Maggie's CLASSY Hooch Press {Grapefruit Scented} Tutorial

Are you giggling?  Are you wondering if I have LOST MY MARBLES???  Are you just reading this post out of a seriously morbid sense of curiosity?  Are you ever going to visit my blog again?

[The answer should be a resounding "YES" to all of those :)]

I have to say I am SO excited to share this recipe with you :)  Maggie (our sweet little Short Cookie) made this AWESOME discovery possible.  All Hail To MAGGIE!!!  She not only researched out the best version of this recipe (kudos to Google), but crawled around on the floor of the liquor store to find the CHEAPEST Vodka available!  Again, ALL HAIL TO MAGGIE!!!!!!

SO, in honor of Maggie, we had to name "it" after her!!!  Hence is born and forever shall be named,

[To tell you the truth, I don't recall where the "hooch" came from, but it stuck.  I believe I added the "CLASSY" because it just needed it ;D  Don't you agree?  April designed the FABULOUS label :)]

***UPDATE FROM MAGGIE- "And by the way, "hooch" is slang for booze, particularly cheap booze!"  I learn something new everyday :)

Now, I am SURE that you are just dying to find out what all of this hype is all about?

Spray starch :)

We all love Best Press but hate to pay for it.  ...well, I do.  Maggie over heard some ladies talking about making spray starch out of Vodka.  These were non-drinking Mormon ladies, so she figured if they would step foot into a liquor store to buy Vodka, it must be good ;)

You can read all about Maggie's liquor store adventures HERE.

You are going to need CHEAP Vodka!  (the kind that will burn out your insides).  Maggie says the cheap stuff is always on the bottom shelf.  It should run about $6 for a liter and about $10-$11 for a gallon of the garbage vodka.

Are you ready for the recipe????  Without further ado, may I present...

Maggie's Classy Hooch Press
1 part Vodka to 2 parts water :)  ie- 1 C vodka mixed with 2 C water.
Scent of choice.

Tada!!!

Now for my special part of the formula.  I LOVE grapefruit scented things.  I scent my sugar scrub with grapefruit zest, so why not Vodka?

I got up yesterday morning and zested this grapefruit with my handy dandy zester :)  First you want to wash and scrub your grapefruit with hot soapy water.  I use my scotch brite sponge.  Now it's zesting time!!! The trick to zesting is to only get the colored part!  None of the white pithy stuff :p

Now, take your zest and add it to your mixture of water and vodka.  

DO NOT do this part in the spray bottle.  The zest will clog up your spray nozzle :/

Let it sit for a few hours.

Give it a shake every once in a while.

[This is the brand of yucky vodka we used.]

Now, using a very fine strainer and a funnel that will fit your spray bottle, 

pour in your yummy smelling concoction ;)

[See how nicely mine nest together :)]

I only poured a little bit in, to make sure that I would like it and to make sure that it wouldn't spot the fabric.

I test sprayed it on 2 Kona white squares and pressed the tar out of them ;)  One flat, and one with turned under edges.  I would rate the "starchy" level at about a medium level starch.  It is comparable to Best Presses starchyness ;)  Maggie's Classy Hooch Press might be a titch lighter.... but just a titch ;D

 Then I laid them on my Kona bolt in my very light living room.

No color difference that I could tell :D

Now, to try it out on an entire quilt top...

I have to say that it looks pretty darn slick!!!

Friday, I made a whole quilt top and pieced back using Maggie's Classy Hooch Press and, so far, I REALLY REALLY like it!!!  It works like a DREAM!!!

Thank you, Maggie!!! xoxo