I was telling my neighbor (originally from Miami) about my clothesline and she thought I had a "line" of "clothes" that I sell as well as my jewelry! LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousOctober 13, 2011 at 8:05 PM

    I have a centered (raised higher) tension shower curtain rod over my tub in my bathroom. If I am careful, I can hang my blouses and tops on plastic hangers in such a way they will not need touch up after they dry. No dryer or iron - oh happy day. Underware goes on clothespin hooks. Air is pretty dirty here, so the towels and sheets do go in the dryer - sadly. I'll let you know the next time I go to an Ikea. I need a bunch of small stuff there I can't get on line either. Norine

    ReplyDelete

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