I seriously cannot believe that tomorrow's June already....where did spring go?! Oh wait, summer doesn't start til July..? Phew! That's ok then.

Anyway, so I love the linky parties, I have a few absolutely millions I like to check each week for tips and ideas and tutorials. Even though I never do anything from them, it makes me feel as though I could do anything!

Anyway, so on one of them I saw a little title 'Cleaning oven glass'. Aha! We've been in this rented house for about 18 months now and I've never managed to get my oven glass clean. I think I'd just accepted it as a bad job. I'd tried all of the toxic cleaners. You know the ones...you leave it to soak and it promises no fumes but all of a sudden your chest is tight and you've got a rash on the back of your hand so bad you wonder if you've been poisoned for life...? No? Ah, just me then. Anyway, so the glass was still gross.

The blog it took me to was Ask Anna which I'd never really perused before but she claimed (see the sceptic in me now) that you could clean your oven glass with baking soda. Bicarbonate of Soda to us Brits. So I did one of those little snort things....you know that mothers do when you tell them you're going to be a princess when you grow up?

This lady thought she had dirty oven glass....lady...you ain't seen nothing yet! here's my oven glass with it's 6 years worth of baked on grease.

In case you can't see the grossness...here's a close up.



Now as a rule, we don't generally cook greasy things....especially not in our oven. we'll have oven chips maybe once a month if that and as for roasting veg in a vat of boiling oil....even rarer!
So, although you can all see the evidence of my grotty oven, I can't really take the blame for it...it wasn't me!

So, I got my bicarbonate of Soda, spooned about 4 teaspoons into a pot and added just enough water to make it the consistency of that runny icing you get....what is it....glace icing?




So I spread it all over my yukky glass and waited the 20 minutes recommended for dirty glass.



I went back with a cloth and....oops.....the bicarb wiped off, but the grossness was still there. I added a scourey sponge to the mix...but nope...it would appear my mission had failed.




It was time to bring out the big guns.



*Imagine some sort of pulsing hero type music*

Anyway, so I made up another mixture, this time of bicarb and white vinegar, spread it on and left it to it for an hour or so. (Doorstop hell ensued, but that's a tale for another day).
I came back to it and donning old clothes, a pinny, a slightly manic look and a husband armed with a camera....I scrubbed. (Oh, and don't forget the marigolds...we don't want to look like we actually do housework!)



It's a good look, I know that. People say romance is dead...pssh!
Anyway, so with an unexpectedly small amount of force, I scrubbed the grease right off of there.



Ok, it's not immaculate, the edge was still peppered with memories of grease fests past. But overall, not bad eh? I rinsed it down again with clean water then put the oven on and closed the door.
It appears I hadn't managed to rid the glass of all the bicarb though as this is what I was confronted with when I turned the oven off and opened the door.



Oops! So, another rinse with clean water, I turned the oven back on and shut the door for 5 mins or so. (I was making good use of my marigolds at the time and there's no space for clock watching when you're indulging in a spot of washing up!)



Tadaaaaa! Seriously.....Oh my goodness, I cannot believe it! That final rinse also got rid of the slightly cloudy look of the glass too. Ready for a close up?




Whoosh! I know. You're blown away with the glory of it!

Let me see if I can work out how to do a before and after.....hold your horses.....


Eek! I can't believe I lived with such a gross oven for so long! The after is so shiny you can even see the pans sat on the hob waiting to be washed up! If only I'd realised.....


Anyway, thanks Anna!