Be Kind to the Earth EVERY day...
Blessed Earth Day~
Take some time to read over my EcoFriendly Tips
I can't say much more than this;
If you have cast iron pans with crud on them, clean them with a potato.
To remove rust, slice a fresh potato in half and cover the cut end in liquid dish detergent. Rub the rust spots away with the potato, rinse clean, dry, then apply a light layer of oil to the cookware.
This does work and it sure beats scrubbing your cookware with harmful chemicals. This works! Yay!
Did you know you can wipe your grill clean without the chemical waste by rubbing an onion against the grate of the grill?
Scrubbing a halved onion faced downwards on a heated grate will remove the grime and grit without requiring the hard and frustrating scrubbing of a Brillo pad. The downside? The smell! That is, unless you like the smell of onions!
Who is still grilling? LOL - Hey, it's been really nice here lately so we have!
Throughout this blog I have some 'Ecofriendly tips' and I hope people have found these tips to be useful. When I find information on ecofriendly ideas I love to try them out and then share with my readers.
Here is a broad overview on how to clean our house without harming the environment.
You will need:
* * lemon juice
* salt
* bicarbonate of soda
* vinegar
* water
* baking soda
* reusable cloth
* newspaper
Freshen Rooms
Ditch the air freshener and open a window instead. It's free, far more effective and doesn't fill your room with a toxic soup.
Carpets
To freshen carpets, sprinkle with bicarbonate of soda before you vacuum. This will remove odors and may help lift stains.
Surfaces
Lemons have natural bleaching, deodorizing and antibacterial properties. Make an effective multipurpose cleaner by mixing one part lemon juice with three parts water and store in a spray bottle. Don't forget to label it correctly. Simply spray it on and wipe off with a cloth.
The Kitchen
Bicarbonate of soda is a great abrasive cleaner. Use it neat to clean fridge interiors, ovens and sinks.
For baked on food mix 2 parts bicarbonate of soda, 1 part salt and enough lemon juice to create a paste, spread it over the stain, leave for a few minutes then scrub off.
To dispel bad smells from the fridge, cut a lemon in half and leave to absorb the odor.
The Bathroom
Vinegar, with its antibacterial and deodorizing properties, is a great bathroom cleaner. Mix equal parts water and vinegar to make an effective solution for the bath tub, sink, tiles, floor and toilet seat and cistern. For tougher stains and lime scale scrub with a mix of bicarbonate of soda and vinegar - a tour de force cleaning combination.
To clean the toilet bowl add a cup of vinegar and leave overnight, then scrub with the toilet brush.
Copper and Brass
Rub lemon juice and a little salt into copper and brass to really make it shine
Window and glass
For a streak free finish use a solution of equal amounts vinegar and water. Apply to the glass with old newspaper.
Alternative Products
If you don't have time to make homemade cleaners then stick to Eco brands. These are specifically made to cause as little damage to the environment as possible. Check the packaging for good, plant based ingredients instead of chemicals. Avoid phosphates, chlorine and aerosols at all costs. From now on cleaning your house needn't cost the earth!
Source: http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-clean-your-house-without-harming-the-environment
There is nothing worse than having a smelly room because of a soiled carpet. Whether the smell is caused by stale dust and debris, lack of air circulation or by pets relieving themselves on your carpet, taking the smell out will be a priority.
In this house it's just dog odor. Hey, I bathe him regularly but let's face it, he's a dog!
To get rid of carpet odor, try the baking soda treatment.
Baking soda is very efficient in taking out bad smells completely. First let's clear up one myth. Baking soda does not “absorb” smell. In truth, it cleans up the area where the smell originated and stops it from getting in the air.
First vacuum the carpet to remove any visible dirt. Then sprinkle the baking soda on the area in question or over the entire carpet, whichever you feel needs it. Let the baking soda sit for several hours.
Once you feel it's been long enough, sweep over the carpet with a hard-edged broom to get most of the baking soda off. After you do that, then use a vacuum cleaner to pick up the remaining particles. Make sure you don’t vacuum before sweeping, or you might damage your vacuum cleaner, as it will suck up huge amounts of baking soda.
In case any baking soda got stuck on the fibers, you can use a scrub to take off these particles, freeing the carpet. If you didn’t manage to get the odor out with the above technique, try it again.
Some people suggest using vinegar or dish soap. Vinegar is acidic in nature, so it will burn the particles that were harder to remove. Dish soap can give your carpet a fresh, clean smell, although alone, it won’t clean the old odor up, it will just replace it temporarily.
Gardens are a great place to keep your children healthy and entertained. A child friendly space can be a dream for any excitable child, and if the garden is safe and suitable, can give parents a much needed break for a few hours!
The following is an informative video on how to create a child friendly garden!
An Introduction To Child-Friendly Gardens
If you watch the video, I'd love to hear what you think!
Get rid of finger-prints and water marks on stainless steel with baby oil. No more chemicals to clean stainless steel!
Get some baby oil and some kitchen paper and drop a couple of drops of the oil onto a sheet, then rub it around and all over the item thoroughly.
Then take a clean sheet of kitchen roll and rub down and polish the whole appliance evenly to remove all streaks.
The baby oil dilutes and liquefies the stains and marks leaving a blemish free finish!
Wooden cutting boards are popular to have in the kitchen. Wood is porous, therefore it absorbs the color, odor and the bacteria of the foods cut on the board. Cleaning the cutting board is a must but using chemicals is not good for you or the cutting board.
Here are some simple steps to follow to get your wooden cutting board clean:
You will need
* 1/2 Cup Salt
* 2 Lemons
* Bowl of hot water
* Sponge
* Towel
Step 1:
Take a handful of salt and sprinkle it onto the board. Since salt is a natural disinfectant, it will absorb the color, flavor and odors on your board.
Step 2:
Use the sponge and rub hot water over the salt. You can continue to sprinkle in the salt and use the sponge as a natural abrasive until all the stains and odors are gone.
Step 3:
Wipe off the salt and water with a towel.
Stop using those commercial brand air fresheners. They contain chemicals and usually only mask bad odors anyway.
Here are 2 quick and easy ways to make your own non-toxic air fresheners!
Make a baking soda and vanilla scented spray.
- Pour the baking soda into a spray bottle and fill with water. Baking soda is a natural neutralizer and will absorb odors rather than covering them up.
- Add a couple drops of vanilla extract to give it a light and natural scent.
Use vinegar to freshen the air.
- Pour distilled white vinegar into a spray bottle. Using white distilled vinegar is safe, highly effective and very inexpensive.
I am trying to be more ecologically friendly and therefore I am finding some inexpensive and environmentally friendly ways to live.
As I find things and post about them, I'll keep a running link list here, in this post so you can easily find a particular entry you want to read.
July 2008
August 2008
When it comes to skin care and finding the best softening agent, stop spending money trying product after product - use olive oil, extra virgin olive oil. This is especially good to use when shaving!
Olive oil reduces friction and softens hair upon application. It also acts as a natural moisturizer, attracting external moisture to your skin. Using olive oil is the easiest way to shave because it works best when used in combination with water.
Olive oil is a non irritant and recommended for sensitive skin. Many skin irritations, including razor burn, can be treated naturally by adding 10 drops of essential oil every 1 ounce of olive oil.
Using olive oil is extremely cost effective, as a little goes a long way. You only need an amount about the size of a quarter, for each leg (or desired shaving area) After shaving you can apply additional olive oil as a moisturizer.
*TIP:
Make sure you use Extra Virgin olive oil, it's loaded with vitamin E. Avoid pure and light olive oil because they have been chemically processed!
Lemons/lemon juice are composed of citric acid. The enzymes in citric acid can cut through grease, thus making this a great choice for cleaning, so get rid of those chemically abrasive store bought cleaners!
You can use a lemon to clean your microwave, which is usually the one appliance many of us spend a great deal of time scrubbing!
You will need:
Now, wipe out the microwave first using a damp cloth. The lemon method is to remove stuck on grease and dirt; crumbs just get in the way.
Set cut lemon wedges into a microwave safe bowl of water. 2 to 3 cups of water should be sufficient. - 2 to 3 tbsp. of lemon juice is a simple alternative if fresh whole lemons are not available.
Place bowl in microwave oven for about 2 to 3 minutes or however long it takes to boil water in your microwave. This creates the lemon soaked steam that will cut the grease.
Very important!
Let bowl stand in microwave for at least 10 minutes. The water will be very hot and by letting it stand, there is time for steam to build up inside microwave oven. Do NOT just pull the bowl out when the 2-3 minutes is up!
After 10 minutes or so, remove bowl carefully from microwave. Set aside.
Wipe the inside of the microwave with a warm damp cloth or rag. This will remove the surface grease.
You may have to do this entire process more than once if your microwave has a lot of old built up grime/grease inside it.
The microwave walls should be squeaky to the touch when completely clean.
In the future, remember to wipe out your microwave after a few uses so that it doesn't become a dirty mess!
Put down the bottle of bleach! Bleach is harmful and a known irritant! Whiten your laundry naturally and safely.
You will need 3% hydrogen peroxide and of course, a load of laundry whites!
Mix in 8 ounces of 3% hydrogen peroxide into your load of laundry. The natural cleaning and whitening properties of hydrogen peroxide will leave your whites looking and smelling fresh.
* Make sure you test the effects of hydrogen peroxide on certain fabrics before using on a load of laundry.
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