Before I talk about how I made my own cleaning solution (!), I have to share a few important things from the weekend.
- Aziz Ansari’s Buried Alive comedy special on Netflix is hilarious! WATCH IT! This was my favorite part. Vishnu and I couldn’t stop laughing!
- 21 Jump Street is also super funny! I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to watch it. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum may be my new favorite comedic duo.
- Katie’s Chickpea Blondies are so good. So good in fact that you and your husband may end up eating half the pan in one sitting. Oops!
- While it’s officially summertime now, it’s also officially hurricane season in Miami. This means on-again/off-again crazy stupid rain all day long. I’m not complaining though…at least it’s not snow! AND the off-again part is pretty beautiful!
Now for the cleaning solution…
My mom mentioned a month or two ago how she made her own vinegar cleaning solution. She said that it cleans and gets rid of stains and stuck on grease beautifully. When my sister found out that my mom was trying to convince me to jump on her homemade cleaner bandwagon, she texted and said something along the lines of “That stuff mom made smells so bad.” Haha. Because of her comment, it took me a while to finally get on board with the whole thing.
Well, I finally bit the bullet and gave it a go this weekend…with a few tweaks. I knew there was no way Vishnu (or I) was going to be happy if the whole apartment smelled like vinegar, so decided to add some essential oils to the mixture. And luckily it worked. There is still a slight vinegary smell (not sure if you can completely eliminate that), but Vishnu hasn’t said a word…and that’s saying a lot.
Why vinegar you ask? First of all, it’s non-toxic, which means you’re not breathing in a million chemicals while cleaning and even afterwards. It’s also an all purpose cleaner, so you can use it in every room. For example, I used it to clean the entire bathroom, the kitchen counters/ appliances/floor, and even my full length mirror (it doesn’t streak!). Another obvious one is that It’s environmentally friendly. And finally, it’s dirt cheap compared to the cleaning solutions you buy in stores.
Note: Always test a small area to ensure no color change or damage occurs.
Tip: Buy the vinegar at a wholesale club. I found a 5 liter jug of distilled white vinegar at Costco for $3.
First up, the ingredients…
+ water of course.
Next, the magic formula…
| 1/3 cup vinegar 1.5 cups water 10-15 drops tea tree oil 10-15 drops lavender oil (or essential oil of your choice)Add vinegar, water, and oils to a spray bottle. Shake well to combine. Clean to your heart’s desire! |
This little experiment now has me thinking about what else I can make myself. I’ve heard that water + vodka + essential oil makes a great air freshner. Maybe that’s next!As far as the spray bottle goes, I bought mine at Target. However, I’m not too happy with it and need to look for a new one. I’m thinking Bed, Bath & Beyond may have what I’m looking for.
Happy Monday!
Do you or have you ever made your own cleaners?
I use vinegar to clean out my coffee pot and it gets rid of the stains beautifully – with the least amount of elbow grease from me! I guess it must be the fact that its a coffee pot but the vinegar smell is non existent when I rinse it out. I had heard of the vinegar/water cleaning sol before – but like you – my stomach couldn’t handle the smell of vinegar! Parita, I never thought of adding oils to the mix – thanks lady! As for a vodka based air freshener – hahaha – I bet it will leave everyone quite happy 🙂
Shashi @ runninsrilankan recently posted…Banana Flower Stir Fry {Recipe Redux}
The essential oils are key! I think just vinegar works fine for rinsing things out, but when the scent lingers a little, you definitely need something to cover it up!
I’m always looking for a more natural alternative so this solution sounds right up my alley! The vodka solution sounds great too…but something tells me that it might work out on the more expensive side eventually ha!
Haha! Vishnu said the same thing!
Ahhh the essential oils trick makes sense! I’ve used vinegar for cleaning before (it’s AMAZING at cleaning the inside of a microwave) but I didn’t like the smell! I’ll definitely give this a shot 🙂
It’s pretty amazing how a few (or 10) drops of oil covers up the nasty vinegar smell!
[…] for my taste. I finally feel settled and back to normal! And just as an FYI, I am still using a homemade vinegar based cleaning solution for pretty much everything (counter tops, the floor, wood cabinets, etc.). This stuff is […]