G & J away from home

Tuesday, 12 July 2016

As I was re-reading last year's travel blog I found and entry headed 'Some Thoughts on Packing' and would have found it more useful if this paragraph:

I can think of a few minor things to drop from the packing list but more of my ideas for 'next time' are about better grouping within the packing cells than actually leaving things behind.

had contained more detail, but this paragraph:

Everything in the laundry kit worked well and has been used often but Gary made a better decision than I did in carrying laundry powder rather than liquid.

was a good reminder of my thoughts just as I was about to pour some hand-wash laundry liquid into the empty bottle.  Instead I told Gary to carry the soap powder for both of us and he filled a small Jimbos container of which we used about a third.  As I found on the last trip, because the powder is concentrated very little is needed in each wash (regardless of soft or hard water) and I haven't had a problem with my skin from using it though I do make a point of rinsing the stuff of my hands thoroughly and as soon as possible.  Next trip, though, I'll take the powder in the bottle that previously contained laundry liquid as that should be about the right amount.

In the laundry kit there were only winners - everything was used and worked well.

The laundry kit

Inside the kit were the following items:

• Stretchy 'no peg' clothesline (with a small, cheap carabiner added to each end)
• Folding coat hanger (plastic)
• Inflatable coat hanger
• S-hooks (plastic, x2, different sizes)
• Sewing kit (including clothes brush)
• Pegs with hanging loops (, x5)

 

Contents of the laundry kit

As I said, everything worked well but I did some buying today for more of a couple of items; another folding coat hanger, two extra inflatable coat hangers, and another stretchy clothesline.  I will also search through Gary's stuff until I find his stash of pegs and steal one for my laundry kit (justifiable theft since I'm the one who does all the hand-washing while we're travelling).

The inflatable coat hanger is a great item for drying shirts or tops of any kind as its puffiness holds the front and back of the garment apart which means they dry much faster.  Since these coat hangers deflate and fold up to such light, compact items I've decided to add two extras to the kit.

The folding coat hangers are a bit heavier than the inflatable ones but, with the addition of the pegs with loops, can be used for hanging shorts and trousers while drying.  There were even occasions when the one we had along was useful just as an ordinary coat hanger in a hanger-deficient wardrobe, so having another one of those seems like a good idea for a couple of reasons.

Folding coat hanger and pegs with loops

The 'no peg' clothesline is used by opening up the twisted strands and wedging an edge of your clothing item between them.  I find the carabiners I added to each end easier for securing the line back on itself once it's been looped around a hard point.  (It came with small metal hooks but sometimes the angle of the line prevents them from working well.)  The main reason for getting another of these is not to gain extra line space (though occasionally that would have been useful) but to be able to use the two of them to reach between widely spaced hard points.  Some bathrooms we've encountered barely have one suitable spot for attaching the line and the last thing we want to do is sling the other end around a towel rail that's already wobbling.  Sometimes the extra length of line will make it easier to find a good second attachment point.  (The plastic S-hooks do sometimes get used to add a little length to the line and other times to attach to something that the line can't be wrapped around.)


And on the subject of drying hand-washing overnight, my great lesson learned on this trip is that the light end of items must always be at the bottom - my capris being a great example.  As clothes dry the water gathers at the lowest point and if the capris, for instance, are hung by the hems (as in the photo above) the lowest point where the water will gather is the waistband which takes a long time to dry.  Hung the other way - waistband at the top - the water gathers in the much-lighter hems and dries off quickly.

I think I'll remember that, but record it here just in case ...

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