Monday, April 27, 2015

Simple Pleasures






Do you hang laundry on the line outside?  I love to hang sheets outside when the wind is blowing and the sun is shining!  I use white sheets and white towels in our home.  Hanging sheets outside in the sunshine makes them smell wonderfully fresh!  Sunshine is a natural brightener.  We live in an older neighborhood that does not restrict the hanging of clothes outside.  How do you feel about some HOAs not allowing clotheslines?

I remember as I was growing up we did not have a dryer.  I don't think many people did.  Even in the winter we would hang clothes outside---kind of freeze dried them!  My Mama had the "fancy" T pole lines that I'm sure some of you are familiar with.  My lines are just attached to two large oak trees.  I'm all for conveniences and I do have a dryer, but I much prefer line drying.





I've made a deal with the birds.  If I feed them, they won't mess with the laundry on the line.  But you know birds, they are kind of like children, they don't always listen! 




19 comments:

  1. I love the scent of wash hung on a line--and I love to see it on a line as we drive by such a scene. I have a very short clothesline since we have so many trees in our yard. It's hard to hang clothes out because of droppings from the trees and visits from the birds, and right now, the intense pollen. I remember my mom had wooden posts that she'd use to push the clothesline higher when she had sheets drying.

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    1. Dotsie, I too have those same issues with trees and birds. My Mama used to use those props to push the laundry higher also. Our pollen is getting heavy now and I'll have to divert to using the dryer--But it's wonderful when I can hang sheets outside. ♥

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  2. I just LOVE your clothesline, Martha Ellen! We didn't have a clothesline while growing up and I've never had one here. Over the years, I have fallen in love with them! Seeing Susan's clothesline has made me dream of one of my own. Now I have an entire Pinterest board filled with lovely clotheslines! Now that I'm retired, hanging clothes on the line sounds delightful! ♡Dawn

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    1. Dawn, I'd love to see your Pinterest board. I've just gotten into Pinterest, so I'll take a look. My line is just put between two oak trees--nothing fancy. I'm sure you would enjoy hanging sheets on the line---it's a simple joy to me! ♥

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  3. In this world of confusion and unrest, simple pleasures are a respite! I, too, love the smell of sheets that have been dried outside...although I confess to using my dryer more often than not. Right now, there is a huge wood pile right under my clothesline...wood that is waiting for a new shed (that will be built this summer) that will be put in after any unused seasoned wood is put in the new shed. The old shed will be used for lawn equipment so the the shop can expand to the old lawn equipment area. Did you follow that? (I'm not even sure that I follow that, but I think that's was Ron's explanation for the pile of wood under my clothesline!) :)

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    1. Cheryl, I did follow your explanation. I love how you always have a project going on at your place! Yes, we must find respite in our homes! So much going on in the world-- there is joy if we look for it in so many ways. ♥

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  4. Martha, A timely post! For years I've asked my husband to build me a good old fashioned clothesline. Recently, our dryer expiredt and having no time to look for another, we had to hang our sheets and quilts out on a tall tomato arbor. How refreshing the linens were and James just loved it! Now he promises to built me a simple clothes line, I have the wooden pins at hand, I knew someday he would get around to it!

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    1. I'm so glad you are getting a clothesline, Jeri. Mine is just a line between two trees, but I love it! The old ways are sometimes the best ways! ♥

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  5. "Freeze-dried" hahaha! Some of my earliest memories are my grandmother's clotheslines so as soon as I had a house with trees I put one up. I must confess, though, I do not always use it even when the weather is beautiful because that would mean I'd have to do the laundry early enough in the day to give the clothes time to dry. Or I'm in a hurry and the dryer is convenient. Or.....well, you see I have a host of excuses. But I can't argue with line-dried sheets! Crawling into bed at night and smelling sunshine is reward enough. And speaking of birds, I've had to rewash a sheet or two because of them, but I think the worst was the night I remembered I still had clothes on the line (I forget about them often) and had to go out in the dark with a flashlight to take them off the line. I have one of those clothes pin bags you hang on the line. Well, when I put my hand in the bag to drop in the pins a BIRD flew out startling me to near death! She must have thought that bag would make a nice place for a nest!

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    1. Cathy, you have given me quite a laugh this morning! My Mama used to have one of those clothespin bags--I always said I was going to make one, but never have. I use a plastic container-not as pretty. I startle birds all the time--or is it they startle me? Yesterday I walked past a bird feeder with something on my mind, and a bird flew into my chest. I think we were both frightened! Sending you sunshine this morning! ♥

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  6. Martha Dear!!
    What a fresh refreshing picture!! I have the same memories! We hung many in the basement too. I remember what a big deal it was when we got a dryer, but we still used the wringer washer!
    HubbyBear said that we may have to start hanging again when he retires :-) I said " you will have to install one of those pullies like our Amish friends have ;-)
    Blessings warmth and Love, Linnie

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    1. Linnie, my Nanny used to have one of those pulley deals at her home. I was always facinated by it. You could hang the laundry without moving about the yard. Growing up we didn't have a basement, but we had a floor furnace that Mama would hang the laundry all around it. It dried pretty quickly, but took up a lot of room! Hoping you are enjoying your Spring! xoxo ♥

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  7. I loved hanging sheets (not towels, though) outside. I had a pulley line that went from my porch to the tip of the barn. One of my friends said, "People who hang their laundry in the front yard are yahoos." I believed her and never used the line again. If I had one now, I definitley would use it. I did have a line for a while, just in time for many in the neighborhood to return to woodstoves and burning their garbage. Not the aroma I'm going for on my sheets, Your sheets look beautiful on the line! (I love white sheets, too.)

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    1. Vee, my Mama always told me that opinions are like noses, everybody has one. The older I get, the less I care what people think. I certainly spent a lot of my younger years listening to other folks advice, though. Hope the weather warms up for you soon! ♥

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  8. I also enjoy the simple things in life. I saw a goldfinch in my backyard for the first time since I moved here 10+ years ago just before your blog went out. The cardinals have been building a nest in my Knock-Out Rose bush for the 2nd year in a row! I can see it from the inside, through the livingroom window! I thought Spring was really here. but this week has been cold and rainy! I have to do more inside Spring cleaning, so it's OK.
    Have a great weekend!
    Margot

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  9. PS I do have the t-poles. Love the fresh air smell in my sheets!!!

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    1. Margot, how neat that cardinals are building their nests so you can enjoy from your living room! We have lot's of cardinals around here and I've never seen their nests. You are smart to take advantage of the rainy days to do your spring cleaning. We are having a rainy day today, so I should be doing some also. Enjoy the simple pleasures! ♥

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  10. I hang my laundry whenever possible. I like that and it is more environment-friendly. Your sheets are beautiful!
    Amalia
    xo

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  11. They build their nest behind the rose bush, which is butted up to the living room window. I feel like a spy. LOL

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