Perhaps it would be more appropriate to say we're going green, but we're making definite strides here in our house to be more eco-friendly. You already know we do cloth diapers and love them, but I've felt ready to really step up to new changes in the last few months.
First, we ran out of most of cleaning supplies this week. I have been wanting to switch to homemade household cleaners for a while, but wanted to use up what we had first. Well, that was this week and this weekend I made a whole new set of stuff.
In order to get the house disinfected and smelling good, we're relying on plain vinegar, essential oils (lavender and tea tree), and a little bit of pure, unscented castile soap. I picked up some cheap spray bottles at Wal-Mart during my Friday grocery shopping and filled them with the following:
-Plain Vinegar
-Half-and-half plain vinegar & water
-Delicate All-purpose cleaner (see #14, but the others are great ideas too!)
The vinegar & water solution is perfect for glass cleaning, the all-purpose cleaner is really all-purpose, and the plain vinegar is for toilets. We're using the all-purpose cleaner minus the soap plus 1/2 cup vinegar to mop. After a round this weekend, our house smells & looks clean. Plus, I'm on a natural, do-gooder high - as opposed to the chemical high housecleaning usually brings with it.
I will admit that we have one new homemade household cleaner which isn't quite as environmentally friendly, but is really working wonders. Mix 1 tablespoon liquid fabric softner with a spray bottle full of water and use to dust surfaces. I've been doing this for a couple of weeks and it's been awesome. It's a way better dust repellant than Pledge and doesn't make the TV screen streaky. Loving it!
In other green progress, we've decided to not use papertowels anymore, opting instead for cloth napkins (which we already had) and rag towels for spills. So far, we're not missing them.
I'm also currently campaigning for a clothesline. We've got a difficult backyard and a budget, so finding a workable solution has been a challenge. I think I've found our resource, so thought I might share here. I'd like this one and will likely hang it in the garage, but other great options are here also.
I'll post an update in a few weeks to let you know how all the changes are going, but I'm excited about this new direction!
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3 comments:
Good for you for going green! One of our first steps was cleaning supplies, then body care, then on to cloth shopping bags, and reusing things in creative ways.
And, oh how I love the way my house smells when I clean with pure essential oils like tea tree and lavender. You will love to clean when it smells that great because you get all mellowed out!
I love that you do cloth diapers too. I didn't even know it, but I have only been reading your blog for a couple of months.
I hope you guys are doing well. I love catching up with your family happenings through your blog.
If you like organic products, check out my blog at http://belliesinbloom.com. I have a giveaway that ends on Wednesday. Be sure and enter if you are interested.
I wish we had a clothesline. When we lived in Italy we had to use one and I loved it. But I can't get my husband to agree to one here. (Tear!) I also used cloth diapers (until I got really sick for a couple of months when baby was 6 months old and I never went back).
I have a giveaway at theprovidentwoman.com click on the giveaway in the far right side bar – ends Friday at 10 pm
Love it! Thanks so much for the link. Definitely inspiring!
xo,
Sherry (& John)
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