Green Housekeeping
Last year Animal, Vegetable, Miracle turned out to be quite influential in my life. This year Green Housekeeping takes the prize. I confess that for the past however many years I have been using whatever cleaning agents are on sale at my local store, not paying much attention to the fact that the residues they leave behind are almost as bad if not worse than the dirt they are meant to eradicate.
After reading this book, I've been working much harder at cleaning up my cleaning. The bathroom was the obvious place to start. I bought squirt bottles for each bathroom and filled them with vinegar and water. The vinegar worked great. Everything felt much cleaner. I also felt more comfortable letting my able assistant join in the fun (there's nothing like a squirt bottle).
We have very hard water which makes cleaning more difficult. This book suggested switching our soaps over to plant-based soap. Since starting to use Castille soap or artisan soaps, there is less film on the tub and my skin has been MUCH happier. I also like that I'm not washing my body in petroleum-derived products.
So, spring cleaning/green cleaning has begun in our house. It will continue throughout the month with a break next week while we go to visit N's parents in FLORIDA. Wow do we need that break.
Fantastic change over!
We changed over a while ago & feel so much better about it.
I figured you have to get down & scrub no matter what you are using so it may as well be the friendly stuff! Xxx
I also use vinegar, for my bathroom and for the toilet. I can keep it more clean than with other chemical products.
Enjoy your green cleaning ( I realy like that name, green cleaning !!)
And yes you do need a lovely and sunny break, enjoy !
I'm glad you are feeling better!
We've been making some of our own cleaners for a while but I thing there is still room for improvement. I'll have to check out that book.
We're off to FL at the end of this month as well. Can't wait!
Thank you for the kind words you left on my blog.
That is my favorite kind of soap you mentioned in this post- the peppermint smell really helps me feel energized while I'm cleaning. Have a wonderful vacation.
I am so going to look for this book. I have been slowly switching to green cleaning too. Maybe this is the boost I need to go all the way. Thanks.
Wonderful. I tried baking soda a while ago and it left everything yucky. So can you tell me the dilution rate for the vinegar?
The soap looks nice. I went that direction but turned out to be allergic to the brand I tried and that frightened me back to Dove!
Do you have any recommendations for shampoo?
Glad you're feeling better, some great ideas I'm going to give it a go!
Lisa x
I am a big fan of vinegar and baking soda for cleaning, but I never could figure out how to make the most of the Dr. Bronner's liquid soap--it always felt oily and didn't suds up or rinse well. Maybe I need to dilute it? Any hints?
I love Dr. Bronner's soaps! I make my own cleaners often. One thing you can buy at any grocery store is "Bon Ami", it is all natural, its good for getting the soap scum, toilet bowls, or any tougher jobs. It is a powder so you have to rinse it well out of your tubs and sinks. I really love it , I haven't used any chemical cleaners my whole adult life, I've always been super sensitive to any chemical smells. I do keep beach in the house but use it only to clean my cutting boards when they get really ukky.
Thanks for sharing this book!
Great post! We love making our own cleaning supplies too ! :)