Would you Ladies be willing to help?

MrsBlindLove · January 2012

If you had the undivided attention of 50 or so women what would you tell them about green cleaning?

I am a novice to green cleaning but have been asked to come talk to a group of ladies about it. I am a bit overwhelmed by the information I've found and have no idea where to start, so I thought I would ask the experts. My main focus will be talking to them about changing their cleaning products, how well the greener options work, the savings, and environmental benefits.I will also be giving little booklets of recipes at the end for them to take home.

Any help you ladies could give me will be very much appreciated. Thank you very much in advance!

CDMay2006 · January 2012

What do you have so far? Do you need more information about what you already plan to talk about, or more things to talk about? Who is your audience? What is the context? Time slot?

A lot of people use very basic cleaning supplies: white vinegar, water (liquid and in steam cleaners) and baking soda. To those you can add salt, dr. bronner's/other castile soap, essential oils, soap nuts, borax, lemon juice. There is also the option to use more conventional cleaners from companies with more EF practices/ingredients/packaging (this can range from buying in bulk, biodegradable cleaners, not testing on animals, production practices, etc.).

Another major aspect is disposables (wipes, paper towels, etc.) versus reusable materials (rags).

MrsBlindLove · January 2012

CDMay2006:
What do you have so far? Do you need more information about what you already plan to talk about, or more things to talk about? Who is your audience? What is the context? Time slot?
A lot of people use very basic cleaning supplies: white vinegar, water (liquid and in steam cleaners) and baking soda. To those you can add salt, dr. bronner's/other castile soap, essential oils, soap nuts, borax, lemon juice. There is also the option to use more conventional cleaners from companies with more EF practices/ingredients/packaging (this can range from buying in bulk, biodegradable cleaners, not testing on animals, production practices, etc.).
Another major aspect is disposables (wipes, paper towels, etc.) versus reusable materials (rags).

Thank you so much for the response and the questions.

So far I plan to talk about laundry detergent,liquid hand soap,homemade hand soap,homemade stain remover, homemade dish soap, dishwasher detergent. I would like to talk more about actual cleaners using the items you mentioned. I have found some great recipes online and plan to talk about them. I would love some points or suggestions with this.

My audience is women, mostly moms, ages 18-65 (most them will probably be 25-40). The topic of the night is "Cleanliness" so I will be talking about homemade/natural cleaning solutions, another woman will be talking about organization, and then there will be another woman who I am not sure what her topic will be. I have about 20-25 minutes.

Thank you for your suggestions I will definitely bring some of those points up. I have been reading through past posts and searching the internet and have found so much information like I said it's been a bit overwhelming.

jadeorchid21 · January 2012

One- I feel like I am not a pro at this but what the heck.

1) Vinegar is AMAZING!!!! Can clean so many surfaces

2) Crafty- making or combining your own cleaning products is better for the earth and cost efficient

3) Some of these companies have websites that will give free stuff and coupons. I ended up getting some great detergent by simply "like" method on fb.

4) Two words. . .green cleaners. The dry cleaners are chemically dangerous. You would have to hang your clothes outside for two weeks just to get all the bad chemicals out. Go to a green cleaner and they should take care of you.

that is all

WendyGR · January 2012

I would definitely emphasize the cost savings of using basic things like vinegar, lemons, baking soda for cleaning. Maybe make (or find) a chart that shows how you can replace a list of pricey non-green cleaners with basic, natural ingredients.