How to Clean a Gas Stove Top

Time:  Soak overnight, and as much time needed to scrub it clean (it took me an hour)

I have FINALLY found a way to clean my stove top that works.  For the past 4 years that we have had this gas stove/oven we have been scrubbing and scrubbing the top and we could never scrub all the baked/burnt stuff off, until now!

Here is how I did it:

1.  Wipe stove top clean
2.  Sprinkle baking soda all over

3.  Place a warm wet soapy towel over top and let it soak over night.  This helps loosen all that grime on the stove top.

4.  After soaking start scrubbing it clean.  I used steel wool/Brillo and, yes, a butter knife.  I used the knife to gently scrape and pry up all that burnt on grime.  Then I went over it with the steel wool to get any small particles left after scrapping.  Wipe clean and repeat as needed.  The butter knife worked really great for going around the burners and all the crevices   If I had just used the steel wool and not the butter knife, I would still be there trying to scrub away all that burnt on grime.  The butter knife will really help you, just remember to be gentle.

 My stove top looks so much better, doesn't it?  Almost new again!  Now I just have to find a way to clean the stove grates/burners.

How to Paint Furniture

Cost:  $75-$100

Time:  6 full days of painting and dry time

Well I finally decided to start painting my dining room furniture that is over 30 years old.  If you missed it, here are my inspiration pictures.  

I spent about $75 on oil based primer, 1 quart of Sherwin Williams Oil Based Satin Enamel in black, a can of Flood Penetrol, a clear satin finish polyurethane, and on a few paint brushes and rollers. I used a 25% off Sherwin Williams coupon on the paint, saving about $25.  (You can find these coupons in the Sunday paper or set up an account at your local Sherwin Williams store and just ask for it!)

PRO-PAINTING TIPS

If you are going to paint furniture I highly recommend using a primer, to help the paint stick without chipping later on, and penetrol for oil based paints.  Penetrol eliminates brush or roller marks on your furniture.  These products really give a professional finish to your furniture. Sherwin William paints are great!  They are long lasting, durable, and have a beautiful finish.  If using oil based paint, make sure you are using the correct brushes, it really makes a difference.   See my earlier post on oil based painting tricks.

HOW TO PAINT FURNITURE

1.  Remove chair cushions and any hardware attached to the furniture.

2.  Use a primer and mix it with the penetrol (follow the directions for mixing).  Make sure you are working in a well ventilated area.  I painted in my garage with the doors open or cracked open.  You may want to sand your furniture, but this is not necessary if using primer made by Zinsser.  It can go directly onto glossy surfaces to make your furniture ready for painting.  Using a primer helps cover stains and helps adhere paint to your furniture to stop chipping and flaking.  Put on 1 good coat of primer and 2 coats on the table top that will get the most use.

The backs of my chairs are wicker and yes I painted them with a brush.  This helped get into all the crevices.  I used a brush especially made for oil based paints on the chairs and legs of the tables.  I used a roller on all other surfaces.  Using a roller on the tabletop and smooth surfaces is a must.

Let primer thoroughly dry before applying paint.

3.  Mix paint with penetrol. Apply your 1st coat of paint on your furniture.  Take your time and do not apply to heavily to avoid dripping.  Wait until paint is completely dry, about 6 to 8 hours, before applying a 2nd coat of paint.  This is very important because if the paint is not dry it will clump and streak.

Again, I used a brush on the chairs and legs of table and a roller on all the other surfaces.

 4.  Apply a coat of polyurethane on the table top or any other area to help protect your furniture from spills. I applied polyurethane to my table top and buffet.  The polyurethane I used has a clear satin finish.

5.  If using the same hardware, spray paint it the color you want or clean it well.  I chose to spray paint mine in in black with a gloss sheen.  Since the look of the hardware it a little outdated, I did not want to spray them in silver and have them stand out on the furniture.  Painting them black will help them to blend in to the black furniture.  When using spray paint, I recommend Rustoleum brand.  I have used this product in the past and it has never failed me.  Rustoleum spray paints are very tough and durable.

6.  Attach hardware and seats to furniture


7.  Stand back and admire your hard work!

Notice the black hardware?  It looks good!  Now I want to build a frame around the mirror on the buffet.  I am also thinking of maybe taking the wallpaper down or painting the white walls on the bottom another color.  What do you think?

 Tips:

If using oil based paints beware that your brushes and rollers will not come clean under running water much-like latex based paints.  You need to purchase mineral spirits to properly clean them.  I did not do this.  I saved money by buying only 2 brushes for oil based paint and 3 small rollers for cabinets and I "preserved" them between uses.  This is my tutorial on how I did this.

Lego Crayons

Cost: FREE plus the cost of the mold and crayons if you don't have them
Time: about 10 minutes for each mold

For Valentine's Day this year I have been trying to come up with a way to make non-candy treats for the kids at school, while spending next to nothing.  We came up with the idea of lego crayons using the lego mold and some old crayons that we have duplicates of or are broken.

This is also a great idea for party favors or candy making!  After cleaning my molds I might use them to make chocolate lego people for cake/cupcake toppers.

Here's how we did it:

1.  Collect the crayons you want to use
2.  Peel paper and chop into pieces
3.  Put crayon pieces into mold making sure to overfill each figure with crayon pieces.  Microwave for about 6-8 minutes (until pieces are melted)
4.  Cool in freezer or refrigerator

TIP:  Do not worry if you break a piece while taking it out of the mold.  Just put it back into the mold and remelt.  Good as new!

Cleaning the Tops of Cabinets

Cost:  FREE
Time: 2+ hours


I have been looking on Pinterest for some inspiration for decorating the tops of my kitchen cabinets.  Since I have moved in my house, almost 5 years ago, I have done nothing to this area except throw random unused kitchen pieces up there.  To me this space in my house looks unorganized and junky, so its time for a change. But first being the neat and cleanly OCD person that I am, the tops of the cabinets must get a through cleaning 

Here's how I did it:

1.  Take everything down from the tops of your cabinets.  I will warn you now, if you have never cleaned this area it will be disgustingly dusty and the parts over my stove were sticky.

See I tried to warn you.  This cookie jar has a thick layer of dust, grease, and dead bugs.

2. Vacuum dust off cabinet tops.

3.  Wipe any sticky areas with warm soapy water and change water as needed.  Just look at how dirty the water got!

4.  Layer newspaper across the top of your cabinets.  This allows for easy clean-up the next time you decide to clean the tops of your cabinets.

5.  Place items of choice on top of kitchen cabinets.  This may take awhile as you arrange things into groupings.  I start with grouping of 3 objects in the corners and worked my way around the room until I was happy with the results.  I ended up using red and white items which match the decor around the house.

Much better!

P.S.-I hate my cabinets, or I should say I hate the color of my cabinets.  I don't want to paint them, buy hardware for them, or paint the counters because they will be replaced.  I do not want to spend the money on these things when I am saving to have them replaced.  So until that time I am just going to keep saving and make the best with what I have.

How to Clean a Routed Kitchen Table Edge

Cost:  FREE

Time:  5-10 Minutes

Do you have a kitchen table with a routed edge?  I do, and let me tell you it can get pretty gross with all kinds of food stuck in those corners from rolling out dough, making cookies, or from grubby little hands.  When I can start to see gunk building up, I know its time to give my kitchen table edge a good cleaning.  Cleaning the routed edge really brings life back to the table.  

You will need:

toothpicks 3-10 (depending on amount of gunk, and they do break when scrapping)

a warm soapy rag

See the white lines in the tables edge, that's the gunk!

First, I wipe down the edge with warm soapy water to help loosen the gunk. Then take your toothpicks and just start scrapping it away.  Did I tell you this is a great task for little hands?  Well it is!

Goss!  Just look at all that gunk (and germs and bacteria).  

When finished scrapping with your toothpick, just wipe clean.  Repeat scrapping if needed.

See it looks so much better doesn't it!  Now I bet you want to get rid of all your gunk too.  Go ahead, it only takes a few minutes.

A Whovian Themed Dinner Party

If you have seen my previous post, you know I threw a super geeky Doctor Who themed party for my 1st "Whoniversary" in honor of me being a Whovian for a year! Here's how I threw a super cool themed party:

Planning. PLANNING. Did I mention planning? I scoured Pinterest for ideas for months (My Who-niversary board). I planned a menu and activities. I wrote it down, changed things around, thought about expenses, thought about reality.
I decided to have have 3 courses but serve buffet style (fancy but not snooty). I pre-made a table covering for each course. The reveal of each layer became the highlight of the party! See the tablescapes below!

Pin the Tentacle on the Ood: (one of my more brilliant ideas)

I made this Tardis blue bow for my front door. Super cheap, all of my ribbons were bought after Christmas for 75% off. So this cost about $1.50

Appetizer Course: Fish Fingers and Custard (Episode 5.1 The Eleventh Hour) I made actual custard AND tartar sauce (and called it custard) in case my guests were not so keen on being true to the story. To my surprise, the real custard was more popular than the tartar sauce. There is also cocktail sauce for that random guy who likes cocktail. It's labeled "blood control? blood control!" get it? (Episode 2.0 The Christmas Invasion)

Adipose babies made by using a powered sugar/water glue to adhere big and little marshmallow together. Smiles are made with store bought black gel icing. (Episode 4.1 Partners in Crime)

 Note to self: Adipose can be toasted. YUM YUM

Main Course: "Pizza, Booze, Tele" (Episode 5.11 The Lodger). It's simple, frozen pizza and salad!

I "Doctored" my dressings a little to make them more timey-wimey. I simply replaced the labels on ranch and italian dressing bottles. "Anti Slitheen Solution" (Episode 1.5 World War Three) and "Adipose Juice" (Episode 4.1 Partners in Crime).

These are non-time consuming printouts that I made in MS Paint. Easy Peasy.

Dessert Course: My piece-de-resistance. Dalek cupcakes. A dessert food filled with evil, hatred, and dark chocolate. 

Exterminate! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATEEEEE!

Even a nerd girl can be a fashionista! Now, ALLONS-Y ALONSO!

Tricks for Painting with Oil Based Paint

I recently painted my dining room furniture with oil based paint. Since I was using oil based paint, I did not want to deal with the messy clean up of brushes and rollers with mineral spirits or the extra expense of purchasing numerous painting tools.  My painting project took 4 days over 2 weekends.  This is how I "preserved" my brushes, rollers and paint trays between each coat of paint and each day of use. 

These tricks may also be used with latex paints.

PAINT TRAYS

I covered my paint tray with aluminum foil making sure to push the foil down into the tray.  I used 2 layers of foil over the tray just in case of a tear in the top layer of foil (which did happen with heavy use).  This made clean up very easy.  When finished, just take off foil and throw away.

BRUSHES

I bought brushes especially for oil based paints, which cost about $7 a piece, but I got lucky and found one marked on clearance to $3.  So I  bought 2 brushes for $10, one for the primer and one for my paint.  Then I used a few old brushes I had from painting with latex paint to get into small crevices.  Since I didn't want to spend any more on brushes and I knew my furniture painting project would take days (2 full weekends) to complete, I decided to preserve my brushes between each coat of paint and each weekend.  This method worked great for me.  My brushes never got dried out.

My long handled brush was folded 3-4 times into my plastic drop cloth.  This keeps the air away from the bristles and keeps the brush from drying out. 

This is a picture of the brush upon unwrapping.  The paint is still wet after 2 days!

Here is a picture of my brush wrapped up in the drop cloth.  Notice how the plastic is twisted around the brush to keep the air out.

My shorter brush was shut in a quart paint can.  Keep about an inch of paint in the can to keep the brush from drying out.  This can also be done with larger paint cans and longer brushes, I just didn't have a larger paint can in the color I was painting with. 

NOTE:  This will only work if there is some paint (at least an inch) left in the can.

Here is a picture of my brush after 2 weeks of use.  The bristles are still in great shape!

ROLLERS

 I only bought 3 rollers, one  each for the primer, paint, and polyurethane.  To keep my painting costs down and preserve my rollers, I wrapped them in saran wrap very tightly.  Then they were wrapped in the plastic drop cloth just like my paint brush.
I also successfully used a rubber glove I was wearing to store the roller between uses.  I just inserted the roller into a used glove, twisted the opening and then wrapped it in the plastic drop cloth.

Here is my roller, still wet the second weekend of use. You can see the saran wrap that was wrapped around the roller.

Happy Painting!