You sprinkle and pour and watch the satisfying bubbles rise up. You watch the bubbles pop and feel proud that you're using a safe and non-toxic cleaning solution. The bubbles fade away and you scrub down your sink, toliet, tub, or counter. But do you really know what you're actually scrubbing around and how effective it is? I learned something interesting last month when I wrote a post over on Keeper of the Home about vinegar not being a great non-toxic cleaner. Some people love their vinegar … [Read more...]
Green in 365: The Entryway – Take off Your Shoes
This is Day 4 of the Green in 365 series! Okay, so now that we've got all the basics of the Green in 365 series covered, let's get started! I'm excited, I hope you are too! The Entry Way What better place to start greening our homes but at the front door, or wherever you most often enter your home?! Did you know that one of the biggest ways that toxins, chemicals, and other nasty stuff enters your home is on your shoes? One small change you can make that will have a big … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: The Finale!
This is Day 31 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. Whew! So we made it to the end of our 31 Days to Green Clean series! I hope you enjoyed it and learned a little (or a lot!) along the way, and are well on your way to using homemade and green cleaners all around your home! I know I got a little behind with the posts at the end - I've had a teething/fussy baby, who doesn't want to be put down and isn't sleeping as well as she usually does, for the past few weeks, and that's made it … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Cleaning the Oven Without Harsh Chemicals
This is Day 30 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. One of the tasks that I put off doing more than others in my home is cleaning the oven. It's a hard job - trying to contort your body to all different angles to get the whole thing cleaned out. And once it's done, you don't even get to enjoy the benefits of looking at your nice, clean oven - unless you left it open, which would be silly. But, I had a large and growing layer of burnt nastiness all over the bottom of my oven, so I knew as … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Cleaning the Toilet Without Harsh Chemicals
This is Day 29 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. Oh, the dreaded toilet. I'm not sure there is a person on earth who actually enjoys cleaning their toilet. I am definitely not an expert on toilet cleaning, but I got several questions about how to deal with ring around the toilet when I asked for your questions, so I wanted to share some of my ideas for cleaning the toilet without using harsh chemicals. I know there's no good way to nicely talk about cleaning a toilet, so you're … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Organizing Your Homemade Cleaners
This is Day 26 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. Now that you've made all of the awesome homemade cleaners we've talked about this month, you've got to have a way to organize them, so you can easily access them for cleaning, and so that it's easy to make new batches when you run out. Over at Green... Your Way I've shared two posts on organizing your homemade cleaners and supplies, sharing tips and showing you before and after pictures of my own cleaning cupboard … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Cleaning with Cream of Tartar
This is Day 24 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. I have read a lot about green, natural and homemade cleaning over the past five years or so, and I thought I knew about pretty much every green and frugal cleaner out there. But, of course, the Ah-mazing Pinterest recently opened my world to a new green cleaning product that I had never heard of before. Cream of Tartar. Yes, that's right, the stuff that's in your spice cabinet and used in what? Snickerdoodle cookies? What else is … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Homemade Reusable Disinfecting Wipes
This is Day 23 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. This post was originally posted on Sept. 4, 2009 and is one of my most popular posts here at Live Renewed. I love that you guys love these homemade reusable disinfecting wipes! Today I wanted to take the opportunity to update some of the information and the recipes in the post. As I have been trying to eliminate paper waste from our household as well as clean our home using natural, non-toxic, and frugal cleaning products, there is one … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Washing Dishes & Homemade Dishwasher Detergent
This is Day 22 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. Dirty dishes are my nemesis. I don't know if any of you can relate, but I hate everything about doing dishes. I despise how quickly they pile up in my sink and on my counter. I get annoyed when I don't have room to cook or bake because my counters are covered in the remains from previous cooking and baking endevors. My kids go through so many dishes each day it's really unbelievable. And I really do not like having to wash dishes by … [Read more...]
31 Days to Green Clean: Homemade Dusting Spray
This is Day 19 of the 31 Days to Green Clean series. One of the chores that I did often growing up was dusting. I actually kind of enjoyed it because I liked the scent of the Pledge spray I would use, and it was nice to see things that were previously covered in a layer of dust, nice and shiny again. Now with three little kids and a busy household, dusting is one of those things that I've basically let go in favor of cleaning things that are a little more necessary - like the toilet and … [Read more...]
