I have either washed or dried dishes pretty much all of my life. I can remember going to my grandparents and the youngest aunt and I were assigned dishwashing duty after dinner. She washed and I dried.
As a bachelor I used the same soap my mother did, Joy. It cleaned well enough I guess. When I married we worked out an agreement that if one of us cooked, the other cleaned up. My ex tended to make a big mess and I soon discovered if I cooked I might as well do the dishes as I kept washing things when I was done before serving dinner. Everything was clean and she had little to do.
Somewhere after getting married I made the discovery of Dawn dish detergent. My mother used Joy and I used Joy as well. After getting married I bought Dawn on a shopping trip because there wasn't any Joy (oxymoron name for sure - who finds "Joy" in dirty dishes?) It was a product I had never heard of. I soon discovered it's wonders when cleaning our Tupperware. Anything oily had to be squirted directly with detergent to get the oil out. However, I soon discovered Dawn cleaned that Tupperware without any more soap or fuss.
One Father's Day the surprise for me was a new dishwasher. My days with Dawn were ended.
Years later when I was learning how to oil paint and went to a folk and art painting convention in Las Vegas, one of the instructors told us that we didn't need to buy expensive brush cleaners, plain old dish detergent would do just fine, then noted for oil paints Dawn got them really, REALLY clean. So, after a painting session I would put a bit of Dawn in my palm and scrub away on all the brushes I had used. And yes, most, if not all, of the paint came out. As I shifted to acrylic paints for both crafts and canvas painting I always used Dawn.
Another teacher also touted Dawn and said a drop or two in the cleaning water wouldn't hurt anything and so in my cleaning tub, you know the one with holes on one side and three places to clean and rest brushes I added a drop of Dawn to the water. I have done that for years and can't see that the paints are any worse for wear.
Doing a little research I discovered that the soap was introduced by P & G in 1973. The main difference with this and other dish detergents is it contains alcohol that makes it very effective in getting off dirt and grime. Soak a BBQ grill in water that covers the grill with ½ to 1 cup of Dawn a few hours and the gunk will almost fall off. Yet it is safe to use on animals. Most sea life covered with oil during oil spills are captured and cleaned with the stuff. It's that gentle and won't even burn their eyes. We have all seen seagulls and pelicans covered with oil only to be washed in a tub filled with (Dawn) soap and returned to the wild.
Around the house I have found many other uses for Dawn as well. Because I live in Palm Springs we are "supposed" to use sunscreen that is oily and having a naturally oily skin, the only thing I have found that gets my glasses streaklessly clean is Dawn. I get the lenses wet, put Dawn on my fingers, carefully rub the lens and frames, wash off and have completely spotless lenses! Nothing else seems to work as well. |
| A year outside had not been kind to these cushions |
When I finally got around to rearranging my patio, I took the patio furniture I purchased a few years ago because it was cheap, then put outside in the rain, sun, heat and cold when I got a more suitable indoor sectional. I figured it was time to clean and cover the cream colored cushions and arrange the patio.
I got a trashcan, put some Dawn in it, filled it up with water and scrub brush in hand started scrubbing all the cushions that sat outside pretty much ignored.
It was already 90ยบ when I started but I figured that a good scrubbing was in order so I wet the cushions, scrubbed with the soapy water and when that was done washed the cushions with a heavy stream of water to get the soap off. I stood them up to dry them faster and left them in the sun. With 6% humidity it didn't take long!
Today there are a whole bunch of offshoots of Dawn. Dawn 2X, 3X and now even Platinum all attempts in my mind to charge you a little more when the original will work just fine!
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| You can see Dawn got rid of most of the stains!!! |
Too make sure I don't have to scrub off those white cushions again, I bought colorful towels to cover them with because I had to move the huge club chairs with ottomans under the lemon tree. It faces a wall that has plants and offers shade though right now hot is HOT and after about 9 am no one wants to sit outside. Soon though, the evenings will be mild and it will be fun to sit outside with a cup of coffee and a book or magazine in my lap.
Dawn has many more uses too. I leave soapy Dawn water in casserole dishes with baked on grime, it can be used to clean concrete indoors and out. Put some on the offending oil spot, let sit awhile then scrub with a brush and hose off. Even spots on clothes can be removed. Soak the offending spot with a bit of Dawn, let sit for an hour or so, then wash.
I am sure there are far more uses but the artist in me thought maybe I should pass what tips I know on. Painting is expensive enough without adding even more expense. Things you already have around the house can be just as useful and are cheaper than some of the products we are told we need today.
Thank you for reading my blog. I invite you to take the time to read earlier blogs where my emphasis is to explore the ways art and design affects our daily lives ... and always has. I share with you what inspires me with the hope that it will inspire you as well. Comments are always welcomed!
Be sure to check my ETSY store ... KrugsStudio.etsy.com. I am adding many new and exciting, collectible birdhouses and craft items. Many of the items talked about here will be for sale there!
