House cleaning as a release

[LaurieS]

By George, I think she's got it 
Look at how little the house is.. how old are those trees Luise

Geez Luise, that looks like a winter wonderland

[luise.volta]

Oh, thanks. I didn't need to send all those blanks! I see it now! Duh...

Those trees are over 100 years old and over 100 feet tall. They are all over the place here. 

[LaurieS]

Are they pines?

[luise.volta]

Western Red Cedar, Douglas Fir and Western Hemlock.

[seasage]

Gorgeous!  I love snowy places like that.  Hope you have a sauna there.  And if you decide to invite me, I'll bring my own snow shovel.  I am the designated shoveler in our household - just did the driveway for the first snow of the season. 

[LaurieS]

To think I was out skimming the pool and sweating while cleaning the windows... You are in Washington I know, what part of washington would have trees like that

[luise.volta]

That's great..."Have snow shovel, will travel!"

There are trees like that all over Western WA. The Eastern side...on the other side of the Cascade Mountains is high desert. Hotter in the summer, colder in the winter...lots of rolling hills and wide open spaces. Huge, seemingly never-ending wheat fields. Evergreens, too. We're the Evergreen State for good reason. 

[LaurieS]

I'd like to see that part of the country one day.. we have reservations to stay at Yellowstone next August.. really looking forward to it

[luise.volta]

I love Yellowstone! 

[seasage]

I've been to Yellowstone in summer and in winter.  I liked it in winter a lot better.  We took the snowmobile adventure into the park and tangoed with some humongous bison.  The best thing we did in the Yellowstone area in August was rafting with a nature guide.  But Laurie, since you are acclimatized to Texas heat, you will probably find the place wonderful in August. 

[luise.volta]

I like river rafting and also using dories. I did Hell's Canyon for a week in the 70s ...shooting 23 rapids... last one in the water. (On purpose.) 

[kathleen]

Laurie et all,

This is pretty much back to the basic topic in a way.  Does anyone have quartz countertops?  What do you think of them?  Would you recommend them?

I'm not renovating my entire kitchen, just putting in new countertops, especially those that can be cleaned with VINEGAR.

Kathleen

[LaurieS]

Hey there Kathleen... I used Silestone throughout my house, kitchen, bath, utility, game room, and near the fireplace. I absolutely love it.  We had used Silestone in my last house so I was very familiar with the product, you can't go wrong with quartz.  The  color I chose for my main areas was Bianco River.  I was very impressed with the Caesarstone line as well, but it was more then my budget could handle.  And you guessed it.. I clean it with vinegar on a regular basis.  There is another product that is highly recommended to polish the surface with and it's called Protect-All Shine Plus. I use Protect All just about everywhere I don't use vinegar.... it does a great job on my car's dashboard and exterior paint... makes Silestone sparkle, and I dust my furniture with it as well. http://www.protectall.com/household.aspx

In my opinion, quartz counters are much more carefree then granite, unless you get the sealed granite.  I liked the color choices and I also like the fact that I do not need to worry about placing a hot item in an area that you had had something sitting that was cold... Corian counters will crack if you hit the extremes.  Quartz is also stain and scratch resistant, but I always use a cutting board and wipe up spills promptly. 

Hope this helps... Laurie

[Pen]

I'd love a new kitchen and have been dreaming of new countertops at the very least. We've been looking at quartz or the recycled glass stuff. Even concrete, perhaps. Thanks for the info on quartz, Laurie, and as always your cleaning hints.

[luise.volta]

I've got the cutest 1967 Formica! Eat your hearts out!