Miracle Cleaner - seriously !!!

I know what you are thinking. Yeah, right "miracle cleaner" ... another one, sure. Well, at least that is what I thought. But I was desperate. We live in an apartment and we are not allowed to have our own wash machine, so we have to use the one here in the building. May I say " it stinks " ? And that is putting it very nicely! It costs $ 1.50 per load however from when the water starts to fill in until the last spinning cycle is done takes 32 minutes. Now, can you tell just how the dirty, muddy laundry is supposed to come out clean???? Well, it doesn't! I have been buying the "expensive" detergents and adding Oxi Clean on top of the spray on stain removers with disappointing results. Now while the water runs into the machine, I keep pressing the heat setting button which then turns the time back to 32 min because if you just let it go it will take 5 min of your time just to fill the machine with water. Well, sorry, but with this being such a short cycle already, I can't afford to lose 5 min. So, those are my little 'tricks' to try to get our laundry clean.
The other day I was on - you guessed it - Pinterest and found this recipe for a 'miracle cleaner'.  I pinned it to my board, thinking that I may give this a try, maybe, someday.....   Then, my little guy went fishing with a friend, thank you Scott you made his day :)  Due to me not paying close enough attention, Jeremy escaped out of the house with a white t-shirt. When he came back a few hours later, he was very happy that him and his friend Scott had caught some fish, which they released again. Jeremy was all smiles and his face was glowing (it was really hot and he was kinda red and sweaty) and his formerly white shirt wasn't glowing so much. It was pretty dirty. In my experience, with these wash machines here, this was a lost cause. I little spot of mud didn't even come out of his short a while ago. No, this was a lost battle.....  Then I remembered the 'miracle cleaner'. I went to Pinterest, gathered and mixed the ingredients and gave it a try. I sprayed the shirt rather heavily and let it sit just like that for about 30 min ( I had just started a load of laundry, that's how I know that it was 30 min). Then I washed his shirt together with towels and socks and such on hot. I was very curious to see what would happen. When I got it out of the laundry it was - CLEAN !!!  I was so surprised and very happy. This is the reason why I have decided to write a whole blog post on that :)   I am guessing that there are a few mom's out there that could use a 'miracle cleaner' that actually works AND is cheap!
Now, for the recipe, I got it from Modern Day Moms

Ingredients for Miracle Cleaner:

1 part Dawn Dishwashing Liquid (the original blue kind)
2 parts Hydrogen Peroxide
Mix together and pour directly on the stain.

 Now that you know the secret ingredients to certain spot removal, I think it is time that I show you what it for my son's shirt.....

Before

After (what looks like dirt on the bottom, is actually just a shadow)

Before

After

 This is my new 'miracle stain remover' :)

Update: I have had some of the mixture left over, so I just put it away. When I looked later, the color has changed and now it is clear. When I first mixed it, it was blue. I haven't yet tried it again, but will do so with my daughters filthy shirt she brought back from camp. She wore it when she got pied - let's see how it holds up to that challenge ;-)  
Updated Update: Okay, Nina used the mix on her sweat shirt she got the pie on and it sat in her bags for about one week. Then we sprayed it with the now clear 'miracle cleaner' and it worked like a charm. Came out all clean!!!  I am so happy :)                                                                         

Gluten - Free Taco Pie

I have told you about Pinterest, so now it is time to talk about what I have done there and what the results are.
Well, let's start with food :) That's always good, right?  I made taco pie on Sunday because we have had crock-pot food a few days in a row and I wanted a change of pace. However, the temperature is supposed to be in the 90's, 91 to 99 F or 33 to 37 C, all week. I sense another crock - pot week coming on .... did I tell you that I found this one site on Pinterest with crock-pot recipes for a whole year without any repeats? Oh, I digress, sorry, yeah, the taco pie - also from pinterest ;-)

It was very easy to make and quick, which is always a plus, because everyone is hungry when we come home from church. I had planned to stop by the Health Food Store and see if they have the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Bisquick mix because I wanted to use that instead of the regular wheat version. But the car was overheating very fast and very much and so the logical choice was to go home asap. I found a recipe for homemade gluten free bisquick mix, which is probably cheaper. Well, at least if you have the different flours at home, which you very well might if you live gluten free.

So, without further ado, here is the picture......

Impossibly Easy Taco Pie

It's very easy, click here for the recipe for the taco pie and here for the recipe for the gluten free flour. I put the bisquick mix in a mason jar and store it in the refrigerator - oh, yes, I almost forgot. I didn't have shortening so I used coconut oil, which I feel is healthier anyway, you could probably also use olive oil or whatever you have on hand.

This was so delicious, that we had almost all gobbled up before I remembered to take a picture. Now, our picture isn't that pretty because we didn't put tomatoes on the pie while it was in the oven, I just added tomatoes and lettuce and sour cream on side on our plates. So, here is our picture of the left overs ;-)

Some Reviews...

A few months ago I was looking around the web for some recipes to make my own cleaning supplies. I came across Not A Cool Mom aka Elizabeth's Kind Cafe Blog, you can watch her videos on how to make all of this. She has some really good cleaning recipes. I have tried some of them and I thought I tell you what I think about them, after trying them for a while. I have tried the Dishwasher soap, the soap for hand washing dishes, Bathroom cleaner and the Al lpurpose cleaner.
So, here is the dish soap...

DISH SOAP RECIPE

2 cups liquid castille soap (I like Dr. Bronner’s)
1/2 cup water                                                                         
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
5 drops Essential oil (Lemon, Pine or Lavender work well)
1/2 cup white vinegar


Put all of the ingredients in an empty squirt bottle and shake. Done!

I used all of the dish soap that I made. I was not that pleased with it. It always seems to feel a little greasy and the lavender smell was at first almost not noticeable. However it seemed to become a little stronger over time. While it cleaned the dishes, I didn't really like the feel of it and I had use quite a bit of it. My personal conclusion is that I would buy dish soap again but keep the recipe for emergencies, for example when I - again - forget to buy the commercial one :)


I also made the Shower Cleaner. I use for everything not only the bathroom. It is more like liquid scrubbing powder, so be careful where you use it, I imagine it would scratch up your granite countertops. Here is the recipe......



Shower Cleaner
1 Cup Baking Soda
1/3 Cup Borax
½ Cup Liquid Soap (Dr. Bronners)
2 Tbls Distilled Vinegar
1 Cup Warm Water
4 Drops Lavender, Pine or Lemon Oil
1 Squeeze Bottle, 32 oz – She is using a spray bottle in the video, but that doesn't really work because the liquid is way to thick.

I have heated the water in a pot on the stove and added the baking soda and borax into it and stirred until it was dissolved. I was hoping that it would then come out the spray bottle, but it didn't. So I don't know if you really have to heat the water in order dissolve everything. It may be enough to just use hot tap water. You add all ingredients together and shake. It will bubble up quite a bit, so you may want to do that over your sink ;-)

Shake before each use!!! This is obviously not a 32 oz. bottle but I didn't have one at hand and so had to divide the liquid.

My experience with it? Great! It cleanse very well, though you have to add a little bit of vigor to it. I like that I can add any smell I like. Right now I am using Lavender oil for everything, I really like it. I will continue to use this and not buy any commercial cleaner. It get the tub, the sink and toilet clean. Though I still use commercial stuff for the inside of the toilet.


My next exeriment was making All Purpose Cleaner. I had to buy a large spray bottle and wrote the instruction on it. Even though I used  a permanent marker, it did not stay on but that's okay. So here it is....

All Purpose Cleaner
1 Teaspoon Washing Soda
1 teaspoon Borax
½ Teaspoon Castile Soap
2 Cups Hot Water
10 Drops Essential Oil(Lemon, Lavender and Pine work well for this one).

Shake well before use! This is a great cleaning product! It cleans even better than store bought all purpose cleaner. I cleaned my kitchen with it and it worked wonderful. I really like it and will continue to use it. Making it takes only a few minutes and since you use all the same ingredients for all of this stuff, you have everything you need :-)


This is what Elizabeth wrote on her website and I would like to pass it on, because it is noteworthy.....

A few things to keep in mind when working with homemade cleaning products…….
1)  Residue – The first few times you use home cleaning products (especially window cleaner) you may notice some residue. There are two reasons for this. First, there is build-up from your previous cleaner that becomes visible. Second, homemade cleaners require a little extra elbow grease. You will have to work that sponge or rag (hopefully not paper towel) a little more, but it’s worth it.
2) Essential Oils – Although they are natural, they can be quite potent, so make sure to wear gloves when working with Lavender and Tea Tree Oil.


The last thing I would like to share with you is the powder for the dishwasher. I don't think I have that from Elizabeth's site, but I also don't remember where I got the recipe from.

Dishwashing Detergent

1/2 cup washing Soda

1/2 cup Borax                                    
1/4 Salt
Vinegar
1 Jar



Put the Soda, Borax and Salt in the jar. Close the lid tight and shake until it is all mixed well. In your dishwasher is a little compartment where the the blue rinsing agent usually goes, FILL THAT WITH VINEGAR! If you don't use the vinegar, you will not get pleasing results. I just added the vinegar to whatever I had left in that little compartment. Use 1 tablespoon. Note: When I used 2 tablespoons the dishes had a film on them and I had to rinse twice. You may have to play with the amount according to how hard or soft your water is and your dishwasher.
My experience: This is a keeper!!! I really, really like this. I have used this for the last two or three months and I don't want to go back to the commercial stuff. Especially if you read the label and see that they actually put toxins in there, which may not rinse off completely. This works really well, gets the dishes clean, is fast to make and cheap. Just don't forget the vinegar !


These are my the green cleaning supplies I have tried. I am going to try out more, but for now, why don't you give it a try. It is fun and cheap and once you have borax, washing soda and castile soap, you have everything you need and make all of this. Oh yes, I forgot the essential oil. Give it a try and let me know what you think :D

Beauty products

One night, quite a while ago, I was getting ready to go to bed. When I reached to grab my face wash it was just about empty. So I made a mental note to buy new face wash the next day. After the washing took place I needed to put cream on because my skin is very dry here, especially in the winter. To my utter dismay I saw that my face cream was empty - rats. Then I remembered that heard some talk about using just a little coconut oil. After checking the cupboards I found it! I opened the lid and was pretty reluctant - just a few hours before I had used this same coconut oil to fry my pork chops and now I am supposed to smear this in my face???? Okay then......I got over it and tried on my face. Just a little bit, after all I didn't want to look like my pork chop. The next day I forgot to buy all my face stuff and so I used the coconut oil again. To my surprise my skin started to feel really soft! 
When I finally remembered to buy all my face stuff I was quite surprised. Just when did all this stuff got so expensive? Well, okay maybe I don't need to buy the face cream - I still have more than enough coconut oil.... I ended up not buying any face stuff, instead I went home and did some things on the computer. I remembered Sheri's Blog and so I went over there and saw the recipe for homemade facial wash. I have tried it for at least 6 months now and must say it is great! It really cleanses the skin without overdrying it and there are none of the harsh chemicals or ingredients I can't even pronounce. I know what is in it  :D


I have now put the face wash in an empty, clean hand soap bottle. I use one squirt and massage it into my skin. Make up on and all, I even wipe it gently over my eyes. It takes the mascara right off. Then I take a wash cloth and really hot tap water. Well, at least as hot as I can take it. Then I get the wash cloth wet, wring it out and lay it on my face. I do this about six or more times. The final time I wipe the rest of the face wash of and dry my face. Then I put a little coconut oil on and viola` I am done! 


Give it a try, it makes the skin look and feel really good!


Here is what you need:


1 Tbl Castor Oil

4 Tbl Sunflower Oil        







Now you just have combine the two and you are ready to use your freshly made facial wash. 

 

Now the oils can go back into the fridge and face wash can go onto the bathroom shelf.

 

 Here is face wash and my face 'cream' aka coconut oil. I hope to find a smaller tub for it.