Non-toxic (and cute) Cleaning Supplies

Neither of us ever really put much thought into what we were using to clean our house until we had baby #1. Now that we're on baby #2, I'm the only one who doesn't put much thought into what we are using to clean our house. My wife, on the other hand, started experimenting with more kid-friendly cleaning supplies.

Her first love in this regard was the Method brand of cleaning products. Their products were non-toxic, seemed to work very well, and they smelled great (a big bonus for my wife). While I'm sure she's still a fan, she stopped buying method when she began experimenting with cleaning supplies you can prepare at home using simple and inexpensive ingredients. Oh, and then of course she wanted them to look pretty, so she made her own labels.

The laundry detergent is simply Borax (a self proclaimed "laundry booster"), washing soda (Arm & Hammer) and a Fels Naptha soap bar grated over a cheese grater. I believe she gets all of these in the laundry section of Wal-Mart.

The "recipes" for some of the other home-made products she uses the most are listed below.

All-purpose cleaner:

• 2 Cups hot water
• 1/2 Tbs Mrs. Meyer's All-Purpose Cleaner (not completely organic, but the ingredients are 98% naturally derived)
• 1 Tbs Borax

Carpet Cleaner: 

• 1 Tbs Borax
• 2/3 Cup warm water

Stain Remover:

• 1 Cup Hydrogen Peroxide
• 1 Tbs Dawn dish soap

Glass Cleaner: 

• 1 Cup water
• 1 Cup vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon Mrs. Meyer's 

The thing I admire about my wife with regard to this posting is that she has learned to take monotonous and undesirable tasks (aka, cleaning/laundry) and make it at least a little more positive. She gets satisfaction out of the fact that she's keeping our home environment a little safer, saving a little money, and being a little creative in the process.