Posted in Homemade Clean

OK, I really don't love to do the laundry, though I am trying to learn! 

We had some good suggestions on this subject recently-
hanging the clothes out on a line to enjoy nature and sunshine, adding nice fragrances to the detergent, etc. 
I plan to make some little encouragers for myself- a pretty clothespin bag, a nice bottle of Lavender linen spray, Geranium scented detergent and softener, lavender dryer bags, and just maybe some type of encouraging word picture to hang in my tiny laundry room... I'm still thinking about what to use there.  Please share how you encourage yourself to love the laundry if you haven't already done so!

In a previous discussion here on the Front Porch, Teresa asked about preventing static cling.  I did a bit of research and found a few suggestions:

1.  Use vinegar in the rinse cycle.

2.  Use borax or baking soda in the rinse cycle.

3.  Do not overdry your clothing.  The articles I read say this is a major cause of static cling. 

4.  If you do have static cling, wet your hands before handling the clothes. 

OK, your turn!  Please help Teresa with her laundry issue, and share any tips you have for preventing or getting rid of static cling naturally. 

Don't forget to share ways to love the laundry, too.  I'd love to see photos of your laundry room and other laundry things- clotheslines, clothespin bags, etc.! 

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

Hank left a question in the comments section of last week's Homemade Clean post asking about cleaning the oven.  I agree, store bought oven cleaner is not something that I want in my household, either. 

For general oven cleaning, baking soda works well.  Sprinkle it on, scrub as needed with a wet scrubbing pad or sponge and wipe clean with water. 

To make some "scrubbing bubbles" add a bit of vinegar to your spray bottle.

If you need something stronger, I have had excellent results cleaning up even nasty oven spills like a baked-over pie, using just salt and a spray bottle of water!   

It seems to work best if the oven is just a bit warm,  take salt and sprinkle it liberally over the spots that need some extra cleaning power.  Then take a spray bottle of water and mist the salt until it is just damp.  Let it sit for several hours (I leave it overnight).  Then just wipe away the grime along with the salt. 

 

Hope that helps you keep the kitchen chemical free, Hank. 

 

If anyone else has a tried and true method for cleaning the oven, please share it with us!

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

Want to freshen things up around the homestead? 

Check out the recipe section at AromaWeb!  In the Household Cleaning/Freshening section, you'll find recipes for things like room mist, smelling salts bowl, carpet deodorizer, bed linen spray, vanilla room spray and more.   You might like to look into the other recipe categories too, like Physical Well-Being, Holiday Blends, or Skincare, Beauty & Hygiene.  

I love using essential oils to care for my home and family.  Hope you enjoy this site, it is one that I plan to spend some time reading.  I already have a few new goodies for my recipe pile!

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

Need to freshen up the musty smelling carpets in your home?  Try this:

Put a cupful or so of baking soda into a glass canning jar.

Add a few drops of your favorite essential oil(s).  I use bergamot, geranium, and lavender ... just because they make me happy . 

Place a metal canning lid and ring on the jar.

Shake to distribute the oils. 

Poke a few holes in a metal canning lid with an icepick or knife. (You might want to do that before you put it on the jar for safety's sake.)

Sprinkle on carpets and let sit for a while, then vacuum away.  Simple as that! 

If you don't have essential oils but are fortunate enough to have some fragrant dried herbs on hand, just crush up the herbs finely or run them through the spice grinder and add those to the baking soda instead.  

I have another "recipe" for carpet freshener, but it calls for Borax; and I'm just not sure I want that on my carpets, especially since I have children crawling on them daily.

 

Anyone else have a good carpet freshener idea?  I'd love to hear it! 

 

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

I love the first hints of fall...a cool breeze, a few falling leaves, the shortening of days. 

I also love the scents of fall...apples, cinnamon, cloves, spiced cider, fruit pies....warm, delicious scents. 

Even if the outside temperatures aren't quite as fall-like today as they have been in the past few days, there is still a hint of fall in the air. 

When things get just a little stuffy indoors, I like to freshen the air up with a nice scent.

One of my favorites for this time of year is to simply simmer cinnamon, cloves, and other spices in a little water or apple juice on the stove.  If I have apples or oranges on hand, I sometimes add the peelings to the water, too.  It is amazing how quickly this simple trick will freshen up the air and make your home smell so very warm and inviting. 

Today I have cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and a bit of ginger simmering in water. 

Why not put a little scent of fall into your  indoor air today?

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

I found this recipe for making your own all-purpose stain spray in my recipe pile.  I've not tried it yet, but plan to do so soon. 

All Purpose Stain Spray

1/4 cup castille soap (or other veg. based soap)

1/4 cup glycerin

2 tablespoons Borax

10 drops peppermint or tea tree essential oil

1 3/4 cup water

Combine in a spray bottle.  Spray and wash!

 

Do any of you have a recipe for stain removers?  My girls seem to attract stains!

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

There has been an interesting discussion on Rustic Hair Care going on at Jonash...Two of a Kind Working on a Full House.  In today's post, which is Part IV of the discussion,  Clare asked about hair gels.  The following is a recipe that I have used in the past.  Very simple to make, and it seemed to work OK for me.  I think if I were to make it these days, I would look for some vegan gelatin; but the regular worked just fine.

Hair Gel

1 tsp. plain gelatin powder

1 cup boiling water

Sprinkle gelatin over just boiling water, stir to dissolve, cool.  It will be thicker if stored in the refrigerator.

Simple as that!

Blessings,

Catherine

 

Posted in Homemade Clean

Need to clean your rugs or carpet, but don't want those nasty chemicals in your home?  Here are a couple of recipes that I've used with good results in the past.  I don't remember where I got them, it has been a long time since I've seen these...They were floating around in the "Recipe Pile" and I ran across them as I was digging through it last night.

Rosemary & Lavender Carpet Shampoo

2 cups baking soda

1/2 cup Borax (test on small area before use) or soap flakes

20 drops lavender essential oil

8 drops rosemary essential oil

1/2 cup vinegar

2 cups warm water

 

1.  Vacuum carpet

2.  Combine baking soda & Borax or soap flakes in a plastic bowl.

3.  Add essential oils and mix well.

4.  Sprinkle on carpet.

5.  Add vinegar to warm water in a mop bucket.

6.  Dip clean sponge mop into bucket and squeeze out.

7.  Gently go over carpet working in sections.

8.  Wait at least one hour and then vacuum again. 

 

Peppermint Foam Carpet Shampoo

3 cups water

3/4 cup castille soap

10 drops peppermint essential oil

Mix all ingredients in blender.   

Rub into soiled areas with damp sponge. 

Let dry and then vacuum. 

This works well as a spot cleaner. 

 

 

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

My daughter walked into the kitchen yesterday and looked at the bottle of "store brand" dish soap;  then she told me she read in a book that dish detergent is harmful to the environment, and wanted to know if that is true why we are using it .  I told her that "normally" I buy a brand that is supposed to be non-toxic, but didn't get it last time for financial reasons, and the store I was in didn't carry that brand, etc., etc. 

Her next question was, "Well, why don't we just use soap like the book said to do?"   I told her we would give it a try.   I did  a bit of digging through the recipe pile and found a recipe to tweak a bit.  Here's how I plan to make my version of "herbal kitchen soap", which can be used for cleaning more than just the dishes: 

Herbal  Kitchen Soap

2 1/2 cups grated castille soap

3 cups hot peppermint tea (or use plain water and add a few drops peppermint essential oil)

1/4 cup baking soda

1/2 tsp Borax

1/4  tsp eucalyptus essential oil

1/4 tsp lemon essential oil

Put grated soap into a  saucepan and add hot tea.  Simmer for 15 minutes on low heat.  Add remaining ingredients and stir.   Shake before using.  Can be used to was dishes and for general cleaning purposes. 

 

Do any of you make your own dish soap?  If so, I'd love the recipe!

Blessings,

Catherine

 

Posted in Homemade Clean

Below are recipes for 2 herbal hair rinses I plan to make today.  I scribbled the directions down on index cards, and tucked them into my Idea Pile (I have a Recipe Pile, too....no files, just piles).  I have no idea now where I got these... I need to keep better notes. 

Elderberry Rinse

3 handfuls Elderberries

2 1/2 cups vinegar

Bring to boil.  Simmer 30 minutes.  Strain.  Use as final rinse.

*My Notes:  I wrote this just as my copy reads.  Now I don't know if the recipe meant fresh or dry berries.  I only have dry and I think I'll not use 3 handfuls...maybe 1 cup or so.  I plan to use apple cider vinegar, and I think it might need to be diluted with some water.   I'm just going to put mine in a jar and set it out in the sun for the afternoon.  It's sure to simmer in the triple digit temps. today!

Update:  I handful of dried elderberries was about 1/3 cup...but I only added about 2 handfuls.  They make the vinegar very red...might be a good thing, might be very colorful!  I will dilute with water after it has simmered in the sun for a while. 

 

Nettle Rinse

1 cup dry nettles

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup filtered water

6 drops rose essential oil

Simmer nettle, vinegar, and water in a covered pan over a double boiler, for 1 hour.  Cool.  Strain.  Add essential oil.  Use as a final rinse.

*Notes:  Again, I think I'll just put mine in a jar out in the sun for the afternoon.  I may try some different essential oils in different batches- rosemary, lavender, bergamot. 

Update: I had to add more liquid- probably more like 1 cup of water, 1 cup of vinegar. 

Anyone else have a favorite herbal hair rinse recipe to share with us?  I love making things like this!

 

 

Blessings,

Catherine

Posted in Homemade Clean

How about some homemade tooth care today?

Kim posted a tutorial for making toothpaste  a few months ago that I really like.  I made this recipe and it gets your teeth nice and clean without any nasty chemicals.  It is made with ingredients you probably have around the house, too; which makes it  frugal, too.  Click here to see Kim's homemade toothpaste how-to.  I didn't have peppermint flavored oil, so I just added a couple of drops of peppermint essential oil.  I would also suggest using aluminum-free baking powder. 

Now that those teeth are fresh and clean, how about a natural tooth whitener?  It tastes fabulous, and this is just the time of year for it...

Strawberry!  Yes, take a fresh strawberry and rub it on your teeth to whiten them .  You could also mash it up and use a toothbrush, but children especially will enjoy just scrubbing away with the whole fruit. 

You can also take a fresh sage leaf and use it to clean your teeth.  I don't particularly like the taste, but it does make your teeth squeaky clean.

Don't forget to rinse well after using these tooth cleaners and  whiteners!

You can make a simple herbal mouth rinse by boiling 2 cups of water and adding 4 tsp. of lavender blossoms.  Allow to steep for half an hour or so, then strain and bottle.  You can add some rosewater to the lavender rinse if you like.  A drop of peppermint essential oil could be added to make it even more refreshing.  Just remember, if you add essential oil, do not swallow it- it is a mouth rinse after all ! 

And finally, how about a few herbs that you can use to garnish your dinner plates, and then nibble as a little breath freshener when dinner is over?

Basil- Purple Ruffles Basil is beautiful, Lemon Basil is lemony fresh

Lavender- blossoms and leaves

Lemon Balm- very nice lemony herb

Mint- Spearmint, Peppermint, Applemint, Orange...Chocolate...whatever you like

Parsley- the most obvious choice, but it has good breath freshening properties

Roses- just the colored part of the petals, the white part is bitter

Sage- Pineapple Sage is my favorite

Thyme- Lemon preferably 

Hope you enjoy these homemade clean ideas for your teeth!  Have a favorite home-made dental care recipe you'd like to share?  We'd love to see it!

Blessings,

Catherine

 

 

Posted in Homemade Clean

One of my favorite cleaners is so simple, but smells so good and gets the floors, walls, or whatever I'm wiping down clean and fresh.

I run a sinkful of hot water, splash in some white vinegar, and then add 2 drops or so of each of  the following:

Geranium essential oil

Lemon essential oil

Bergamot essential oil

Lavender essential oil

A few drops in a spray bottle filled with distilled water makes a delightful room spray, as well. 

I often use just one or a combination of 2 of the above oils.   Geranium is my personal favorite, and it gets used for many things around my home...mop water, cleaning spray, air freshener, perfume oil for me ...Yes, I do smell like my mop water sometimes, but that is a good thing! 

For those who are interested in learning more about these essential oils and their uses, I have included links to the information page for each oil on the Mountain Rose Herbs website.   Please do note the cautions. 

 

Blessings,

Catherine.....who is now inspired to mop the floor, or at least spray some Geranium scented air freshener around the house!