May Mini-Challenge: Homemade Cleaners

We have slowly been transitioning our cleaners over from store bought to homemade, and many of you darling friends have been asking for an update!

So, given the monthly challenge of getting our home to sparkle for spring, I decided to try a couple more homemade cleaners and whip up some nifty labels too.  Some of these cleaners we have been using for awhile now, and others are newer to us but seem to be promising after a use or two.

I purchased the book the Naturally Clean Home awhile back, and also scoured Pinterest and the www for other green homemade cleaner recipes, so that I could use many of the items I had on hand and keep it as basic as possible.

I love the recipes in the book because they are easy to follow and most cleaning tasks have a variety homemade options to select from.  I am most excited to use it for tasks like cleaning the oven and treating carpet stains, as I find those are the green products I struggle finding in stores and also tend to be the most toxic.

However, the book really emphasizes on oils and a few products that I didn't have on hand, so a little Googling and Pinterest hunting and I found some other simple solutions for homemade cleaners as well.

What I love is that when I make my own cleaners, I know the ingredients, and many of them only took two to four total.  So, I started with a few basic items to make a boatload of cleaning products.

Here are the items I found to be the most useful:

• Washing Soda
• Borax 
• Baking Soda
• Vinegar
• Dish Soap
• Essential Oils
• Lemon/Lemon Juice
• Pure Castile Soap
• Fels-Naptha Bar Soap
• Measuring cups/spoons

Because I know it will get mentioned, I did select to use Borax.  Some believe it to be toxic, but it is also known as being a very effective all natural cleaner and is referenced in majority of green cleaning recipes.  I selected to use it within my laundry detergent, as we have hard water and it battles the hard water within the wash.  There are all sorts of sites that get into the debates of the safeness of Borax, I specifically enjoyed this read on the subject.

Also, vinegar.  Stinky stinky stinky.  The smell does go away fairly quickly, however, the initial shock of it can be strong.  The answer?  These lovely helpers!

I found that a few drops of essential oils within the cleaners and the vinegar smell was no more.  In fact, the cleaner smells quite nice, I am a fan.

Over the course of the years, I would hoard my cleaning bottles.  I knew they would come in useful someday in making my own cleaners.  Using the items above, I made all of these cleaners below...

Shown above:

Laundry Detergent - 1 cup soap flakes {I used Fels-Naptha}, 1 cup washing soda, 1 cup borax {I use two tablespoons per load and have found it to be better to place right within the washer vs. the dispenser}

Fabric Softener - 2 cups of vinegar, 10 drops of Lavender oil

Scouring Scrub - 1 cup baking soda, 2 tsp cream of tartar, 1/2 cup borax, 1/4 cup grated citrus peel

Just Water - I use this to activate some of the cleaners, and to clean our glass

All Purpose Cleaner - 1/2 tsp dish soap, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tbsp white vinegar, 2 cups water, 3 drops essential oil

Goo Gone - 1/3 cup coconut oil {melted} and 1/3 cup baking soda {thanks Ashley!}

Toilet Cleaner - 1/2 cup baking soda, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 10 drops essential oil {I mixed the vinegar and oil ahead of time, just sprinkle baking soda into the toilet bowl, add the vinegar/oil and scrub with toilet brush}

Wood Cleaner - 1/2 lemon juice, 1 tsp castile soap, 4 drops essential oil

Just Vinegar - I keep this on hand for making the cleaners and other random cleaning tasks

Floor Cleaner - 1/4 cup dish soap, 1/4 cup white vinegar, 1/4 cup lemon juice, 10 drops essential oil {add to bucket of hot water}


Many of the items I made double or triple batches, based on my bottle size.  You can download a PDF of the recipes here.

{download homemade cleaner recipes FREE here}

I keep a copy in our household binder to help me out when it comes time to whip up another batch.

I also made the labels because I am a bit of a label snob.  I printed them on clear Avery 22825 round labels and stuck them right to the bottles and jars.

And I am sharing those with you too!

{download homemade cleaner labels FREE here - please note that the preview of the labels is jumbled, however, once you click download they are correctly aligned.  I apologize for the glitchy technical confusion}

I think it is the little things, and pretty labels make cleaning just that much better.

As far as using the products, I have a few extra tools that make things easier.

The grout brush is used on the grout lines in our lower level bathroom and makes scrubbing the grout so much easier.  Sometimes I use the pink microfiber hand mitten duster for quick dust jobs {the kids think it is fun too!}, and when I am really wanting the wood furniture to shine, I stick to microfiber and pair it with the wood cleaner.  You can't go wrong with microfiber cloths, they are soft and really grab dust.  The part I love most is that when paired with water, they are cleaning machines {I use microfiber paired with water to wipe down our cabinets, doors, trim, walls, etc...}.  No chemicals and super easy.

I recently found a Scotch Brite glass combo pack of cloths at Target {can't seem to find them online}, and the pack consisted of a microfiber rag and a polishing rag.  You may have noticed that I didn't make a glass cleaner, and that is because I don't need one with these rags.  Simply spray water on the glass, wipe down with the microfiber cloth first, and follow behind it with the polishing rag.  My glass and windows have never looked better or cleaner, I was addicted the first time I used them {and I swear I am not being paid or swayed, just found a product that works wonders!}.

Here is my cleaning caddy all filled up with the homemade cleaning goodies:

The caddy was initially a utensil caddy from Target {here is a similar one they have this year}, and I added a decal to the side to jazz it up a bit.  I sort of heart it.  The caddy works great for going from room to room and also tucks nicely below the sink.

So why make your own cleaners?  The cost of the items to make homemade cleaners is quite low and even after they are combined, you can make such large batches of cleaners that will last far longer than the less concentrated store bought options.  They smell great and now that I have the bottles, it's as simple as taking a couple of minutes to mix up a new batch when I run low.  I also love that I know what I am cleaning with, and that the microfiber has allowed me to use just water when no disinfecting is necessary.  The biggest win seems to be with the laundry detergent, as I was spending around $16 per bottle in the past.  And although I was skeptical, they work!  The wood cleaner smells amazing and leaves wood looking great and also repels dust!  The glass has never shined brighter and our clothes and nice and clean.  Overall, we have been very happy with the transition.

How about you?  Any homemade cleaner fanatics?  Care to share your favorite recipe?

Psssst!  Just like organizing, our cleaning process is always evolving as well.  Check out my spring cleaning series to find updated recipes and tips!