Gorgeously Green

If you are stopping by for the D-List Blog Party you can read my welcome post here.

In preparation for baby I have started to assess the foods we eat and the products we use. Call it overboard, but I’m a meticulous mama and if my cleaning products have words I can’t pronouce (or even worse, identify), I figure it is time to give them the boot. I ran across Gorgeously Green: 8 Simple Steps to an Earth Friendly Life at the library and have been skimming through it with my free time … which means it has taken we a good 3 weeks to make it through chapter one.

While skimming, I stumbled across a recipe for homemade all-purpose cleaner. JACKPOT! This is what author Sophie Uliano said about this concotion and the steps the creat it …

It’s brilliantly effective at cutting grease, germs, and grime; it smells wonderful and will save you a lot of money. You can use this spray on just about everything: fridge, countertops, walls, doorknobs (for germs), toilet seats, sinks, and so on.

– 32 ounce plastic spray bottle

– 2 cups water

– 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

– 1 teaspoon pure castile soap (peppermint is my favorite)

– 3/4 cup hydrogen peroxide

– 20 drops tea tree oil

– 20 drops of lavendar or lemongrass essential oil

Simply fill a large 32 ounce plastic spray bottle with the water. Add vinegar, castile soap, hydrogen peroxide, tea tree oil, and lavender or lemongrass essential oil. Lavender is lovely for the bathroom spray and lemongrass for the kitchen, so make two separate bottles at the same time. In the hot summer months, I add about 10 drops of citronella essential oil to the spray, as it is an excellent insect repellent. This spray is suitable for acrylic, ceramic tile, wood, marble, and granite.

If you need a really strong cleaner for tiles, walls, and doors, try this excellent brew: Fill a bucket with really hot water. Add a squirt of dishwashing liquid, half a cup of baking soda, and 20 drops of tea tree and lavender essential oils. You are saving water by using the bucket rather than running water.

The one thing I will have a hard time giving up is my jumbo pack of Costco Clorox wipes. Maybe I’ll keep them around. Maybe I’ll switch to one of Better Homes and Gardens (May 2010) eco-friendly recommendations.

– Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Surface Wipes ($3.99 for 24)

– Method Multi-Surface Wipes ($4 for 30)

– Green Works Nautral Cleaning Wipes ($3.39 for 30)

– Babyganics The Grime Fighter All-Purpose Wipes ($4.99 for 25)

– Seventh Generation Disinfecting Wipes ($2.99-$3.99 for 35)

I bit spendy compared to my old friend Clorox, but that is what coupons are for, right? BHG also had a great list of green cleaning recipes for more specific tasks. I love that I can find all of these supplies at the grocery store … it would super weird to trot down to local chemical store to pick up toxic ingredients to spread all around my house. Because really, if I don’t want my baby touching/breathing this stuff, do I really want to?

What do you use to clean your house? Any special tricks? Am I crazy for changing so much for our little one’s arrival?

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Chelsea Dickens says

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I was reading Tasha's blog & came across yours. As a 2nd time mom, it's been a lot of fun reading through your blog. I have this book & love it, I too was inspired by becoming pregnant the 1st time to "go green" & detoxify my house as much as possible. Through my journey & web searches I found these sites which I refer to often & thought I'd share with you. <a href="http://www.vinegartips.comwww.vinegartips.com<br /> http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com

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