S/O Making Cleaning Products

Xstatic3333 · January 2016

There was an interesting local news story in RI this week that an all-natural cleaning and body products MLM (Ava Anderson) is closing/rebranding. It turns out that one of their manufacturers was actually lying about the ingredients they were using. We didn't use this company much-it was ridiculously expensive-but we do try to go low-chemical and often buy brands like Mrs. Meyers and Seventh Generation. A little bit of searching, however, reveals that many of these products are not nearly as natural as they seem. Truly natural cleaning and body products are often stupid expensive and hard to find.

This got me thinking about making my own products. H is against it; he actually said the "I like the feeling of using a bottle of cleaning supplies that will magically make everything clean." Marketing has worked well with that one! Still, I feel like if I just do it he'll use what I provide. If you make your own cleaning products, how has your experience been? Any tips, tricks, or favorite resources? @AprilZ81, I won't make you repeat your informative post from the budget thread, but I thought this might be an interesting discussion topic.

I'm looking at starting with hard surface cleaner, and maybe using essential oils for scent so that H gets that fresh and clean feeling he is seeking. I'd love to build from there, though, and make as much ourselves as we can.

AprilZ81 · January 2016

Laundry Detergent is the only cleaning solution I've made so far and I've replaced fabric softener with vinegar. I added orange essential oil to the detergent but by the time the clothes come out of the washer I don't smell it any more so I probably won't do that with the next batch. I've started using wool balls to help dry the clothes faster and I add in balls of aluminum foil to help with static (these can be reused). I added a few drops of essential oils to the wool balls and that gave the clothes a hint of smell but you need to be careful not to use too much so you don't get oil spots on your clothes. Also, Borax is a common ingredient in homemade degergents and you will want to do some research on it before you go that route. I read some bad things about it.

Here is the recipe I used: http://www.dwellinginhappiness.com/chemical-free-liquid-laundry-detergent/

I only mixed up half and used unscented Dr. Bronners and used orange essential oil for scent. It took me maybe 10 minutes to mix up and that is because I had trouble getting everything to dissolve. After it sits for awhile it can start to separate so give it a quick stir before you dip some out to use it.

This isn't a cleaning recipe, but I've been making my own sugar scrub for a few years now and it is great! 1 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of melted coconut oil and essential oils for scent. Right now I'm using a citrus blend of orange and lemon that makes me want to eat it! This is great on my skin in the winter. The sugar helps scrub off the dead skin and the coconut oil helps moisturize. I do this before I shave and my legs feel SO SMOOTH when I'm done!

Yesterday I also made body butter. Again, I get really dry skin (especially my hands) in the winter and I'm trying to cut down on the chemicals I use.

Here is the recipe I used: https://hensandhoney.wordpress.com/2014/01/12/how-to-make-luxurious-body-butter-with-just-three-ingredients/

I bought the shea butter (be sure to get organic and unrefined for the best results) and almond oil on Amazon but I think World Market carries them both but the price is a little higher. I did a combination of Lavender and Lemon essential oils and that helps with the "nutty" smell that the shea butter has.

My next project is to do my own face/body wash. I have the ingredients on hand already, I just need to get a good pump bottle. My friend did a similar recipe recently and she loves it and recommends a foaming soap pump because it is so watery.

http://www.adornedfromabove.com/2012/05/1st-adorned-from-above-blog-hop-and.html?m=1

I NEVER thought I would enjoy making this kind of stuff. I was never overly concerned with chemicals or additives because "we all die sometime". It started out as a cost saving measure because once you have the ingredients on hand you can make more as you need it without another cash outlay.

Now I like it because it is a fun project for me to do and most of these don't take very much time at all. I get to pick my scent (or I can do unscented) and I know exactly what is going into these products that I'm going to put on my body.

I've also started diffusing essential oils as air freshener (not for any medical benefits). I love scented candles and the reports I'm hearing about the ingredients is kind of scary. I've stopped buying candles and I'm trying to decide if I should sell the ones I have that I've not burned or keep them on hand to burn every now and then.

Xstatic3333 · January 2016

Thanks! These are great ideas. The laundry soap seems easy and really affordable. I think I'll give it a go. I've heard some scary stuff about candles, too. I'd like to get an EO diffuser (not for the medical benefits either-a lot of those claims seem bonkers to me) but just can never pull the plug on the purchase.

brij2006 · January 2016

I've made quite a few homemade cleaners:

Laundry soap

Windex (lemon scented ammonia and water)

Hand soap

All-purpose cleaner

Hardwood floor cleaner (didn't care for it though, prefer Bona instead)

There's a ton more I know that I'm not thinking about.

A few things I found:

Never found a hand soap that worked well in a pump. It always separated and our house is stupid cold so it would harden up in the dispenser and be a pain. For as much of a hassle it was, I spend $4 on the huge refill container of handsoap and just refill the dispensers.

Hardwood floor cleaner absolutely sucked! It had too much water to it so it would leave a bad film on our floors and I would need to re-clean often. Actually ended up tossing what I had mixed up and bought the Bona cleaner.

LOVE homemade Windex. It's very simple, but it does smell like ammonia. I use the lemon scented ammonia to help that a bit. You could also add some essential oils if you want to try and help the smell. But I love that it doesn't streak the windows at all. Then I use old newspapers I grab from MIL, to dry them with. Only downfall to that, I've found that over time our white trimmed windows get some black marks on them from the newspaper print.

I use orange essential oils to give some scent to things.

However, I haven't made much of this stuff since DD was born. My time is very limited.

CuriousKiddosMama · January 2016

One of the things that I've started doing was to get rid of all commercial fabric softeners or dryer sheets. I bought a set of wool felted dryer balls (they soften the fabric while bouncing through the dryer, and decrease your drying time, so double bonus). I've since made another set and am going to make these for Christmas this year for family. For the fragrance part, I use essential oils (clear or light) and they make the clothes smell pretty. I've been doing this for just a couple months now and haven't noticed a difference between the chemicals and the natural.

short+sassy · January 2016

I'm glad this post came up. I keep telling myself I should really start making my own laundry detergent, though primarily for the savings.

The very first tenants I ever had, on their move-in date, brought me a gift of homemade laundry detergent. It was so sweet! And surprising. I mean, who brings their new landlady a gift? They told me it was easy to make and so much better for the environment. So they also offered that, as long as I brought the container back to them, they'd be happy to give me a refill whenever I needed it. And I did! It was great. I thought the homemade detergent worked just fine. (Sigh) they were awesome people. I miss them.

Thanks for the recipe, @AprilZ81.

For windows and mirrors, I refuse to use Windex. I find it pointless because it is so streaky. Most people find this surprising, but purified water works perfectly for cleaning windows/mirrors. It cleans well and leaves no streaks. I have a whole house water filtration system but, before that, I would just buy a 1 gallon jug of drinking water for like a buck and use that.

AprilZ81 · January 2016

short+sassy said:

I'm glad this post came up. I keep telling myself I should really start making my own laundry detergent, though primarily for the savings.
The very first tenants I ever had, on their move-in date, brought me a gift of homemade laundry detergent. It was so sweet! And surprising. I mean, who brings their new landlady a gift? They told me it was easy to make and so much better for the environment. So they also offered that, as long as I brought the container back to them, they'd be happy to give me a refill whenever I needed it. And I did! It was great. I thought the homemade detergent worked just fine. (Sigh) they were awesome people. I miss them.
Thanks for the recipe, @AprilZ81.
For windows and mirrors, I refuse to use Windex. I find it pointless because it is so streaky. Most people find this surprising, but purified water works perfectly for cleaning windows/mirrors. It cleans well and leaves no streaks. I have a whole house water filtration system but, before that, I would just buy a 1 gallon jug of drinking water for like a buck and use that.

I didn't know that about purified water cleaning glass well! I'll have to give that a try.

dragonstarjk · January 2016

I haven't made my own cleaning/personal care products, but I do purchase natural/organic hypoallergenic everything, out of necessity. My skin is extremely sensitive to fragrance, dyes, chemicals....everything really. To clean my rugs and hardwood floors, I just use white vinegar/warm water; it works great, and if you keep the ratio balanced it won't smell too vinegary. After reading this thread, I'm thinking about adding some lemon essential oils to the mix next time.

You are correct, though--truly natural products ARE really expensive and hard to find. I order a lot of items from Amazon because they have a pretty good selection of hard to find items. I also purchase some things from my dermatologist's office.

The only laundry soap I have ever used without having a skin reaction is All Free & Clear, so I'll keep using that forever even if its full of bad stuff, lol.

lbonga1 · January 2016

I like using Method products because I like how they smell. I'm not sure if they're actually as natural as they claim. I've found a half vinegar, half water solution works pretty well as a stain remover for carpet. I also use wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets, and I'll sometimes put a couple drops of essential oil on them before I toss them in. Lavender is my FI's favorite.

omgladypirate · January 2016

Branch Basics is awesome! Haven't had much success with window cleaner, but I use it to make everything else (floor cleaner, hand soap, laundry soap, multipurpose cleaner). For tubs/showers, I like vinegar and Dawn dish soap.

S/O Making Cleaning Products

Re: S/O Making Cleaning Products

Choose Another Board

Search Boards