Make: Homemade Cleaners (with free labels!)

Although I have been using my easy homemade laundry detergent for over a year, I only recently jumped on the homemade cleaner bandwagon. This goes along with my new year's resolution to make our house more environmentally-friendly and less chemical-ridden. My home is not quite as "green" as I would like, but we're moving the in the right direction.

I was so excited by this endeavor that I even made my very own spray bottle labels which you can download by CLICKING HERE.  (These are for personal use only!)

There are many, many variations of homemade cleaning solutions out there. I found it helpful to learn a bit about the different components before choosing my "recipes". Standard ingredients for most cleaning solutions include: 

Vinegar has been used for centuries as a cleaning product. It is highly acetic and kills mold, bacteria, and germs. A natural organic bi-product of fruits, vegetables and grains, vinegar is safe for the environment and your family. It also has a crazy long shelf life and the unpleasant smell dissipates after a few minutes.

Water is primarily for diluting vinegar and dissolving the items listed below.

Baking Soda is mildly abrasive and therefore useful for scrubbing (without scratching) while also removing odor; this makes it best suited for kitchen and bathroom cleaning.

Washing Soda is commonly confused with baking soda, though the two have totally different chemical makeup. In general, just remember that it is more abrasive than baking soda and it is generally recommended to wear gloves/mask while cleaning with washing soda.

Castile Soap has a base of vegetable oils like palm, coconut, hemp, jojoba, or olive. Most other soaps actually have a petroleum base. The name "Castile" comes from the Spanish city famous for its olive oil as well as this style of soap.

Essential oils like lavender or tea tree come in handy since the above ingredients do not exactly smell wonderful.

So there is your basic overview, but what exactly do you do with all of these ingredients?? I am currently using the following cleaning solutions. Note that both of these require giving the bottle a good shake before use.

All-Purpose Cleaner
1/8 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon baking soda
2 cups hot water

Pre-Wash Fabric Spray (stain treatment)
½ c. ammonia
½ c. white vinegar
¼ c. baking soda
2 tbsp. liquid soap or laundry detergent
2 quarts water

If you would like more suggestions, I found an exhaustive list over at Young House Love. I definitely plan to use more of these recipes in the future!

Next week I will show your how to make your own reusable Swiffer cover!

Make: All-in-One Planner (free printable!)

In the Ritter house, we like to joke that I am the social gatekeeper. If you want to know when we are free for dinner, what date that appointment is scheduled, or when the parking pass was last paid, you best come to me first. My little datebook is never too far from me. Actually I have two datebooks. Crazy, I know. One is very small and fits in my equally small purse  and the other is large so I can write notes while appreciating alternating pages of fine art prints. But I digress.

Gradually, it became clear that we needed some way for all relevant household parties to know what the coming week had in store, not just me.

I was simultaneously growing tired of drafting several partial-grocery lists on random slips of paper, just to be lost somewhere in the ether. Or worse, I would run out of garlic and make a "mental note" which is the equivalent of deciding I shall never again use garlic.

Plus I needed a convenient (and noticeable) spot to remind myself of things like "call so and so about such and such" or "take salsa to work party Friday!".

I love browsing all of the organizational print-outs, binders, and such on lady-blogs. However, I am not a homeschooling mother of three who needs so much elaborate stuff. Thus I grabbed the bull by the horns and made my own handy dandy planner for my refrigerator. It is streamlined, simple, and small. I laminated it, attached a small dry-erase marker, and then added magnets on the back.

I've been using it for several months and quite like it. So much so, that I figured I might as well share it! Feel free to print it for private use. If you don't have access to a laminator, you can buy laminate pockets at most office supply stores. I hope you find this helpful!

 

Click here to download!