I am sitting in a room redolent with the fragrance of the bedspread that I washed and hung outdoors to dry. (Dog-GONED warm weather in February--it's supposed to be COLD!)
But...what is the name of this odor? For lack of anything better, I tend to say that the bedspread smells like sunshine.
Do you-all have anything that sends you into flights of word-fancy?
There was a thread recently about the smell of a thunderstorm - actually the smell of bacteria spores released at high humidity and temperature...
It's said smell is the most emotive of all the senses - dunno how one would quantify that statement but -
stales
People used to say the smell of an oncoming thunderstorm, or just a plain summer rainstorm, was ozone. I remember as a small child thinking it was the smell of a screendoor.
If I could get some quality results out of the search engine here slithy I'd get you the url to the thread...My comment at the time referred to an experiment we did in microbiology at uni to highlight the presence of bugs in our everyday life. We sniffed a range of agar plates - one of which, impregnated with the bacteria in question, smelt just like a thunderstorm.
I think ozone gas itself is poisonous - wouldn't want to get a lungful of it.
stales
Hi Jackie,
I tend to say that the bedspread smells like sunshine.Sorry to deflate your romantic impression
. Today's washing powders contain highly refined perfume substances (developed e.g. in Switzerland) which are selected to suggest freshness and other positive feelings, so that housewives are induced to do the laundry ever more often...
(developed e.g. in Switzerland) which are selected to suggest freshness and other positive feelings, so that housewives are induced to do the laundry ever more often...
I love it! wsieber, you Switzers are sneaky little devils. Smart, but sneaky.
Milum.
I currently have a pot of hyacinths in a knock-down drag-out match with a pound of fresh roasted Porto Fino coffee beans. I don't care who wins, it's a lovely fight. And, excuse me Mr. Wsieber, but the smell Jackie is refering to just can't be bought or bottled. It is the smell of sun-warmed cotton and fresh air. [burying my nose in it-e]
the smell Jackie is refering to .... is the smell of sun-warmed cotton and fresh air. [burying my nose in it-e]
I lub it tooo -- Ah choooo! (reaching for the allergy medicine! -e)
God bless the person who invented the dryer!
washing powders contain highly refined perfume substances (developed e.g. in Switzerland) which are selected to suggest freshness and other positive feelings, Consuelo's right, my Dear. Laundry hung outside smells completely different from that which is run through the dryer. As a matter of fact, though, I buy unscented detergent, if it's available, just to avoid that smell...
stales, I remember the spores/rain post, but I couldn't find it either--I think I tried spores, bacteria, thunderstorms, and finally rain (but gave up on that when I saw the results included drain and trained, for ex.). I set it for the last 3 months, but I don't think anything older than Feb. came up.
A hundred years ago, washing and hanging clothes in sunshine got rid of indoor odors and prevented mildew. The only problem with the perfumed washing compounds is to be sure residual fragrance is very subtle . Few people today have suitable outdoor space to hang things to dry, and if they do, their neighbors object. And if smog doesn't spoil effect, seagulls can.The clothes dryer is a blessing.
Speaking as someone who has washed clothes:
a)in the river
b)in a tub on a washboard
c)on a standing washboard of cement
d)in a sink, rubbing them betwwen my hands
e)in a wringer washer
f)in a laundromat
g)at home, in my very own automatic Maytag
I'll take g any day. I do love the smell of sun-dried clothes, as long as the birds stay away. I gave up hanging outside when the mulberries are in season.
I gave up hanging outside when the mulberries are in season.Gives a hole new meaning to sheet on the line
Lovely to see your back again, again, Gym. Welcome.
