Theresa | My Desert Heart
I was more than happy to write a post for Suscipio on some of my favorite ways to naturally clean our home…and ourselves!
When my husband and I began to take our nutrition a bit more seriously over a year ago, with great results, it naturally led me to start wanting to experiment with some organic, homemade cleaning products. Part of the reason is that it is just better to use natural products especially with little ones and pets around. The chemicals in many of these products are just downright toxic and to be honest, dealing with nausea after I bleached my bathroom was not appealing in the least!
Also, we have had to make some major financial changes (still in that process) and I realized how much money we were saving by making some of our own products.
My main advice would be: don’t feel like you have to do everything overnight! I can’t stress this enough. Start with one product and focus on it and make sure it’s working for you then gradually add another and another until it becomes second nature to whip up a batch of your fave cleaner. I found that I really enjoy experimenting with different ideas and it has become a *hobby* of sorts. I feel like a chemist and I like the challenge since I have very high cleaning standards. With six family members sharing one shower/bath (five which are adults), I don’t have a choice.
There are two lists: one for household cleaners and one for personal cleansers. Most will be links to my favorite websites and some will be recipes from Organized Simplicity: The Clutter-Free Approach to Intentional Living
Household Cleaners:
My fave glass cleaner and all purpose cleaner are from Simple Homemade. I like to add a little lemon essential oil to my glass cleaner (helps cut grease) and lavender essential oil to my all purpose for a lovely scent. I purchase my oils cheaply from Puritan’s Pride. You can use paper towels. newspaper or even a microfiber cleaning cloth. I also use the all purpose cleaner on my ceramic tile floors.
For cleaning the toilet, I simply shake in some baking soda and pour in some vinegar which foams up and is great to scrub the toilet with.
For a bathtub or sink scrub, I have been using this homemade scouring powder from Wellness Mama. I am pretty happy with the results so far.
For the bathroom tiles I have been using the all purpose cleaner listed above. I spray on and leave for a minute then I rinse and wipe down with clean cloth.
My challenge? Trying to find a cleaner that works around the grout and tub edges where all that nasty soap scum and mold gathers. I tried oxygen bleach with no luck. My next experiment is hydrogen peroxide (yes…it is natural!) I am still using a spray bleach in those areas until I find one that works.
For dusting, I just use a microfiber cleaning cloth sometimes dampened. If you need a shine, you could use a little olive oil.
I have been using this powdered laundry detergent recipe from Wellness Mama with great success. For my grated bar soap, I use Trader Joe’s tea tree oil natural bar soap. The clothes have a fresh scent without a strong perfume smell. I use vinegar for my fabric softener. I do not currently use dryer sheets. I have been eyeing up these at diyNatural as a possible idea. Right now, we just deal with the static.
Two recipes I have on my *waiting list* to try: this one from diyNatural for powdered dishwasher detergent and this one from Frugally Sustainable for liquid dish soap. I also want to craft an old mason jar for a dispenser.
Personal cleansers:
Shampoo-less…that is what I am thanks to this simple idea from Tsh at Simple Mom.
Also over at Simple Mom: a wonderful facial cleanser made from extra virgin olive oil and castor oil. I have been using this for well over a year and LOVE the feeling. It works great for removing makeup and makes your skin unbelievably soft.
In addition, in the colder months when my skin feels dryer, I use jojoba oil for a moisturizer on my face. Some women use coconut oil which smells yummy.
This month, for the very first time, I made a leap of faith and made my own deodorant So far, so good…but we will see when the summer hits. This recipe is from, Organized Simplicity
Empty deodorant container
1/8 cup baking soda
1/8 cup cornstarch
3 tbsp. of coconut oil
Essential oil if you want (I find the coconut is a nice scent alone.)
Mix all in a bowl…I find that it’s just easier to mash with my hands and yes, it it messy.
I spoon it into empty container with some sticking out of the top and then pop in the fridge for a tiny bit.
After I pull it out, I smooth the top with a spoon.
*If you have temps of over 75 degrees the oil may become liquidy so you would have to store in fridge or somewhere cool.
For soap, we have been using natural almond honey soap from Trader Joe’s. I immediately noticed the difference between using Dove and the natural soap from TJ’s.
So…the search continues…the lab is open…what is your favorite natural cleaning recipe?
Hello Sisters! Jenny here. I made you a free Scouring Powder Label to print out. I made this label with the recipe and directions for use included on it after Theresa sent me the recipe she uses. I use this label on a Ball® Plastic 16-Ounce Freezer Jar
. Print the label and cut it out. Cut out a piece of clear contact paper bigger than the label. Lay the front of the label down on the sticky side of the contact paper. Wrap your printed label around your Natural Scouring Powder.
16 Comments
Leave a Reply
Stop By and Thank Our Sponsors
Community Button
Yeah!! I’ve been using vinegar and water as a spray cleaner for YEARS…my Mom told me about it when the boys were toddlers and potty training. It REALLY works to get rid of ‘that’ smell!
I’m going to try the scouring powder ASAP. I’ve been using straight up borax, but it doesn’t always do the trick.
Crayon on walls? About the only thing that will take of that is PAINT. I do know how to get crayon out of a dryer, though…
Angela Pea recently posted..Sweet Shot Tuesday – February 19
Wonderful post! When my first was a baby I bought a wonderful book with cleaning ideas for everything!
I buy vinegar in bulk!
Here’s a quick trick from memory on how to clean the microwave. 1/4 C vinegar 3/4C Water in a small glass bowl for a minute….steams the whole thing up and wipes out beautifully!
Tina recently posted..Catholic Woman’s Almanac
thanks for this tip!!
This does work well and it’s nice to use lemon juice in it for a scent.
Where do your vinegar in bulk?
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally
Costco…..lemon is a great add!
Tina recently posted..Catholic Woman’s Almanac
I can’t thank you enough, Theresa. This is so informative. I have been looking for natural cleaning products and this article fell on my lap. I will try the shampoo less on my eczema prone daughters.
You are most welcome…I hope I have helped narrow down the web searching since there is so much out there!
The baking soda rinse for hair is good for kids since they do not have a lot of oils to begin with. I only use shampoo if my daughter gets that sweaty scalp smell in the summer LOL!
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally
Theresa, Thanks so much for all of the good info. I’m definitely coming back to check out the laundry and dish soap recipes later on! I’ve been using that deodorant for a few years now and for me it works great all year round. Hope you have the same “success”
We also switched to natural soaps and they are heavenly. SOOOO much better than the store bought soaps. In fact, we liked them so much we sell them now 
http://www.thegoatmilksoapshop.com. It is so heavenly to take a shower with a nice bar of soap. Now, as far as shampoo-less…I don’t know about that one! Thanks again.
Laura recently posted..Catholic Woman’s Almanac
Oh how great Laura! I wish shipping wasn’t so much to Canada…I am all for supporting small business. Congrats on your success. Beautiful website.
Your soap bars look so yummy : ) Some see the shampoo-less has a huge leap of faith but after a week or so of adjustment, I am quite content. It is a great article and addresses different hair types.
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally
On you know I love this post Theresa since I am just starting on a more natural, organic journey with my family. I LOVE baking powder and vinegar it is good for so much!
Any ideas how to get crayon off of walls etc without buying that horrible magic eraser?
There is so much info on here….i am going to have to print it. We have sensitive skin in this house, my daughter has eczema and I never know what to use. I am finding that products that say natural are not really natural at all.
I am going to try some of these, thanks so so much Theresa! This is a one stop shop with all the research done for me. What a blessing
hahaha…that was baking SODA not baking powder. I was thinking of my muffin recipe the same time i was typing….please do not clean with your baking powder hehe.
LOL! I haven’t had to contend with crayon on wall but maybe Jenny has? I don’t have any little ones running around.
Hmmm…I sometimes use the Mr. Clean sponges on a bad tub ring and also on scuffs on the wall. I haven’t read anything on the chemicals in them and I think using them occasionally shouldn’t hurt but maybe someone else will chime in.
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally
Oh…my daughter is prone to eczema too which is another reason we started switching things.
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally
This is great, Theresa.
I am trying to cultivate a less, say, contrary heart towards cleaning the house, and this just may be a part of that!
I already use baking soda and vinegar in the sink and drains, so I don’t know why I didn’t use it in the toilet already! Going to do that today!
Thank you Jeannine. Truly, it has taken me over a year to get to the point where I use all the cleaners mentioned and I am still going : )
@ Jenny…love the label and I didn’t know Ball made freezer containers…great to know. I have been looking for different containers in the thrift shops and also recycle from containers here.
Theresa recently posted..Cleaning…naturally