Our family loves to make our own green and frugal products. We have been trying to eliminate the need for chemicals in our lives, and honestly many times it can be cheaper to make your own products! Here are a few of the products that we use and enjoy!
For tough surface stains (i.e. you spill something on the stovetop and it burns.)
- Mix vinegar and salt and scrub.
- Also, you can pour some baking soda and vinegar on a damp sponge. This cleans and deodorizes kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
Homemade Dishwasher Detergent:
- Go here for my homemade dishwasher detergent.
Laundry Softener:
- Use 1/2 cup vinegar in the washer as laundry softener.
To Clean The Oven:
- Sprinkle salt on stains while the oven is still warm. When the oven has cooled off, scrape off the stains.
- Use baking soda and vinegar on a cool stove.
- Mix one part water and one part vinegar together in a spray bottle. Spray on glass surfaces and wipe off.
- white vinegar
- powdered red chill pepper
- borax (this is poisonous, so use caution)
- paprika
- dried peppermint
- black pepper
Grease stains on clothing:
- Immediately pour salt on grease spots. This absorbs the grease to help prevent staining. (I am so glad I discovered this! I was forever ruining clothes with grease stains!)
Laundry and cloth starch:
- Get 2 cups of cold water and mix in 1 tablespoon of cornstarch in a spray bottle. I like to add a couple drops of lavender essential oil since it smells good, but this is just to add a scent. Shake well before each use.
- Check out my post here for homemade laundry detergent
Cheap & Easy DIY shampoos and conditioners:
- You can check out my post here for cheap & easy DIY shampoo and conditioner. I also have a video showing how I make shampoo here.
After shave:
- witch hazel
- diluted isopropyl alcohol
Deodorants:
- We have tried all sorts of deodorants that we have made. You can use baking soda, white clay or make your own with coconut oil and baking soda. But, my favorite is actually deodorant crystals. These are relatively cheap & require no effort at all! The cost was $6.99 at the time of this post, but they last for an entire year.
Toothpastes:
I have experimented with several different recipes. Here are a couple of my favorite:
Homemade Toothpaste 1:
- 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 Tablespoon baking soda
- 2 drops peppermint oil, or cinnamon oil
Homemade Toothpaste 2:
- 6 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/3 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons glycerin
- 15 drops peppermint
Just mix the toothpaste, store in a container with a lid and use. If you use the coconut oil version, make sure to use hot water to rinse what you spit out down the sink.
Mouthwash:
- Bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Turn off the stove. Add 1 handful of dried thyme. Allow to steep for 20 minutes. Strain out the thyme, and you have your mouthwash! I add a couple of drops of peppermint to help the flavor. Thyme has many antibacterial properties. I store this in the refrigerator, rather than in my bathroom.
Soap:
- I do make my own soap. However, that will require a really long post someday with instructions, so for now I will just suggest castille soap.
Perfumes:
- Use essential oils.
Homemade Face Mask, Homemade Face Scrub, Homemade Hand Softener, Homemade Hair Mask:
- Check out my post for Face Mask, Face Scrub, Toner, Hand Softener & Hair Mask easy DIY’s
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Wow, I had no idea there was so many purposes for the common items found in our homes. I hope to put some of these tips to use :)
Great ideas, Rene! Thanks! On my glass cooktop and to clean stains off of counters, sings, and tubs – I use Bon Ami. It is calcium carbonate – the stuff from which most antacids are made. It works quite well in removing build up and is eco-friendly!
haha…Sinks, not sings!
Thank you joining the Frugal Tuesday Tip this week — lots of information, I love that. And I homeschool, too! http://juliecache.com/2011/09/05/frugal-tuesday-tip-more-to-give-away/.html
Yay! I love to meet other homeschool moms! So glad that you stopped by!!
Hi Rene! :)
Great tips here! Would you mind stopping by MindBodyandSoleOnline(dot)com to share this blog on the Wildcrafting Wednesday blog carnival? I’m sure my readers would love this! :)
Thanks!
~ Kathy
i love making cleaners! thanks for a few new ideas!
Thanks so much for stopping by, Tami!
I used salt on my stove last night cleaning off a few burnt spots! Great list, going to bookmark! ( Found you on Thrifty Thursday!)
Hi Rene! Thanks for linking this up at my party last week! It was the top hit, so you’re being featured. Stop by and grab a featured button if you’d like. Have a great day!
Love this list! I wanted to give you another option for the ants. Sprinkle cinnamon where the ants are coming in and they won’t cross. Worked great for me, never had another ant and didn’t have to worry about my pets =)
Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks for some great recipes!
I just recently a few months ago started using vinegar and an old gift card(scrap with) to clean the showers.Plus, 2 weeks ago I started using homemade facial toner.I am really loving it!!
Great tips. Thank you so much for linking up to Bacon Time. I know my dentist has told me not to use baking soda on my teeth but it always works well. He says it will take off enamel it’s to abrasive, but then they put it in several toothpastes now a days.
Those are great ideas. I made our toothpaste for a while. I added xylitol (found in health food stores) and the kids’ dentist was impressed that I knew how good that was:)
I am going to try the mouthwash for sure.
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Hey there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading this post reminds me of my good old room mate! He always kept chatting about this. I will forward this write-up to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thank you for sharing!