I remember the exact moment I first tried out a wizzy Dyson Airblade hand dryer. It was in Manchester Piccadilly train station and despite the funny dance one must perform to wiggle one’s hands around within the dryer, I thought it was the most exciting thing since Take That reformed. I am equally delighted to learn that British design company Dyson have now opened their first UK store, opposite Selfridges on London’s iconic Oxford Street. Named ‘Dyson Demo’ they are hoping to make a clean sweep of shoppers (pun intended) by providing the opportunity to test out various future-forward appliances such as the robot vac, air purifying fan and snazzy hairdryer. Be still my beating heart!
Speaking of cleaning, I was fascinated to learn that the average Londoner spends just two hours a week cleaning their homes. Given they live in The Big Smoke with endless opportunities for entertainment and fine dining I’m surprised they manage to find two hours spare! Apparently, a 1950s housewife spent around 40-50 hours a week on housework; thank goodness for modern gadgets, increased male involvement in cleaning and a decline in our house-proud-ness! If Mr Dyson continues his technological revolution we may not need to spend any time at all cleaning in the future. Hurrah!
I read an article recently that proved that some cleaning can be very rewarding. Atop Wellington Arch, above the hustle and bustle of London’s Hyde Park Corner, resides a glorious bronze statue capturing Peace descending on a war chariot drawn by four horses. Designed by self-taught sculptor Adrian Jones and completed in 1912, it was restored by English Heritage earlier this year. Deep cleaning revealed more intricate details than anyone had previously realised existed: incredibly life-like facial expressions and horses boasting heavily veined flanks. I suppose the pigeons may have been privy to these details earlier in the century, before decades of pollution and grime covered the contours like a dark cloak. Sadly, I don’t think cleaning my own house is going to reveal anything as exciting, unless the dust bunnies are holding a twenty pound note hostage!
Sources:
http://www.which.co.uk/news/2016/07/dyson-opens-first-uk-store-on-oxford-street-447940/
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/how-long-the-average-londoner-spends-cleaning-their-home-each-week-a3194421.html
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/apr/11/cleaning-of-sculpture-on-londons-wellington-arch-reveals-intricate-details