Blogs

Carpets 101

Carpeting. One of the coziest and most comforting inventions of modern civilization and also one of the hardest to keep clean.

Style, durability and practicality have been driving interior design toward wood floors lately, but wall-to-wall carpeting has its place and appeal also.

But how to have clean beautiful carpet and not use chemicals? Try this all-natural recipe: 2 cups of borax (find it in the laundry section of most grocery stores) plus 25 drops of your favorite scented pure essential oil (peppermint is great if you have pets!). Make sure they're mixed evenly together and simply shake the mixture onto your carpet. Let it sit for several minutes and then vacuum it up.

Easy as that!

Grandma's Homemade Cleaners

Most modern synthetic cleaning products are based on age-old formulas using natural ingredients.  They drew from these recipes because the chemistry was right! Of course, then they substituted the more expensive natural agents with cheaper sythesized chemicals and added LOTS of water and filler material.

Going back to the original naturally derived ingredients is a way to make cleaning products that work great, protect the environment and save you money. Most of what you need can be found in your kitchen cupboards. Fill in with some well-chosen and environmentally friendly green cleaning products found in health food stores and you can easily transform your home into a non-toxic and healthy haven.

Freezer Pleaser

Our freezers can get funky from time to time.  An open container of baking soda is a big help.  But when you need a little something extra, put some pure vanilla extract on a cotton rag and wipe down the walls and floor surface of the freezer.  NOTE: It doesn't have to be the fancy Madagascar vanilla from Dean+DeLuca that you use for cooking.  Some good old Schilling or McCormick's wi

Cleaning Greener: Getting Started

So, you've decided to try to clean a little greener. Where do you start?

First up, you'll want to avoid certain products such as air fresheners (including those handy plug-in types and even some candles), oven cleaners and other conventional products which may contain harmful components. Some others that should be on your watch list include dishwasher detergent, carpet shampoo and toilet, tub and tile cleaners.

Green Cleaning Tips #107

  1. Use a make-up brush or small paint brush to dust cracks and hard to reach places.
  2. Use baby wipes for a quick cleaning of phones, computer keyboards, and inside lining of purses.
  3. Use baking soda on a damp sponge to clean stainless steel sinks. Its nonabrasive so it won't scratch. To restore a shiny finish, rub in just a few drops of vegetable oil with a paper towel.
  4. To elimate odors from your garbage disposal , quarter a lemon then run it down the disposal with plenty of cold water.
Syndicate content