Winter Clotheslines and Swooning over a Skill Saw

Finally! A day warm enough to put up the clothesline! And yes, it is January!! We're nuts like that.














Since we live in an old farm house, the old rusted metal poles are still standing. Unfortunately, the holes to hang the line wasn't wide enough for hardware, so we improvised.

We pulled the line tight using the brute strength only given to true lesbians by the goddess Artemus (yeah, made that up). No really, we used a series of leverages, ending with an unused electrical pole.

Next Jamie cut about a foot off of a couple of 2X4's, then cut a notch in one end for the line with a skill saw for the line to run through. We almost had to stop right then. (Swoon )

Once both I and the line was stabilized, our clothes lifted off the ground.

I know what you are thinking. "What the hell are you doing hanging clothes out in the middle of winter?" Well first, watch your language. Second, we're doing it to save energy. We do a lot of laundry. Between the dogs' blankets, our gym and work clothes, and our family cloths (more on that in the previous blog  To Bidet or not to Bidet: That is the Question), our laundry days are booked solid.

Since we save money making our own detergent and fabric softener, and the poles were already available, we just couldn't wait. So now, on sunny winter days, I hang out the clothes. Sun, by the way is a natural bleach which is awesome for our family cloths. Adding some salt to the rinse cycle keeps the clothes from freezing in the cold weather.

Mother Earth News offers the following 100 year old clothes drying tips:

• Do not let clothes freeze as it damages the fibers and fades colors.
• Add salt to rinse water to help keep clothes from freezing.
• Hang whites in the sun and colored articles in the shade.
• Make an apron with a large, baglike pocket to hold clothespins for convenience while working.
• To keep hands warm in freezing weather, boil the clothespin bag and dry the pins by the fire before heading outdoors.
• Every few weeks, immerse the clothespin bag in boiling water for 3-5 minutes. Spread out the pins to dry quickly by the fire or in the sun. This keeps them from becoming brittle and cracking.
• Dip the heads of part of the clothespins in dark paint, some in light paint and leave the rest unpainted. Use the dark ones for colored clothes, the white for miscellaneous towels and the unpainted for sheer whites.
• Hang tablecloths, sheets and blankets by the corners, not draped from the middle, to keep them from being damaged in the wind.
• When taking down clothes, put the clothes basket in a wagon to move along with you. Shake the wrinkles from each article, fold and lay them orderly in the basket rather than a disorderly

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/100-year-old-hints-for-drying-clothes.aspx#ixzz3PVjhxbJb

One modern day tip we would like to add. Non American made clothespins are crap. They fall apart the first use. For good quality American made clothespins, Vermont Clothespins are the way to go. The link to their site is http://vermontclothespins.com/