FRESHEN UP SILK FLOWERS
I love silk flowers and have quite a few vases of them in my home I cannot be bothered to fill 4-6 vases in my home weekly with fresh flowers that eventually die and have to be cleaned out. Hassle much? I love fresh flowers don’t get me wrong but I love silk flowers too. So my trick? I use linen spray to spritz them to leave them smelling super fresh. In saying all this invest in good silk flowers. Pay the extra money. Cheap flowers look terrible and think of how much money you are saving in the long run. I use the Organic Choice linen spray from Woolworths ($5) www.woolworths.com.au
KEEP YOUR RUBBISH BIN ODOURLESS
Whenever I put new bin bags in a sprinkle some bi-carb soda in to conceal any bin smells. My bins are in a drawer so I also leave a small tub in the drawer as well. Works amazingly! I also just recently discovered "Bin Buddy" and I am obsessed it isn't natural and chemical free but works amazingly! I have also just recently discovered Bin Buddy ($9.95) and love it. It isn't natural but works amazing. Its nice sometimes to mix things up. www.woolworth.com.au
CLEANING A SMELLY DRAIN (chemical free)
I have a system to clean a smelly drain I can’t stand a smelly drain it is one of my pet hates! Again I use one of my cleaning BFF’S bi-carb soda! I do this once a week that way I avoid odour build up. If need be I will do it more often just depends on what I cook etc.
What You Will Need:
o 1 Cup of Bi-carb Soda
o ½ Cup of White Vinegar
o 1 tbs Citric Acid
o Boiling Water
o 1 Cup of Lemon Juice
1. Place 1 cup of bi-carb soda and 1 tbs of citric acid into the drain and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
2. Pour ½ of white vinegar down, it will fizzle, how fun! Followed by 1 cup of lemon juice (optional) Let it sit for 15-20 minutes. The fizzing will eventually stop.
3. Finally boil the kettle and pour boiling water down the drain and you are done!
CLEANING YOUR SINK
Who doesn’t love a shiny sink? Again everyone’s sinks are made from different materials so please check before you use my methods, as they may not be suitable for what you have.
What You Will Need:
o Dish Washing Liquid
o 1 cup of White Vinegar
o A Dish Brush
o Lemon Peel
o Paper Towel
o Bi-carb Soda
1. First empty your sink of any food or scraps
2. Sprinkle the sink with bi-carb soda
3. Use your Dish brush and give the sink a good scrub, go around all the edges etc (no water)
4. Then add 1 cup of white vinegar (it will bubble and fizz) give it another good scrub!
5. Plug the sink and pour dish washing liquid into the sink (a generous amount) I use the brand Organic Choice or Earth
6. Then boil the kettle and pour two lots of water into the drain.
7. While the kettle is boiling a second time use the dish brush and give the sink and tap handle a good scrub.
8. Pour your second lot of water in and let it sit for 1 hour.
9. After you have let it sit and washed away all the suds use a lemon peel to wipe the entire sink to leave it smelling fresh, leave for 5 minutes
10. Finally use some paper towel to wipe it down and done!
Tip: I do this at nighttime when the kids are asleep so no one will be using the sink.
FRESHEN UP YOUR MATTRESS
I bet your guessing what I use? That’s right my cleaning BFF, bi-carb soda! It really is magic works so well so cheap and chemical free. Does it get better? So here is what I do. I don’t do this often as I would like as I am time poor but sometimes your mattress really needs a freshen up. I use the bi-carb in the container with the sprinkle option (below) and sprinkle the entire mattress with it. Let it sit for 4 hours so it works its magic eliminating any odours. Then vacuum up and done! It is literally that easy and simple.
CLEANING LAMPSHADES
This is something that I discovered one day when I was cleaning the lint off a coat and spotted a huge gross built up of dust on my bedside table lamp shade. SO I thought why not? I began using the lint brush to clean the shade and it worked amazing! As an asthmatic dust a a big no no for me!
ELIMINATING SHOE ODOURS
So bi-carb works amazingly to absorb smelly bin odours. So why not use it on smelly shoes? There is no need to buy fancy foot odour sprays when you own bi-carb! Just sprinkle some in your shoes and keep it there until you wear them next. Either tap it out into the bin or use a handheld vacuum.
EUCALYPTUS SMELLING DRYER BALLS
I prefer not to use dryer sheets as they aren't ideal for asthma or eczema and do have lots of nasties. So I buy dryer balls and add a fresh drops of eucalyptus oil. My laundry really does come out smelling super fresh and static free! I purchased mine from The Clean Collective www.thecleancollective.com I have also started using the Koh lavender & lemon essential oils to fragrance my dryer balls. www.koh.com
CLEANING YOUR SLIDING DOOR TRACKS
I was so excited when I discovered this. I was doing my usual nightly online product browse and came across this track-buster brush from Bunnings. The next day it was mine for an insane price of ($4.95) It is amazing for cleaning window and door tracks, corners and crevices. I usually brush the gunk into a pile then hoover it up! www.bunnings.com.au
NAPI SAN ALTERNATIVE
Lately I have been doing sooo much experimenting with bi-carb soda. I am amazed by the countless cleaning options it has to offer. Just by adding 1 cup of bi-carb soda to your load will leave both colours and whites brighter! Use in conjunction with your regularly washing liquid.
REMOVING CARPET & RUG ODOURS
I have previously mentioned a few carpet cleaning products I use for cleaning/sanitising my rugs and carpets. However if your looking for a more natural chemical free approach. Sprinkle a generous amount of bi-carb soda all over your rug (I recommend the bi-carb in the container displayed below with the sprinkle option) Leave for 15 to 25 minutes then vacuum it up! It works really well for eliminating odours.
WHITE MAGIC ERASERS
These are magic, literally! As a mum they come in great when your child decides to create .a Picasso on your wall or kitchen bench. I haven't found a mark or stain they cant handle and believe me when I say, there has been black texta all over our walls at one point. They are amazing for so many other things, not just removing crayons. They remove stubborn stains just by adding water and are chemical free. Perfect for cleaning toilets, bath tubs, kitchen counters, tea stains etc
CLEANING WOODEN CHOPPING BOARDS
I love a nice clean chopping board. I recently had an incident of mould build up in my chopping board drawer and through the lot out. As a busy mum I do things too quick sometimes and was putting my chopping boards back in the drawer without drying them properly, hence the mould. But a great way to give them a good clean is super simple lemon & salt. Cut a lemon in half and squeeze it all over the board. Then sprinkle the board with a rough form of salt (I use SAXA cooking salt) scrub it into the board using the lemon half. I usually leave it for a few minutes then rinse it with warm water and give it a good dry.