mon9AM - 6PM
tue9AM - 6PM
wed9AM - 6PM
thu9AM - 6PM
fri9AM - 6PM
sat9AM - 6PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 6PM
sat10AM - 6PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat9AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 7PM
sat10AM - 7PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 7PM
tue10AM - 7PM
wed10AM - 7PM
thu10AM - 7PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 7PM
sat10AM - 7PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon9AM - 6PM
tue9AM - 6PM
wed9AM - 6PM
thu9AM - 6PM
fri9AM - 6PM
sat9AM - 6PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 6PM
sat10AM - 6PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat9AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 7PM
sat10AM - 7PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 8PM
tue10AM - 8PM
wed10AM - 8PM
thu10AM - 8PM
fri10AM - 9PM
sat10AM - 9PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 7PM
tue10AM - 7PM
wed10AM - 7PM
thu10AM - 7PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 7PM
sat10AM - 7PM
sun11AM - 6PM
mon10AM - 6PM
tue10AM - 6PM
wed10AM - 6PM
thu10AM - 6PM
fri10AM - 8PM
sat10AM - 8PM
sun11AM - 6PM
There are people and groups in every community that are movers and shakers. They see something that needs to be done, and they enlist others to contribute their time, talent, and capital to make it happen. The final product is an investment in the community itself that engenders pride, becomes a well-loved asset, contributes to quality of life, and even increases the economic viability of the region. ...read more
Inspiration | Local Flavor
All
Did you know that North Carolina annually ranks between seventh and ninth in apple production for the entire United States? The top apple-producing counties are Wilkes, Alexander, Lincoln, Cleveland, Haywood, and Henderson, with Henderson growing 70%-80% of the apples harvested in the state. We reckon that sounds like a good reason for North Carolina’s Apple Festival to be headquartered in Hendersonville! ...read more
Local Flavor | Travel
Hendersonville
There are so many questions to wonder about these days. Like, who was the first person brave enough to eat a chicken’s egg? Or why do some people think cilantro tastes like soap and others can’t get enough of it? How did certain colors come to represent the Volunteers, Paladins, Hokies, etc.? Or a burning question that we like to argue about, who thinks the college conference re-alignment is a good idea? And that question can lead to so many other questions. ...read more
Local Flavor
Annex - Valle Crucis | Boone | Columbia | Greenville | Knoxville | Roanoke | Original - Valle Crucis | Waynesville | Winston-Salem
... Our favorite foods! Food is universal because everybody’s got ta eat! And the last two months of the year are filled with more than their fair share of family meals, work gatherings, special outings to favorite restaurants, tins filled with homemade cookies and fudge, and the anticipation of food traditions handed down from generation to generation ...read more
At Home | Recipes
All
Even before we bought the Mast General Store, we were taken by the beauty of Valle Crucis. We’ve heard people describe the drive out Broadstone Road as traveling through a time portal. In the 1970s, fields in the river bottoms would be filled with tobacco, cabbage, or high with hay to feed cattle that were grazing in the summer pasture. ...read more
Local Flavor | Mast Family Favorites
All
The lucky few who have seen the Earth from a different perspective – astronauts - all echo the same viewpoint upon their return. Yuri Gagarin, a Russian cosmonaut and the first human to go to space, commented, “Orbiting Earth in the spaceship, I saw how beautiful our planet is. People, let us preserve and increase this beauty, not destroy it.”
Behind the Scenes | Inspiration
All
No one deep-cleaned like my grandma. She would gather her good old reliables, her trusted cleaning supplies she’d used since they were invented probably, and with her patented elbow grease and will power, she’d refresh, restore, and renew the whole house in one day.
I dreaded that day because it meant I had to help. But Granny made it fun—we’d have cleaning competitions, and I’d work my little heart out trying to win nothing more than the honor of having beat her. Somehow, I think, without ever reading Huck Finn, she’d gotten me to paint a lot of fences. Granny turned me into a cleaning machine each spring. But some of the credit goes to those tried-and-true staples she insisted we use. And today, those are still some of the best cleaning products you can make or buy.
Here’s what we love to use to get our spring cleaning done right. We think you’ll love these products and homemade recipes as much as Granny did.
Windows
Not only did Granny clean indoors, she took her cleaning outside. Windows' inside and outside glass and sills got a thorough grime-blasting. She made sure to get every nook and cranny spotless.
Granny used a lot of homemade cleaners. No Windex? No problem. She would simply mix up some white vinegar and water and spray down the glass. Today, I use that same technique because I avoid chemicals as much as possible; however, I throw in a little extra something to amp up the antimicrobial, antibacterial, and pleasing properties-- essential oils. For window and surface cleaning, I mainly use citrus oils, lavender, Thieves blend, and tea tree (Mel A). Here's my Gran's modified recipe:
Window Cleaner*
In a glass spray bottle, combine:
*Do not use on fabrics or plastics. Don’t use vinegar on granite (it pits the surface/removes finish).
Flimsies
Spring cleaning meant hauling out clothes to refresh too. Granny was particular about her unmentionables. They were always washed separately from the other laundry. If it was a delicate fabric, it got the light touch and the care of handwashing. She used a washboard small enough to fit in the sink, like the one pictured above. Click HERE to read all about it.
Floors and Countertops
Surfaces need specific care. Take care of each one as directed. And if you have grout, you know how difficult that is to keep clean. We have a super simple solution that will bust out that grime in no time.
Grout Cleaner
Pour baking soda into a squeeze bottle. Mix in hydrogen peroxide. Add soap. Mix gently.
Airing Out
A spring-cleaning tradition is the "airing out" of fabrics, furniture, rooms, etc. Anything that could use a little freshening up gets taken outside in the sunshine and fresh air for a good beating (rugs, bedspreads, tapestries, curtains, etc.) or a nice wash and hang on the clothesline. There's nothing like the rays of the sun and the spring breeze to refresh everything. For added good scents, try misting rooms with essential oil blends. If you have a diffuser, use a nice citrus and lavender combo to clean the air. If not, simply add distilled water, desired oils, and a pinch of rock salt to a glass spray bottle. Shake and spray as needed.
But you can't beat throwing open all the doors and windows and letting in that fresh air for hours, all day when we cleaned. We didn't shut down until dusk, and the house smelled so good-- just felt cleaner and fresher.
Faux Breeze
Room Spray
Mix the following into a glass spray bottle.
Shake gently before spraying. Mist in rooms. Do not apply to fabrics.
Taking Care of the Porcelain
When it comes to toilets, sinks, showers, or tubs, elbow grease is, unfortunately, usually the key. But you can have some great helpers, like this homemade soft scrub. It's a great alternative to harsher store-bought cleaners.
Homemade Soft Scrub
Mix baking soda and castile soap into a paste, then add water and mix. Finally, add the vinegar. The mixture will foam. Mix until lumps are gone. Pour into a squeeze bottle.
Use a nice homespun cloth (left) to wipe down surfaces.
Wiping Down the Furniture, the Walls, Anything Needing a Dusting
Essential to the spring clean is the wiping down of walls, furniture, and anything needing a good surface cleaning. Even the ceilings! Granny stressed the importance of dusting and wiping the ceiling just like the walls. Dust and oils from cooking are two culprits you might find on the walls and ceiling. She used a well-wrung-out rag on an improvised stick or tied to a broom end. Today, Swiffer probably has something you can use to get those jobs done, but you don't have to use their cleaning solutions. A simple bucket o' water with a teaspoon of castile soap is a good solution for that almost-dry wipe-down the walls and ceilings will need.
Purge/Closets
When you're in cleaning mode, it's a good time to look at what you no longer use and donate those things to others who can give them new purpose. Granny would sort clothes and other household items into piles for good items to give away and things that should be tossed, recycled, or made into cleaning rags, rag rugs, quilts, etc. Things got repurposed a lot in Granny's household. Some of those rugs and quilts found homes at baby showers or house warmings or just as good gifts to family, friends, or a shut-in neighbor.
Spring is the perfect time for the refresh that a good cleaning will give your home and your spirit. Snuggling down in lavender-scented sheets that have been aired out in the sun for hours is simply priceless. We hope these tips and techniques will help you get your clean on. Happy Spring!
**Caution: Do not use certain essential oils around pets. Read and follow all Essential Oil labels and guidelines. If you have an allergy to any oil, do not use it. Peppermint oil is considered a "hot" oil. Do not use it neat (without diluting) on your skin.