HAPPY(NATURAL AND ORGANIC) SPRING CLEANING

I (ACTUALLY) LOVE CLEANING!!!!!!

I just wanted to share my 3 favorite natural cleaning items... and if I had to add 2 more, they would be salt and peroxide!!!!

Its spring cleaning time...and I think I am a fairly clean and orderly person until I embark on my spring cleaning list!!! I start lifting things up and moving them around and eeeeeek!!!! total humiliation!!!

anyway, I got to thinking about sharing some easy(and might I add way cheaper than chemicals) cleaning solutions I  have....and in all honestly, they smell better and work just as well as their chemical counterparts. I personally find the smell of bleach to be most offensive... so here ya go!

and as a p.s..... I am closing out the drawing for a gift certificate to mimisSuitcase.etsy.com on April 30th...so this is your last chance to make a comment or become a follower to get entries.

Window Cleaner: use one part distilled water and one part vinegar in a spray bottle to clean glass surfaces. Using linen dishtowels will leave a streak free and lint free shine...If you don't like the scent of the vinegar you may add a few drops of  essential oil to this mix also

sinks and tubs: cut a lemon in half and sprinkle with course salt, using the lemon as a natural scouring pad. sometimes I will also sprinkle my tub and sinks with baking soda for an additional abrasive element.

note: lemon also has natural anti-bacterial elements, to help eliminate nasty germys. 

drain cleaner: ever seen the horrific ingredients list on drain cleaners???? yikes! here is the solution, i swear by, and to be honest it  works wayyyyyyy better than the store bought death in a bottle. pour 1 cup baking soda down the drain, then pour 1 cup vinegar in the drain and let sit for 5 minutes. you will see it fizz and bubble up, this is what its supposed to do! After the 5 minutes, flush the drain with boiling water...the result, unclogged drain and no stinky drain smell...i do this every week to 2 weeks to keep it from clogging in the first place.

and of course vinegar makes the ultimate natural coffee maker cleaner! run 2 parts vinegar to 8 parts water through with no filter. Then run 2 to 3 pots water through your machine to remove all residue.

another environmentally conscious tip: avoid cleaning supplies that encourage you to create more trash, the top violator is SWIFFER. Yes, its oh so convenient but think of the amount of waste associated with a days cleaning with your swiffer. I use the swiffer with dust rags attached. You still get the convenience of the swiffer, minus the waste. I do not buy paper towels. I use only reusable rags and I keep lysol wipes in stock for emergency only uses.

hope this makes your spring cleaning smooth! feel free to add your own natural tips in the comments