A Tip For Cleaning Windows and Glass Doors

Thank you for all your kind comments on our summer porch!  I always love your visits and comments.  :)  I'm really enjoying the porch and the flowers so far because I didn't plant any last year or the year before -- just wasn't into summer and hot weather.  But I've always been happiest when I have flowers to putter around in, and I'm so glad I took the trouble to plant some this year.  We're trying to get our yard in better shape; it's a bit overwhelming at the moment.  I plan to keep working on it into the fall so that next spring, we'll really be able to tell a difference.

But I digress.  I promised to tell you how I got our storm door so clean and streak-free, and some of you have mentioned that you would like to know the secret.

When I tell you how I did it, you may think "Big deal," because many of you probably already know about this.  But in my defense, my mom and mother-in-law are both really good housekeepers, and they've never mentioned washing their windows this way.  This is what I used...

 ...a chamois cloth, NOT to be confused with a ShamWow®, by the way.  :-D   I sprayed the glass with an organic, Windex-like cleaner, wiped thoroughly with the chamois cloth, and immediately dried with these blue towels.  These are Scott Shop Towels, and they're much softer and sturdier than regular paper towels.  They feel a lot like cotton towels, and they don't leave lint behind.  So that's it folks.  I started cleaning at the top of the glass and worked my way down.  I cleaned the outside first, then the inside.  I cleaned the frame of the door with Clorox Wipes.

 The piece of cloth I used is in the Ziploc bag, and I need to add that I used synthetic chamois, which my husband had on hand.  He's been using this stuff for years to clean and polish his car, and I just never thought about cleaning glass and windows with it.  I'm going to try the natural chamois cloth at some point.  The advantage of the synthetic chamois is that you can wash it in the washing machine on the gentle cycle.

 I really was so impressed with the way this chamois cloth cleaned my glass door.  Previously when I've cleaned the storm door, it felt a lot like musical chairs.  I'd clean the outside and when I finished, I could still see lots of smudges and streaks, so I thought they must be on the inside.  Then I'd clean the inside thoroughly, only to still be able to see lots of streaks and smudges.  I thought I must have missed some on the outside, so back outside I went for a re-do.  I would clean inside and out several times and still be able to see streaks in the sunshine, and I finally gave up.  It was very frustrating.

Before I sign off, I want to provide a link to the blog and blog post where I got the idea to try this new method of glass cleaning.  This is a blog I've recently started following called A Brit in Tennessee.  I was looking at some of her previous posts, and she had written a post, appropriately titled, "You Missed a Spot."  :)  It's really an interesting post in which the author talks about the importance of clean windows in England when she was a child.  In the post, she mentioned cleaning with a chamois cloth, and I thought it would be worth a try.  Since she grew up in an area where clean windows were of the utmost importance as part of a clean house, I decided she must know a thing or two about how to clean windows.  Do stop by and check out her blog, if you get a chance.  She has the most beautiful images and quotes.

As always, thanks so much for your visit, and I hope you have a great weekend!

Happy Cleaning!

Denise