I mentioned this briefly in my last post but my favorite farm additions have always been small things that really increase quality of life. Over the years I’ve added things like a tree swing, screen door and picnic table – all of which get used almost daily. Originally when I installed the tree swing I wondered if it would ever get used – it does – by kids and adults alike. There’s something about a tree swing that makes everyone revert back to childhood for a moment of hair blowing tranquility.
My latest small addition is an old fashioned clothesline. For years, I’ve had a hard time washing my vintage tablecloths. They’re too valuable to me to risk leaving it to a washer/dryer. And in the past, leaving them outside hanging from the back porch has proven a dumb move. When you have freely roaming animals leaving anything within their reach means it will be chewed, lounged on or pooped on. Ugh.
When I finally found a good handyman I started putting him to work. After doing many small projects I commissioned him to install my new clothesline. It’s an easy, inexpensive project that only cost me $250.00 – this included materials and labor. He even added his own touch with a bucket of flowers!
The biggest thing about installing a clothesline is location. It needs to be positioned (if possible) where there’s sunshine and a breeze, preferably with easy access from the laundry room. My property usually has a nice breeze from the northwest. I found a northwest spot with great morning sun that is easily accessible from my back laundry room door. The clothesline would be easily seen when someone pulls into the driveway but not from the road so this was going to be the spot!
It took two days to install due to having to wait for the post concrete to dry:
As soon as the paint was dry I was ready with my freshly bathtub washed vintage linens. After hanging them to dry I watched the lovely linens gently swaying in the breeze. Twenty minutes later curiosity got the best of me and I went out to check the drying process. To my surprise, every one of them was completely dry! In twenty minutes! What would have been an all day or even days long process of managing heavy wet linens one at a time was now turned into less than an hour of washing AND drying. Can’t beat that!