Magical, right? Unfortunately, however, accidents happen. I can attest to that, as with two teenage boys, accidents tend to happen a LOT in Casa de Nenonen.
Over 17 years of homeownership and over 14 years of parenting, Steve and I have experienced a lot of unfortunate home accidents. I will spare you the gritty details. My best tip? Your best defense is a mental database of solutions for the possible worst case scenario, particularly during the holiday season when your home is filled with loved ones. No one wants a little accident to spoil an entire evening!
On Halloween night, my boys had their friends over for an evening of trick-or-treat fun...
As usual, the ceramic jack-o-lantern that glowed in my childhood living room glowed in mine that evening...
Accidents happen...
Luckily, no one got hurt and nothing broke- the most important thing. Though the issue of how to safely and successfully remove the melted wax embedded in my wool area rug needed to be addressed. Along comes Super Husband to the rescue! I cannot express how much I have benefitted from Steve's brief stint in hotel management just after graduate school, as he learned countless tricks of the trade- wax removal being one of them.
Step One: Do not panic! Walk away for an hour and allow the wax to cool completely, as counterintuitive that may seem at the time.
Step Two: Use a standard dinner knife to gently loosen and scrape as much wax away from the spot as you possibly can...
Step Three: Preheat your iron to a mid-temperature steam setting.
Step Four: Stack two paper towels on top of one another and fold twice so in quarters.
Step Five: Wet folded towel thoroughly .
Step Six: Place the wet towel over the candle wax, and slowly move the steaming iron over the spot...
The wax melts and absorbs into the towel, I kid you not...
I know, incredibly easy right?
Step Seven: Fold the towel inside out OR prepare a new one to ensure that you are using a clean part of the towel against the rug (and iron) and repeat until the wax is gone. That's it!
As far as removing the wax from my vintage Italian mid-century gilt wheat table? The key was not to scrape, as I didn't want to scratch the original glass top.
I, instead, sacrificed an older terry kitchen towel, wet it, popped it into the microwave for 20 seconds to heat it, and placed it on top of the wax to melt it. I then wiped the melted wax up with paper towels. 30 minutes of diligently repeating this process... all gone.
See more of my Household Tips HERE.
