all-purpose cleaner recipe

...It's a dreamy kind of morning
The day started with rain
and the rain continues
Moonpie is on the couch reading
Buddy is in his room quietly playing
and I'm dreaming of a spring garden...

in the meantime, I have a new cleaning recipe to share with you.  I usually am a vinegar and water kind of gal, but I threw caution to the wind this week and came up with something I rather like.  I hope you do too!


Herban Homestead All-purpose cleaner
(based on a recipe found in Green Clean by Hunter and Halpin)


2 C hot water
1 tsp borax
1 tbsp Dr. Bronner's castile soap
1/8 C white vinegar
5 drops rosemary essential oil (EO)
10 drops lemon EO
2 drops tea tree EO


using a funnel, pour into spray bottle


This cleaner has better surfactants than my typical vinegar and water.  And it smells great!

stove top shame

this is my horribly dirty stove. i am ashamed. i promised myself when we bought it that i would clean it daily and that it would always be as shiny clean as the day we took it out of the box. who was i kidding? have i ever met myself? anyway, i figured i could share my shame with the world and maybe offer some non-toxic cleaning tips while at it. so here goes:

1. sprinkle baking soda all over the stove- thicker on extra tough/greasy spots

2. spray the surface with a vinegar/water mix (my all-purpose cleaner is 3 parts vinegar to 1 part water, i use this)

3. let it sit

4. wipe off. this shot is the stove without any scrubbing.

i love to clean with vinegar and baking soda. they are my best cleaning friends (besides my daughter who does windows and my husband who does dishes)! i feel good when i can safely and confidently clean right alongside my children. it also allows me to include them in the cleaning efforts because i don't have to worry about the typical health concerns tied into cleaning with conventional products. it really hit home when i walked in the kitchen one day and buddy (at the time barely over a year) had gotten the vinegar/water mix off the counter and was in the act of sucking on the sprayer. i was so thankful that God taught me the lesson of being more careful with my supplies in a very gentle way! and for the vinegar wary, don't worry, the smell vanishes when it dries! if you don't clean naturally right now or are stumped for some recipes, let me know through the comments which specific ones you'd like to know. i'd be happy to share more!

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Hello Pinners!  Thanks for visiting my blog!  If you're interested in an updated version of my all purpose cleaner, check out {THIS POST}.