Now, please let me make this quite clear that the idea of cleaning up vomit is literally putting a bad taste in my mouth, and I must admit that I am feeling slightly squeamish as I write this…
However, it is one of those things that as a Superyacht stewardess you will just not be able to get around. The fact is both, guests and crew may succumb to seasickness at some point in the journey, so every Superyacht stewardess will need to know how to clean up vomit.
We protect our clothes as well as our carpets with the hope that they attract no stains. However, try as we might, accidents can happen and in a flash, we spill juice or coffee on our clothes and rugs.
There are other stains that are more difficult to remove and they include blood, grease, pet urine, and vomit, which can really stink and mess up our carpets.
How to clean vomit from carpet
Vomit falls into the category of bodily fluids, which is a protein stain. Like all protein stains the most important thing to remember is to NEVER use hot water when cleaning the stain.
As soon as you know there is a vomit mess to clean up, time really is of the essence. Especially if you want to avoid having to deal with that horrible rancid smell, or that bright orange stain on the carpet that just will not budge.
What you will need:
Gloves (for the love of god… Do not clean up vomit without gloves on)
A bucket or bowl for scraping up the chucks
A spoon or a spatula
Paper towel or a white terry cloth
Bicarbonate soda or cornstarch
A vacuum cleaner
Vinegar cleaning solution
Tepid water
Method:
Place the bowl at an angle and gently scrape the chunks and as much fluid into the bowl as you can. Be sure to do this in a gentle manner so that you avoid damaging the carpet fibres.
Make sure you pick up all the pieces first. Do not use a towel as it may spread the vomit around.
Dab the area gently with the paper towel or terry cloth to remove as much fluid as possible
Sprinkle the bicarbonate soda over the area and leave for 15 minutes
Vacuum up the bicarbonate soda and re-evaluate the stain
Should a stain remain, on a new white terry cloth, blot the area with a vinegar solution (see notes below).
Rinse the area with clean water.
Dry the carpet immediately with clean paper towel or a clean terry cloth.
Should the stain still remain, call a professional.
If you mess with the stain too much, you may be damaging the carpet fibres and a professional will they have a tougher time of not only trying to clean the original stain, but then also they will have to reverse your cleaning efforts.
A lacquered wood surface is a surface that has been painted with a resin type substance which leaves the furniture with a hard, highly polished and lustrous surface.
Before you begin: Make sure you have adjusted the temperature of the room. A well-balanced room is ideal for natural wood surfaces. Therefore it is recommended that the optimal room temperature should be between 18-22 degrees Celsius, with a humidity level of 40-+60%. (5).
What you will need:
A duster
A soft cloth
Water
A drop cloth
Cleaning Instructions:
Start at the top of the wooden surface with a duster to remove the dust particles and dirt.
Then with a damp cloth, remove any fingerprints.
Dry immediately with a soft lint-free cloth.
Additional tips and advice:
Be mindful when watering the flowers and plants as not to leave a wet ring around the base of the vase.
Unless you are working outside and have sea salt on the wooden furniture, there is no need to use vinegar, as this is acidic and will change the surface of the furniture.
Only use natural wax products in accordance with the instructions.
Detailing, or detail clean, is to clean the fine points, specifics, technicalities and subject. It means basically to clean thoroughly.
This is not done every day, however, it is done, weekly, monthly and seasonally, depending on the workload of the yacht, the specific travel plans and the maintenance schedule.
How to Detail-Clean a Cabin | Details in a superyacht cabin to consider:
Walls and Ceiling:
Always work from the top down, so first pay close attention to the deck heads. These can be made out of any material, however, Alcantara and Novasuede are popular choices onboard modern yachts.
Brush the material with a soft nylon lint brush or a magic brush, this will remove any dust particles and will keep the material looking new.
If it is HPL or lacquered wood, then all that is needed is wiped over with a soft damp cloth.
Moving down the walls, again detail clean in accordance with the material used. Pay attention to tiny cracks between the bed head and the outer wall (this point includes similar places), as dust may accumulate there.
Doors:
All of the doors should be wiped down, paying attention to the top of the doors for dust.
Polish the door hinges and door handle.
In the public areas, you will need to polish metal on the aft sliding doors.
On these large doors, makes sure that there are no streak marks or watermarks from outside. The deck crew are quite good at this, however, it may need a stewardess’s eye to make sure it is spot-free.
Lights:
Check that the lights are working and replace any light bulbs accordingly. (The Chief Stewardess will do another walk around checking these details before the guests arrive).
The light fittings should be finger-mark free, a simple wipe over with vinegar and water or a generic window cleaner should suffice.
Make sure all of the lampshades have been vac dusted using the furniture brush of the vacuum cleaner or a magic brush.
Electronics:
Open the TV cabinet or get behind the unit to dust and clean the television screen.
Use alcohol on the telephone and remote controls using a cotton tip to get between the buttons.
Turn on all units to make sure that they are working properly.
On a touch screen pad gently use a microfibre cloth (do not press too hard).
If it is really dirty, then dampen the microfibre cloth with a little distilled water, (do not wet the screen).
Check all of the batteries.
Turn on the air conditioning unit and change the temperature to make sure that it is functioning properly.
Glass and metal:
Clean the portholes with vinegar and water or glass cleaner.
Polish the chrome/brass around the porthole.
Polish all metal fittings with corresponding polish.
This is probably not the most glamorous subject to talk about, but its a subject that has caused me a lot of grief over the years.
The laundry is an essential DAILY activity on board and like at home those sneaky clothing items (like socks), seem to effortlessly find their way into the “ABYSS” that every laundry seems to have and laundry accidents DO happen.
Some problems that you may have in the laundry are:missing socks, colour stained clothes. ie, pink, grey, brown, green, yellow, etc.; shrinkage, clothes go missing… or not making it back to the right cabin……..
Sort into colours, and items… suchas sort the towels from the delicate’s, sort clothing into 3 categories…lights, darks and colours, dry cleaning ONLY items should NEVER go into the wash.
Items that should always be washed separately are: Engineers overalls, galley towels, and cleaning rags.
Treat stains, with proper strain treatment product.
Check the label.
Load the machine with right items. DO NOT OVER LOAD THE MACHINE.
Do use a gentle or trusted laundry detergent. DO NOT use too much detergent.
Do use a low heat, Unless it’s for the galley towels, even then there is no need to go above 60 (Celsius).
Do not use fabric softer on any towels or cleaning rags.
Dry on a low to medium temperature. There is no need to cook your clothes…Towels may be dried on a hotter temperature. DO NOT put wool or delicate items in the dryer
DO maintain all your laundry equipment on a regular basis.
More detailed laundry instructions will follow in a later post.
Life is like a work of art. If you don’t like what you see… Paint over it!
How to Care for Fine Art
What is fine art?
Fine art such as paintings and sculptures are items of beauty, carefully and skilfully created primarily for aesthetic purposes.
As you know the crockery, cutlery, linens, vases, furniture and soft fitting on board a super yacht is of the highest quality, and the art work in no exception.
Moreover the art work on board has been specifically chosen by the owner, therefore in many cases adding more value to the art piece.
Before you begin:
Before you begin cleaning the art, you need to identify what the item is made of. Is it an oil painting or is it a bronze sculpture with crystal fixtures?
Obviously the two items differ greatly,however, myy point here is to be mindful at all times when it comes to cleaning the art work.
What you will need:
Clean white Microfiber cloth
Soft duster
Soft make up brush
White cotton service gloves
Cleaning Instructions:
Put your cotton gloves on, the natural oils in your skin can leave marks.
With the soft make up brush or duster, gently remove any dust particles.
With the microfibre cloth, dust around the frame.
If cleaning a sculpture, wear your gloves and do not polish or aggressively clean the art work.
Additional tips and advice:
If you have removed the item from the wall or from its fixture for cleaning, do not lean it against a sharp corner.
Pull the shades if the artwork is in prolonged sunlight.
Always use two hands when carrying the art work.
Avoid spraying room freshener near the artwork
Avoid spraying vinegar of furniture spray near the artwork.
Cover the artwork when the carpets are being cleaned.
For metal sculptures, use the gently dusting methods above.
If the item is starting to oxidise due to the salt air, then have it professionally attended to
In general, most people don’t learn to iron properly until they leave home and it’s one of those household chores that you either love or hate. Unfortunately, it is a never-ending daily chore that a superyacht stewardess must mace and learn to master… QUICKLY!
Below are some tried and tested ways on how to save time ironing:
Save time ironing before you even pull out your iron and ironing board, by hanging or folding your clothes as soon as it comes out of the dryer or off the line.
Do not overload the machines, it will be harder to remove the creases, and it’s not good for the machines
Do not over dry your clothes! Slightly damp clothes are a breeze to iron
Don’t waste time finding socks, pin them together using this great little product called “Lok A Sock“
Always use distilled water in your iron, as bottled water and tap water can clog up your iron with mineral residue
The ironing board is very much down to personal choice, and we all know that there are just so many on the market these days, however, your ironing boards should be able to meet the most basic needs of ironing
Your iron board must be easily adjustable to your height and at waist level so you are not hunched over for hours
It must be sturdy enough so that it won’t tip over or collapse when you put pressure on it
It should have a mesh backing with a padded cover tightly fitted over the board
And finally, it should be wide enough for heavy bed linens and table cloths
Make sure you have set up your ironing station with good light and suitable ventilation… You don’t want to be ironing in the dark
Sort your clothes into fabric categories, i.e delicates, cotton, wool…. the temperature of the iron is one thing that you can not cheat…If the iron is too hot you will see disastrous results with burnt clothing, and too cool will result in a poor finish
When ironing thick fabrics, iron both sides. for example the collars and cuffs on a shirt. This will stop any puckering that may occur
Preparation, before you begin, is the key to getting good results. Always lay the item flat on the board flattening the material with the palms of your hands starting from the centre and moving out to the edges. Try to iron in smooth straight strokes
Always iron the Collar, yoke, cuffs, belt, pockets first followed by the flat sections of the garment, that way you will not have the painful experience of having to iron a section twice. By following these simple tips, you can take the pain out of ironing and restore your garments to their former glory.
The best product that I have used for ironing is Downy
Get ahead of those creases with Downy wrinkle release is just one of those products that I just swear by.
Directions:
Spray 8 inches away
Spray fabrics with a sweeping motion until slightly damp
Use more spray for heavy fabrics or severe wrinkles
Tug and smooth away wrinkles.
Hang dry
Reduce Static Cling
Hold bottle 6-10″ from the item and spray lightly and evenly before wearing
When wearing clothes, spray outside of garment first.
Note: Safe on almost all fabrics. On fabrics which may water-spot (silk, rayon), test a hidden area first. Use only as intended.
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Always use distilled water in your iron, as bottled water and tap water can clog up your iron with mineral residue