Laundry Love
Page 15
1 cup sugar
⅔ cup pumpkin
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup self-rising flour
1 cup nuts (your choice)
Mix together all of the cake ingredients except for the nuts. Then spread the mixture on greased wax paper and sprinkle with the nuts. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes and then cool on a baking rack.
Filling:
2 tablespoons butter
8 ounces cream cheese
¾ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
While the cake cools, mix together all of the filling ingredients, except for the 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar. Spread the filling onto the cake and roll it up. Sprinkle with the additional powdered sugar, and serve.
Roberta’s Bourbon Balls
7 tablespoons butter
1 pound sugar
¼ cup bourbon
5 squares of Baker’s semisweet chocolate
50 or so whole pecans
Cream the butter. Then work in the sugar, followed by the bourbon. Roll the mixture into one-inch balls and freeze.
While the balls freeze, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Then, using a toothpick, dip each frozen ball in the chocolate and set on wax paper. When you remove the toothpick, place a whole pecan on the top to cover the hole. Makes about 48 balls.
Appendix II
SIX LAUNDRY MYTHS
Here’s a rundown of half a dozen laundry myths that often blow the minds of Laundry Campers. A few were covered in previous pages, and a few are new. Perhaps you, too, will find yourself amazed.
Laundry myth: Bleach whitens dingy white towels. Nope! Chlorine bleach actually makes your whites dingy. White textiles are dyed white, and so bleach removes the white dye, returning them to their original cotton color. (See “The Big White Lie,” page 34.)
Laundry myth: You should handwash tights and pantyhose. Just throw each into a mesh bag and machine-wash by color—white, black, cool, or warm. Then hang to dry. Now, wasn’t that easy?
Laundry myth: Dress shirts must be ironed. Whether or not you iron dress shirts is up to you. Honestly, some people like a bit of a rumpled look—that’s fine. Other folks rarely wear dress shirts but break out the iron for special occasions, such as a job interview or wedding. Still others like a crisply ironed shirt practically every day of the week. All that said, if you don’t ever see yourself ironing, consider buying no-iron dress shirts. These days, killer options are available at all price points, and they look great right out of the dryer.
Laundry myth: You should revive stretched-out sweaters by washing, even if still clean. Happily, this isn’t true. Simply hang up the sweater and lightly use a steamer to bring back its shape.
Laundry myth: Dishwashing liquid removes stains. Dishwashing liquid is formulated to remove greasy stains, like burned-on mac and cheese from a casserole dish. It’s not designed to lift a stain from your favorite sweater, and its chemical makeup is too harsh for nearly all fabrics. In fact, it can ruin clothes: I remember a popular meteorologist calling me one morning to ask how to remove a stain from a dressy jumpsuit she’d worn to a party the night before. Unfortunately, by then she’d already taken the advice of a friend who’d advised using dishwashing liquid. It was too late—the dish soap had removed both the stain and the dye from the treatment area, and ruined the garment.
Laundry myth: Your dryer eats socks. Of course this isn’t true. The dryer is a picky eater—it only gobbles up one from your favorite pair.
Appendix III
LAUNDRY ICONS
Now you know practically everything there is to know about cleaning your textiles. But in case you’re interested in the meanings of all those little international icons on your garment care tags, here’s a guide to help you understand. Just remember: Don’t let your clothes tell you what to do!
Acknowledgments
All of us have special ones who loved us into being.
—FRED ROGERS, TV PERSONALITY, WRITER, PRODUCER, MINISTER
Patric and Karin wish to express our deepest appreciation to everyone at Flatiron Books, particularly Bob Miller and Amy Einhorn (now at Henry Holt), whose excitement for this project let us know we were onto something; Sarah Murphy, whose thoughtful questions and detailed editing made this a better, stronger read; Claire McLaughlin and Amelia Possanza for all of their publicity efforts; plus the entire editorial, marketing, publicity, and production teams—we’re so grateful for everything you’ve done to make Laundry Love a success. Thanks, too, to Katy Robitzski of Macmillan Audio, who shepherded our audiobook. A heartfelt thank-you goes out to all the pros at the Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary Agency—especially Daniel Greenberg, who immediately believed in our vision for the book, and Tim Wojcik, who led the effort to get Laundry Love into hands around the world. We’re thankful for Zach Harris, whose charming and lighthearted illustrations so fittingly reflect our content. And we’d be remiss if we didn’t declare our indebtedness to Chuck Klosterman, who trusted us enough to connect us with his (and now our) literary agent. Finally, thanks to the Caribou Coffee team at Mall of America (South Skyway)—we appreciate every hour we got to make your meeting room our satellite office (thanks for the coffee and treats, too).
Patric wishes to thank:
First, I have to again mention Ross. He made this book possible by supporting me throughout the entire process. He believed in me and my store from the very beginning; without his belief, I wouldn’t have had this opportunity.
Second, Karin Miller … what can I say? Without you, this book may never have been—so many hours at Caribou Coffee and so many phone calls! Working with you has been a true honor, and totally my pleasure.
The people who make (or have made) my store run: Marsha Sussman, Hadass Sveback, Jessica Hastie, Kelsey Campion, Erik Rice, Emily Dufault, Siah Camara, Rachel Solares, Ellie Burdorf, Gina Romans, Daina Amborn, Tresa Garr, Luna Fredericks, Aurora Anderson, and Martha Gingras. Without all of you supporting the store and me, we wouldn’t be here. Thank you all so much for showing the customers how great laundry and laundry products can be. And thanks, too, to all of my Laundry Campers for their insightful questions, great enthusiasm, and good humor.
People who’ve been kind enough to cover me in the media: Aimee Blanchette (thanks for the title and for the start in the laundry world), Nancy Ngo, Kathy Berdan, Allison Kaplan, Heidi Raschke, Jahna Peloquin, Lori Barghini, Julie Cobbs, Karen Schneider, Chris Hrapsky, Julie Nelson, Lesley Kennedy, Joel Seidman, Kevin Tibbles, Chris Dukas, Brittany Larson, Lisa Adams, Steve Patterson, Elizabeth Ries, Heather Brown, Frank Vascellaro, Amelia Santaniello, Nicole Aksamit Purcell, Ashley Abramson, Sue Campbell, Donna Bulseco, and Kyle Erickson (your article helped launch the book!).
People who pushed my career forward: Amy Bishop, Meghan Haapala, Mary Riley Caufield, John Banks, Saeteesh, Melissa Herrig, Diana Storey, Carla Holzer, Katie Young, Shannon Duckworth, Courtney Ursetti, and Heather Ryan; Daune Stinson, Jennifer Carnahan, Connor Koerbitz, Therese Thull, and Suzanne Garry; Ron Boaz and Tom Bruenderman; Zang Toi, Mark Mallman, and Christine Jones; Melissa Smith, Katie Williams, Katie Turcotte, Arleigh Hagberg, Amy Sperling, MaryAnn Goldstein, Leisl Auvante, Lauren Lieber, Lantz and Kiley Powell, Gayle Erickson, Rebecca Bell Sorenson, and Kathy Ekberg; Lisa Taylor and the Ghermazian Brothers at Mall of America (thanks for the chance!); Chris Navrati and Shamrock Productions (thank you for believing in Laundry Camp early on).
Three people I wish could’ve read the book: Roxann Nelson, Jim Schaal, and Taylor Lieber (your memories were with me through it).
Finally, Diane Ferguson, Cassie Harpel, Mark Bradford, Raleigh Glassberg, Seth McNaughton, Sarah Prutzman, Heather Sauber, Ellen Shafer, Glenna Maggard; John, Erin, and Matthew Rodriguez; Tim, Laura, Lee, and Walker Riddle; Marc Raihala, Todd, and Carmel Lehnard; of course, Ben and Reagan, Suzanne Hall, Jarrod Richardson, Harmie Justice, and Nancy Richardson; and last, but with utmost importance, my parents
, Ron Richardson and Wilma Justice, who thought it was a good idea to give a three-year-old a washing machine!
Karin wishes to thank:
Patric—your kindness, creativity, and wit, plus your easygoing approach to my copy made writing this book a complete joy. (I look forward to getting that pool key.)
Thom, who lives his values, adores our children, and champions my every project; and Gabi, Joey, and Mia, for whom I’m thankful every day, who constantly amaze me with your interests and accomplishments, and whom I’ve been lucky enough to watch grow up. Thanks to each of you for listening during so many read-aloud sessions. I love each of you so much!
My mom, a children’s book author and elementary school teacher, who inspired my own writing and whose tendency to shrink my wool sweaters sparked me into doing my own laundry back in high school; and my dad, the very best of men who still encourages the dreams of his children and grandchildren every single day. Even as adults, whenever my sister, my brother, or I needed them, they’d still jump in, helping in whatever way they could. For my mom, that often entailed doing countless loads of laundry for my family, especially when Thom was fighting cancer while I was pregnant, and after the birth of each of our three kids. All my love to you!
Gaye, Andrew, Tony, Jim, Denise, Anna, Nate, and Risa—so appreciate and love each one of you; Jane, Mark, Mary, and David—thanks for your love and support (right back at you!); all of the Norlins, especially Aunt Sandra, who has always believed in my writing; Murray Brandys, who first invited me to tell his story in a memoir; Sara Chastain, who accompanied me to my first Laundry Camp (two years before I approached Patric about writing this book!); Bryn Larson, who generously helped with the book proposal; The Lacek Group, especially Shawn, Karen, Lizzie, Wendy, and Carolyn, who always make work so much fun; my favorite clients, the City of Eagan and University of Minnesota teams (especially Tom Garrison, Joe Ellickson, Joanna Foote, Emily Katsuma, Ashley Lawson, and Elizabeth Patty), who understood when I needed to take a few months off to finish the book; Augie girls for your lifelong support and friendships; and my SLP friends, especially the Yosemiteam (young and not so young).
About the Authors
Patric Richardson—fashion pro, textile expert, and Kentucky native—owns the Mona Williams boutique at the Mall of America, where he holds Laundry Camp for all those interested in learning his fun and easy laundry lessons. Previously, he worked at Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and other great department stores. He lives with his partner in St. Paul, Minnesota, his other beloved state. You can sign up for email updates here.
Coauthor Karin B. Miller is an award-winning writer and editor, best known for creating and editing two national anthologies, The Cancer Poetry Project 1 & 2. She lives with her family in Minneapolis. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Authors’ Note
Introduction
My Cast of Characters
Glossary
1. Don’t Let Your Clothes Tell You What to Do
2. It’s Time to Sort It All Out
3. It’ll All Come Out in the Wash
4. The Good Kind of Dry Spell
5. Time to Pump Some Iron (or Blow Off Some Steam)
6. The Comprehensive Closet
7. Time for Your Disappearing Act
8. Doing Better When We Know Better
9. Special Care for Special Items
10. Making the Laundry Room Your Happy Place
11. Better Laundry Leads to Better Shopping
12. Love and Laundry Are Universal
Note
Appendix I: Laundry Love’s Recipes (Worth Every Stain)
Appendix II: Six Laundry Myths
Appendix III: Laundry Icons
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Copyright
LAUNDRY LOVE. Copyright © 2021 by Patric Richardson and Karin B. Miller. All rights reserved. For information, address Flatiron Books, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
www.flatironbooks.com
Illustrations courtesy of Zach Harris, birdsandkings.com
Cover design by Jonathan Bush
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Richardson, Patric, author.
Title: Laundry love : finding joy in a common chore / Patric Richardson with Karin B. Miller.
Description: First edition. | New York : Flatiron Books, 2021. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2020031678 | ISBN 9781250235190 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781250235206 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Laundry.
Classification: LCC TT985 .R52 2021 | DDC 648/.1—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020031678
eISBN 9781250235206
Our books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact your local bookseller or the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at MacmillanSpecialMarkets@macmillan.com.
First Edition: 2021