Changing habits to meet changing society

MissAdventure

Yep.
Face, neck, pits and bits, in that order.
Flannel in the wash after.

And me…?

The alternative is a bath, which has the perpetually outraged saddened by the thought of people soaking in a tub of filthy water.

MissAdventure

The alternative is a bath, which has the perpetually outraged saddened by the thought of people soaking in a tub of filthy water.

Let them be outraged. A bath is a wonderful thing. A luxury these days.

GagaJo

Can't you boil the cotton dishcloths? That's what my mum used to do to sterilise them.

If you buy a couple of packs of basic supermarket cotton dishcloths you can put them in the washing machine. I never wash anything over 30° and they are fine. I might leave them overnight occasionally in a bowl of water with bleach added but I can't remember the last time I felt the need to do that.

I have used them even when such things weren't fashionable as I have a miserliness gene when it comes to the extravagance of J-cloths.

I wash everything.
Sponge scrubbers, J clothes, you name it, it's washable.

MissAdventure

I've never smelled anything other than cigarettes in others, and I've used buses for the whole of my life.

It’s largely a thing of the past now, but I certainly used to smell unwashed hair when sitting near certain people on the bus.
You hardly ever see dandruff on shoulders now but it used to be common.
Must surely be because people are washing their hair that much more often.

An eccentric but highly educated man who used regularly to come into my workplace, certainly always smelt - not BO but that musty, stale smell of unwashed hair and clothes. Evidently he didn’t believe in too much soap and water, or too many clothes, either - even in the depths of winter he’d be wearing shorts.?

You've just reminded me of my best friend at school.
When it rained, and we were all jam packed into the corridors, she said she could smell "ear 'oles"

Mollygo I can’t agree with you on your point 3 ‘cooking food that can be cooked quickly and thus cheaply
My parents and grandparents cooked stews, pies, and puddings, all of which took far longer to cook than many meals I make now.’

You’re right in that our parents and grandparents cooked things that took longer - but they often used cheap meats, home grown fruit and vegetables, and cooked lots of food at once when they put the oven on - so a casserole would be cooking at the same time as a crumble for tea today and tomorrow, and a cake, and jacket potatoes. At least, that’s what I remember, they were very frugal compared to most people today.

I have traded in antiques and vintage since the 1980s so I can hold my head up proudly. I used to haunt car boot sales and charity shops when I was more mobile. Apart from white goods/tech every piece of furniture I own is antique or vintage. Most was inherited.

I do a lot of needlework and patchwork and most of the fabric I used was sourced from charity shops. I dont often go out so I cant remember the last time I bought new clothes, except for some underwear I bought recently. I also cant remember the last time I bought or wore makeup.

Hot showers and reasonable heating are non negotiable as I am arthritic. I dont drive or run a car so its a taxi or lift from a relative (I contribute to petrol) on the rare occasions I go anywhere.

I have made up my mind never to fly again. Not on environmental grounds but more because its too much hassle.

Yes, it’s an anti-perspirant. Arrowroot is a powder - it’s very similar to cornflour. You melt the coconut oil, then mix in the bicarb and arrowroot plus drops of essential oil of choice (optional). I put mine into a short stocky jar (think it originally had some French pate in it) which makes it easier to scrape a bit out. I use a small lolly stick (actually from a Magnum!) to scrape out a pea size bit then transfer it to my fingertips, where it softens and can be easily applied.

Thank you.
I am going to give that a try.

I have a big tub of coconut oil I need to use, anyway, so I wouldn't need much else.

Callistemon21 , yes thanks to the power of hair dye, I do not appear to be grey. My real colour? Who knows? I haven't seen it in years!

Casdon if you put your oven in to cook roasts, stews, pies, especially made of cheap meat it takes time to cook. I get round that with a pressure cooker for the meat.
My biggest fuel saver is my Systema microwave steamer-no boiling loads of water then simmering veg, just place the veg in the basket with a little water in the bottom of the pot and microwave for 3-4 minutes depending on the veg. Steamed veg are very healthy and big fuel, time and water savings.