Everyday, our readers submit photos of the beautiful antiques they come across. Occasionally, we see an item that has us puzzled, so we turn to you for help! Take a look at the following sixitems, and see if you can identify all of them. And as always, thank you for sharing your photos! from: Sandra …
There’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. Back in the old days the laundry was often done in a washtub, with bar soap (or flakes) and a washboard. Some families might have had a ringer, which helped to reduce the drying time by a fair bit. Even once electric washing machines …
Their motto was “waste not!” Economy of the household was key for most of our families over the years. Especially during the Great Depression, but even in the decades after, many of our parents and grandparents tried their very best to avoid wasting anything. And, if your parents and grandparents were anything like mine, there …
While we are probably a bit too old to qualify as millennials, we do have some millennial traits. That’s because we sleep without a top sheet. When we climb into bed at night, we nestle between the fitted sheet and the comforter. This arrangement suits us well and we never would have given it a …
We had a lot of hacks for using those old fashioned telephones. It seems most people these days only have a cell phone and probably will never again have a landline if they can help it. Even before the smart phone era, most folks already had their own dedicated landline (instead of party lines) and …
There was so much work to be done. Cleaning in the old days was a lot more work than it is today. At our disposal now we have efficient solvents, running water, and long-wearing surfaces. We also have electricity and convenience machines like vacuums and washing machines. Go back even a few generations and keeping …
Baby names are tricky because it’s hard to guess what is going to be popular — or overly trendy — in the moment you name your kid. For example, when I named my kid Willa in 2013, I didn’t know a single person with her name. But now that she’s 11, there are three other Willas in her …
Is it Really a Thing? When it comes to cleaning windows, we often think of high-tech sprays and fancy microfiber cloths. But did you know that your grandma might have had a secret trick up her sleeve? Yes, indeed! Many grandmas used to clean windows with newspapers, and it turns out, it’s not just a …
Imagine: you’re exhausted, it’s late and instead of flopping onto a memory foam mattress, you know there’s a rope bed in store. Yep. Rope. Sleep tight, because it’s going to be an unusual experience. I found one in the back of an antique shop once. Looks more like a prop from a medieval play than something someone would …
It’s safe to say that most people have a microwave in their kitchen. Want to heat up last night’s dinner for today’s lunch? Just pop a plate in the microwave! Although we tend to think that microwaves are only good for heating up cold food, they also offer a ton of other uses. You may …