Labels

Labels are bad. Labels create limitations. If you label a child as dumb, they will prove you right. Same thing goes for labeling a person as handicapped, fat or weak. Labels should be ignored whenever possible. Labels keep people (and things) from reaching their potential.

That's what I was thinking a couple weeks ago as I looked at the black smudge on my curtains and then at the label: DRY CLEAN ONLY. Surely my curtains were better than that. I told my curtains to stop acting weak and fragile and to take a spin in the hand wash cycle.

Turns out that playing Jillian Michaels with my curtains wasn't the best idea. Sometimes things really are weak and fragile. Sometimes there is no hidden strength.

I thought they might shrink a little, but was completely shocked at the 11.5 inches  of dead air space where there used to be curtains.

The shrinkage was complicated by the facts that the larger window on the other wall has matching curtains and it's Christmas and (shocking fact) I am not made of money.

So I went to my local fabric store, dropped $25 on fabric and crossed my fingers.

10 hours of sweatshop like labor and many angry words later, I would call the results barely passable, but passable nonetheless.

(This is the larger window - I threw these in the wash after the other ones shrunk)

These babies should hold until I win the lottery. The best part? I now consider all the shrink to be exorcised and, in my mind,  I now own machine washable curtains.