(This is a sponsored post. Basically, I’m getting paid to clean a spot I avoid cleaning. Yes, I get the irony.)
It’s spring.
Which means . . . it’s time to spring clean.
There were many years when I just didn’t spring clean. I was barely surviving under all my clutter, so the big, easy-to-neglect cleaning projects were put off indefinitely.
But this year, to scratch my spring cleaning itch, I decided to tackle the prettiest spot in my house.
Which . . . is also the most annoying to clean. Yes. I have a gorgeous kitchen window. (Please ignore the bushy bushes outside it!) But this gorgeous kitchen window is a booger to clean.
Right.
I needed to pull out my charming Texas slang and call this one a booger because to clean it . . . I have to climb it.
Like, haul myself up on the counter, hunch over, and sit. IN the window.
A grown, 39-year-old woman providing conversation topics for the neighbors as she sits in her kitchen window.
And takes pictures of paper towels.
Anyway, because this spot gets avoided more than most, it’s ultra-dusty by the time I clean it.
And kitchen dust is like no other dust.
It’s glued-on dust.
Glued on by kitchen grease, I guess.
I cleared my path, removed all of the dusty pretties (which went into the dishwasher), and gathered my supplies. I was determined to not have to climb down until I was done, so I tried to think of everything I might need.
Including my phone. (In case I got stuck and had to call Hubby to come home and help me down.)
I know what fun glued-on dust is, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to really test out the Bounty DuraTowels (for whom I’m a spokesperson). They’re supposed to be durable enough to be used instead of a dishcloth so you can avoid the germiness of a re-used dishcloth?
Well, glued-on dust is a perfect durability test.
I felt all scientific-ey and even labeled the first paper towel with a permanent marker.
See? Best spokesperson ever.
And then I climbed up, and started on this spot.
See it? Over there on the right? It’s the spot that makes me ask three questions:
What made this spot?
Why did someone put whatever-made-this-spot here, in this ever-so-inconvenient-to-randomly-set-anything-down place?
Why, oh why, does that someone obviously hate me so much??
I started scrubbing. I used soapy dishwater, as that’s what I’ve found cuts through grease-dust well.
Nothing. Like, nothing was happening at all. So I thought I’d leave Towel #1 on the spot to let it soak.
I labeled Towel #2.
And then I got to dusting/scrubbing the rest of the seat/ledge/most-annoying-place-ever-to-clean. That dust was on there good. It had become one with the tile. I had to give up on the soapy dishwater and pour it on straight.
Finally, I made progress and scrubbed away.
I was pleased with how the Bounty DuraTowel held up to some excessively friction-ey scrubbing on the entire right side of the window.
What the Bounty DuraTowel looked like after scrubbing the entire right side.
I thought I should use something for comparison to show the size of the space I’d cleaned with that single paper towel, but the only thing I had with me to use for reference was my own, well . . . self. And that might not be the best for several reasons.
(One reason being that it’s a commonly known fact that blog photos make all behinds look five inches wider.)
Then I thought of the perfect thing to give perspective.
There you go. That amount of greasy-dusty, one-swipe-doesn’t-do-diddly-squat space scrubbed clean with ONE paper towel. I’d say that’s pretty durable.
I tried the spot soaked by Towel #1, and still it was IMPOSSIBLE to get up. Impossible. So I kept working on the left side, using towel #2 for as long as I could. The two layers separated, but I kept on using it. I was determined to make it last a LONG time.
By the end, there were multiple holes, but it hadn’t fallen apart.
And then, it was time to tackle the STAIN. You’ll be happy to know, after my last Bounty DuraTowel test, that I decided to try your advice and give baking soda a shot on this tough stain.
Honestly, I didn’t think it would work. I planned for it to not work.
But oh my word, it worked. Seriously. Baking soda and wet DuraTowel #1 took that impossible-to-get-off stain away immediately. And easily.
And now look:
The prettiest spot in the house is pretty again! I had been great at averting my eyes every time I saw the dirt, the spider-webs and the stain, but now I just gaze and soak in how pretty it looks since it’s clean!
As I said, I’m a Bounty DuraTowel spokesperson, and am being compensated for this post. However, the annoying-to-clean spot, the greasy dust, the mysterious stain, the experiences and the opinions are all mine.
Gorgeous window but it does look like a pain to clean. Good to know those towels work so well.
That is defiantly a gorgeous window! Glad to hear the baking soda worked!
didyou mix the baking soda with anything to clean with it?
I’ve been trying to figure out how to get rid of icky greasy glued on dust myself. Never thought about soapy water. Duh!!! Thanks!
SOooooo….when I saw your first picture, I thought that your “prettiest place/hardest spot to clean was a beautifully tiled hot tub or pool or something in your fancy sun-room, with the stain glass picture in the corner (perception???). And, as I thought to myself, “when did Nony get such a fancy area…I don’t remember that room ever coming up….??” I also thought, “Well, I don’t have a room that fancy.” Yet, thankfully I read on…
good post!! I will have to try those towels…we use reusable paper towels for most things, but when we need real ones, it’s for BIG things. P.S. I LOOOOOVEEE babking soda!
You are my hero. You put things in the dishwasher that I would never think about.
Have you thought about using a window washer-type extendable wand to clean that spot? I would totally get stuck there.
Thanks for showing off your hardest spot to clean space…looking all pretty and picturesque now.
I don’t generally buy paper towels…but would consider buying these after this review.
Hmmm…I’m wondering what my hardest spot to clean is in my home now…whatever it is…It’s probably dirty!
I don’t blame you for not wanting to climb up to put your butt in the window. But just think of the entertainment value for the neighbors. I think everyone deserves a little something to laugh about, don’t you!?
I found your blog through pintrest, and have just started reading it… all I can say is thank you! It’s sooooo nice to know that others struggle with these things too… it certainly is an evil cycle, I hate my disorganized/ messy house.. but the more I clean the more I find so I become overwhelmed and give up! I am going to try your one thing at a time approach and hour that I too can make them habits 🙂 Thank you
Welcome! Habits are definitely the key!
I enjoy your posts so much. They’re always so real! 🙂
Thank you, Jackie!
I got permanent marker on my laminate counter top and it laughed at soapy water and vinegar & water I tried to clean it with. Then I used baking soda, and it just faded away. Of course, now I have a clean spot on the counter, so I need to clear it off and give it a nice scrubbing with good old baking soda. When I finished scrubbing the counter, I can use the washrag on my stainless steel sink before I rinse everything and they’ll both look nice. I may even take a picture of it!
Vinegar or even hot vinegar and baking soda work well on those kinds of spots.
i actually went back to reusable rags after discovering that it was taking too many paper towels to clean most things. but they were only bounty basics after all. still i alternater between old cotton diapers and microfiber car washing cloths. i use each one for one task and then put them to be washed. really grimy jobs like my tub and shower sometimes take two rags. but then i just drop it in the wash and voila! i can use it again 😀
Awhile back I was standing on a chair to get something out of the cupboard when I saw the top ledge of my over-the-stove microwave covered in the same sticky, dusty, gunk you’ve mentioned before. I know from past experience regular cleaners smear this stuff around leaving them still sticky and gross. I pondered how I needed a product to remove stickiness, like GooGone, but I didn’t want to use GooGone which would need rinsing and more cleaning. Lightbulb moment: rubbing alcohol! It worked amazingly well! Also great for the top of the fridge. I’ve started using rubbing alcohol for all sorts of cleaning projects. It doesn’t smell the greatest, but it leaves mirrors, windows, and glass sparkling without streaks and cuts through gunk.