Out Damned Spot!

It's not often that I quote Shakespeare, but the words above, spoken so eloquently by Lady Macbeth as her murderous ways drove her to the brink of insanity, are pretty much how I feel about our stainless steel appliances.

I had heard people talk about the constant smudges that were nearly impossible to get rid of on their refrigerators, but did that stop me from wanting the very appliances that cause this madness? No way -- I wanted the real thing because it looks so sleek. Plus, I thought that my slovenly ways would make me pretty much oblivious to the constant cleaning and touching-up about which those neat-freak types spent their precious spare time worrying.

But I am here to proclaim that no one is immune to this perfectionist behavior once stainless steel enters their homes. I have become full-throttle OCD when it comes to keeping my stuff smudge-free. I'm constantly trying to remove LevelHead Jr.'s fingerprints post-snack hunting; or Mr. Hubby's foot marks as he slams the freezer door closed after scooping his nightly ice-cream; or my own apparently greasy elbow spots after heaving the door closed, hands full of fruits and veggies (OK, actually Diet Sunkist and cheese balls).

So how to get them clean. I turned to my dear friend Ms. Google for her thoughts. Several sites suggested a product I would have never previously thought of voluntarily rubbing on my steel of the stainless variety: olive oil. Sounds pretty wacky, I thought, but more than a few seemingly veritable people recommended the product. So I thought it was worth a try. Big mistake. I don't know if I put too much or too little on, but my dishwasher was left looking like an Exxon oil spill. I then tried removing the greasy film with Windex and vinegar, all to no avail.

Mr. Hubby came up with the solution. He remembered those Dawn commercials where water fowl is cleaned after oil slicks. So I took dishwashing liquid to my steel and just like water off a duck's back, it worked.

So now when my ss is looking spotty as a Dalmatian, I first wipe the appliances down with a Dawn solution. Then I dry them and treat remaining smudges with vinegar. Yes, I know it's a lot, especially for a lazy person -- but just like Lady M, I am driven mad by the spots. I doubt that dirty appliances were the muse for Shakespeare's play, but you never know. Maybe Willy had some stainless steel of his own ...

Blogger's confession: I took photos of my smudgy dishwasher before and after cleaning, but with my limited photography skills, I couldn't tell which was which. I'm hoping that's just in the pics, and not in real life.