Green Cleaning Tutorial

I'm really passionate about the environment (if you haven't already gotten that hint). I do my best to use earth-friendly practices in my housework routines. Alot of people think that "clean" means bleached and lemon-scented. In reality, having that "clean" smell can actually be dangerous. According to the EPA (yes, I frequent their site. Nerd.) the air inside an average home is five times as polluted than the air outside. A big culprit: toxic cleansers and disinfectants.

Now, I admit that I'm a sucker for Febreze, especially this time of year. Having a home that smells like apples and cinnamon or pumpkin pie is nirvana to me. I do try to balance to balance my spritzing habit with soy based scented candles. And obviously, if you have a sickness going through your home, a child who is high-risk for infection, or another need for disinfecting I won't give you the stink eye for spraying some lysol on the doorknobs. Just know that there are almost always other options, especially in our more eco-concious consumer world, to the typical harsh cleansers available. Like this, this, or this, which can all be found in most retailers today.

Okay, let me step down from my soapbox and get to the real point of my blog.

Did you know that you can thoroughly clean your sink and drain with items you probably already have on hand?

You may not buy big quantities like I do, but together these cost about $3.

It's easy, effective, and safe. Let me show you....

Start out with a dirty sink. Get as much gunk into the drain and run the disposable to clear it all out.

Sprinkle in some baking soda. No measuring, just eyeball it.

You don't need near this much, I got a little happy because I was trying to take pics at the same time.
Half of this amount would be plenty.

Using a wet sponge (or whatever you like) thoroughly scour the sink. You can add more water to make a nice paste to work with. You won't have to use much elbow grease; baking soda is a natural and gentle abrasive.

Once the basin is scrubbed well move most of the baking soda into the drain. Make sure to get all the nooks and crannies here, then push everything down into the pipe.

Now it's time for Mr. Vinegar. Pour the vinegar all around the basin and into the drain. Again, just eyeball it.

Everything will bubble up, natural scrubbing bubbles! Scrub a little more with the bubbles.

Once the bubbling action has ceased rinse everything with hot water.

You have a clean and healthy sink!

You can use these same ingredients all over your house. I know you may be thinking "I don't want my kitchen to smell like vinegar!", but don't worry, it won't. Baking soda and vinegar are both natural odor eliminators. So while it may have a pungent smell for a minute, in the end it actually neutralizes odors unlike chemicals that just mask them. Vinegar is also a mild disinfectant; it won't kill every germ, but it will do a pretty satisfactory job. I usually do this two to three times a week, however you could do it as often as you see fit. There is no need for gloves or open windows. It's even safe enough for kiddos to do (with supervision, of course) and they would get a kick out of the bubbling action.

So strive to be a green cleaner this week. It's healthier for you, the planet, and your wallet :)

Until next time,
Barbie

Free art!

Hooray, I'm blogging! *virtual pat on back*

I'm always trying to think of ways to reuse "trash" and turn it into something beautiful. Well, do you remember the canvas I found while dumpster diving awhile ago? It was a print of a cafe scene, not horrid, but not my style. Well I tranformed it into artwork for our bedroom!

Materials used:

- Canvas, DD find (free)
- Mod Podge (on hand)
- Old packing paper (on hand)
- Several toilet paper tubes (on hand and free)
- Acryilic paint (on hand)

Total cost: FREE!

It was pretty simple to do. I tore up pieces of the packing paper and used Mod Podge to cover the canvas. Then I flattened out the toilet paper tubes and painted them different colors to coordinate with my bedroom decor. You could also paint the inside if you really wanted to, but I like the two-tone effect, plus the brown was already used in the room some. Let paint dry, then cut the tubes (I think I cut each one into five or six pieces). I played around with the placement of all the pieces until I had a design I liked. I filled a little dish with a layer of Mod Podge, dipped one side of a TP piece in, then pressed it onto the canvas, holding until it stuck well. I painted the outside edge of the canvas black, just to make it a little cleaner.

I can't take credit for the whole idea, I was inspired by this.

I love how it turned out. Now I just need to make some art for above the bed. I have some ideas, but suggestions are welcome!

snore.....

P.S. - The bedroom isn't always this clean ;)

I'm here, I promise.

I received a Facebook message at the beginning of the month.  I won't say who it's from, but this is what it said:

"When are you going to update your blog? I love reading about the things you find. You have inspired us to go out and do it as a family. My 4 year old has found himself a cars step stool and match box cars. I picked up my husband a like new golf bag the other day (he was thrilled). Anyways just wanted to say thanks!! "

When I read this I felt so blessed to have inspired someone with my crazy hippie shenanigans, but at the same time I felt guilty because I'm letting people down now. So let me give a brief explanation to my recent (and hopefully soon to be ended) absence.

I'm alive, I swear. Within the past couple weeks my life has gone from simple to EXTREMELY busy. Within one week I started two college classes, got a job working weekends at my favorite place, and my husband broke his foot. The next week I was offered a job teaching dance at the local youth center and was asked to volunteer my choreography services to a local youth cheerleading squad. That means that Mondays are the only evenings I am home.  Cherry on top: I'm running a 5k on the 26th (I may not be alive after that).

I think several times a day about blogging, I have sooo many ideas in my head just waiting to hit the web. Whenever a spare second comes around though, I notice how messy the house is or I'm just too exhausted to even keep my eyes open.

Don't get me wrong though, everything that has come into my life recently (besides hubby's broken foot) has been wonderful, I'm just still trying to figure out how to balance everything since my life has been so low-key for so long. I have a good chunk of time free tomorrow morning, so I will do my best to get SOMETHING up. Thanks for your patience and encouragement, it is greatly appreciated!

Again soon,
Barbie

PS. I recently had a conversation with my good friend Elisabeth about how we hate blog posts without pictures, they are so boring. So here is a picture :)

I want to lounge under this tree with apple cider and a good book.