July 21, 2007

• What I'm thinking about today...

  Making homemade cleaners!  Here are some of my ingredients:

  

  Liquid castile soap~lavender and almond.

  

  Essential oils~clove, cinnamon cassia, lemon eucalyptus, and orange.

  The other three ingredients, borax, baking soda, and vinegar, are the most economical, LOL! 

  Basic Softscrub (Care2.com ):

  1/2 cup baking soda

  Enough liquid soap to make a "frostinglike" consistency

  5 drops essential oil (lavender, tea tree, and rosemary are antibacterial)

  Pour the baking soda in a bowl; slowly pour in the liquid soap or detergent, stirring all the while, until the consistency reaches that of frosting. Scoop the creamy mixture onto a sponge, wash the surface, and rinse.

  EarthScrub Tile and Tub Cleanser (Ecomall):

  "Recipe: Mix 1 2/3 cups baking soda with 1/2 cup of liquid soap in a bowl. Using liquid soaps is best because liquid detergents make this scrub too time consuming to rinse off. Dilute with 1/2 cup water. Add 2 tbsp. vinegar. Stir with a fork until the lumps are gone. Be as exact as you can, otherwise, your squirt will be too thin or thick. Keep the cap on, because this mixture will dry out. Shake well before using.

  To use: Squirt this cleaner anywhere! My favorite places to use it are the tub, sink and toilet bowl, but I’ve used it for any greasy, grimy job. It’s great for under the rim of the toilet, bathtub rings, sinks and countertops. It’s a soft, mildly abrasive cleanser. Use a nylon white-backed sponge to prevent scratching. Rinse well. If you find that you are leaving a baking soda residue, try using a little less scrub and/or rinse with a squirt of scented vinegar and water. The vinegar dissolves that little bit of leftover baking soda and soap right away. Remember to shake well before using. "

  I'm going to experiment to see which of the above recipes work best for me.

  The all-purpose cleaner I'm going to use is from Crystal's site:

  Here is a cleaner you make right in your spray bottle: 

  All-Purpose Cleaner 

  2T vinegar

  1 t Borax

  Hot water

  a few drops of a mild dish detergent

  10 drops of essential oil, optional 

  In a 16 spray bottle put vinegar, borax and  hot water.  Swish around until borax has dissolved.  Add the drops of dish detergent and fill the rest of the bottle with water.  Add the essential oil (I like using orange or lavender).

  Two glass cleaner recipes (again, I'll try them both out and see which one I like most!):

  1 part vinegar
  1 part alcohol
  1 part water
  Combine in spray bottle.

  Another from Care2.com:

  "THE BEST WINDOW CLEANER
  Make a great all-purpose window cleaner by combining 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon liquid soap or detergent, and 2 cups of water in a spray bottle. Combine in a spray bottle. Shake to blend. "

  When I make these, I will add 5-10 drops of either lemon eucalyptus or orange essential oils to the spray bottle!

  

   

  • 6:17 pm
  • 2 Comments