rejean's Profile

I still might try and find the expensive chair on sale and save money on everything else. Cheap upholstered furniture wears out soooo quickly. But a great, great example of how to get the look with less $$$.

Oh, I need this bad!

Tripling the counter space and storage in a NYC kitchen is never a bad thing. My taste runs more toward white or light cabinets, but this probably goes bettter with a flow into a living space. I agree with the person who said that the before had tons of wasted space. I think this is an efficient and enviable re-model.

Sammi M!

I tried this and got great results. I had two relatively new (3+) year-old pieces. One a dutch oven and the other a boulibase pot, which is a large soup pot, shaped something like a wok. The dutch over in particular had some large browning stains on the bottom due to the no knead bread someone else mentioned above and as well as the usual tomato and wine sauces and ribs that had cooked in there.. Results from the Tide method were AMAZING. I can not say the pieces look brand new because both retained the slightest, slightest, barely-there brown splotches in places, but really if you weren't looking closely you would think they were brand new. On one I had previously used the bleach method also and scrubbed lightly with Bon Ami. Obviously, neither worked as well.

The Tide method worked way, way, waaaaaaay better. Also tried it on a small casserole piece, which is probably 25 years old and very, very badly stained BLACK from a popcorn burning incident. While that one is still stained it is probably 50 percent better and I would be curious to see what another treatment would do.

My experience with the treatment? It is weird to load up your cooking vessel with what turns out to be a fairly sludgey combination of Tide (I used powered for HE washer, because that's what I had on hand) and water and then boil. It is also not a cheap solution given the price of Tide and the size of my pots, but I am glad I have it in the cleaning arsenal. (Note, watch the pot, because the mixture can get very frothy and boil over.) But again was very happy with the result.

I have read many, many threads about cleaning Le Creuset on many websites. (Obsessed? Yes!) This was the most complete discussion and offered the best tips. I have been reluctant to scrub too hard with either Bon Ami or Bartender's friend. Years ago, I used Comet with bleach on some of my older pots and regret it. I think it was too harsh on the finish. But again for anyone else reading this thread. The Tide method really, really really worked. As a test case, I may try the baking soda in my little stained popcorn mess, just as a control experiment, but I can highly recommend the Tide method.

So that is my experience. Thanks Sammi for this suggestion.

This was yummy, although I cheated (it was a weeknight and late at that) and used the spicy bean dip from Trader Joe's as the bean spread. Also used their whole wheat and flax seed tortillas and added avocado slices. Will definitely make again.

My grandmother had one of these. She had a '40s ranch in Ohio, which also included a built-in pantry. Be still my heart! But anyway. . . The laundry chute was fan-tabulous. It only went down one floor, so was really just a hole, but much like this one, you opened a cabinet door in her bathroom and threw the dirty clothes in the chute. Due to the layout of her house, the laundry was located in the basement directly below the bathroom. A strategically placed basket caught the clothes and was only steps away from the washer. Unfortunately, there was no magical way to bring the laundered clothes back upstairs!

I have the same color roof. Our house is yellow with black shutters and a black front door. I think it looks very nice, but my husband thinks we should go with a corally pink at some point. So Asticat, you're not the only one who wants a pink house!

This was very interesting. I would love it if AT did more of this. With two kids, two pets and a small house where all our furniture is in heavy use, I am a huge proponent of (machine washable) slipcovering when possible. I recently priced out the slipcovering of a large wing chair I bought at a store going out of business several years ago. Love the chair. Hate the fabric. Here in Los Angeles there are many people who will do the job for around $300 to $400 - if you chose their fabric. The labor is around $200 if you chose your own fabric.

What do we think is the chance that these issues are a test balloon to gauge interest in a re-launch? Wishful thinking on my part? I loved pretty much everything about that magazine. The editorial viewpoint, i.e. you may not be a millionaire but you still love style and the stylish. . Loved the visuals. Loved the shopping links.

I still can't believe that Conde Nast shuttered Domino and kept that rigor mortis-bound bible of beige, aka Architectural Digest, on life support.

I, too, was a Domino charter subscriber and have every issue - two copies of a few because I became convinced mine was lost in the mail and purchased one on the newstand just in case.

Usually I would get my issue on Saturday and have a very happy afternoon relaxing and reading.

Sigh!

Like some above, I have also been using my frontloader. My machine actually has a "handwash" cycle. I use cold water and Woolite, but want to try the Eucalan mentioned above. The blocking is important. I arrange my carefully on a drying rack outside but out of the sun. (I live in L.A.) They come out fine. I once read that handwashing is actually better for cashmere than the dry cleaning many rely on. I have one sweater that was my grandfather's from the '50s. The elbows are worn through, but the rest comes out like new.