Cleaning Your Home The Natural Way

 I have became overwhelmed by all the information about toxins in household cleaners. Determined to make healthy choices for my family and the environment, I am switching to natural cleaners. 

Here are some great homemade cleaning products.

ROOM DEODORIZER
Commercial deodorizers can be harmful to your health. The American Lung Association cites them as a contributing factor to the spike in asthma cases. The Canadian Lung Association labels air fresheners as a hazardous product. It's no wonder that people are learning how to freshen their homes the natural way. 

If you have an odor issue, first get rid of it. Sprinkle baking soda on your carpet, and leave it out overnight in dishes around the problem areas. Baking soda has an amazing ability to suck up odor. Once you're odor neutral, it's time to add some pleasant scents to the home. Many people still choose to make potpourri, while gelatin room deodorizers and reed diffusers are more modern solutions. For myself, I like this simple spray solution:

Baking Soda

Water

Essential oil

Combine 4 cups of hot water with 1/4 cup baking soda and mix well. Add real lemon juice or your favorite essential oil. I like to alternate between lavender and grapefruit. When choosing oils, make sure you select pure essential oils, and not synthetic ones.

The options are endless. Natural cleaning solutions that can be made easily and inexpensively are becoming more popular. People are eagerly abandoning commercial cleaners and sharing their homemade secrets. Here are a few more tips I've gathered from friends. Share yours in the comments.

ALL-PURPOSE CLEANER

Ingredients

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons borax 

4-5 drop orange or lemon essential oil (citrus cuts grease) 

2 cups hot water

Combine all ingredients into a spray bottle and shake well. If you need a little extra cleaning action, replace the baking soda with washing soda. Washing soda is twice as strong as baking soda. It's recommended that you wear gloves and a mask when cleaning with washing soda, but don't worry, it still passes the natural ingredient test, and will cut through your toughest dirt and grime.

SINK CLEANER
This sink cleaner is so simple you can whip up a paste for each use. 

3 tsp Lemon juice
3 tbs Cream of Tartar (you'll find it in the spice isle)

Combine the lemon juice and cream or tartar to make a paste. The proportions don't need to be exact, but the paste should be smooth and thick. Simply scrub it in gently and thoroughly then rinse it off to uncover your clean sink. 


OVEN CLEANER
Chemical oven cleaner is one if the harshest household solutions, one many of us would happily avoid. This organic solution is a great alternative, but it still requires that you practice some precaution; see theoven cleaner instructions for some other important tips

.

1/2 cup of salt
1/2 cup of baking soda
1/2 cup of water
1/4 cup of vinegar

Mix the ingredients together forming a thick paste. Cover any holes or openings with tin foil. Apply the mixture to the bottom and side walls of the oven. Leave overnight. Combine 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup vinegar in a spray bottle. Use this solution to wash off the paste.

TOILET BOWL CLEANER

Chemical based bathroom cleaners are the hardest to part with. Somehow we feel like cleaning the bathroom needs to induce a toxic headache or it's not really working. Trying out recipes like this one fornatural toilet bowl cleaner is a great way to see just how well homemade solutions really clean. 

2 tbs baking soda
1 tbs olive oil
3-4 drops essential oil (optional)

Pour the baking soda and olive oil into your toilet bowl and scrub it with a toilet brush. Add in a few drops of scented oil as a deodorizer. 

WINDOW CLEANER

With six homemade window cleaners, Tip Nut has you covered. Their cleaners range from your standard vinegar solution to some more creative black tea concoctions, and I've had the most luck with this simple recipe:

1 gallon water
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tbs lemon juice
Approx. 1 tbs dish detergent (liquid)

Mix all ingredients together and store in a container, ready to refill your spray bottle. The lemon juice and dish detergent will cut through those greasy hand-prints. Spray the cleaner on your window and wipe it with a microfiber cloth, newspaper, or squeegee. 

HAND SANITIZER

A pump in the bathroom, one in the kitchen, one in the playroom, three or four floating around the car and one in my purse; while it's true that nothing beats a good scrub with soap and hot water, for a family on the go hand sanitizers are essential. Here's how to make your own alcohol-free hand sanitizer:

1 cup pure aloe vera gel
1-2 tsp of witch hazel 
8 drops of essential oils of your choice

Combine all ingredients, adjusting until you have your desired consistency and stir well. Tea tree oil is the best disinfectant, but isn't safe for pregnant women, children or pets. Other recommended oils include orange, lemon and basil. This recipe, along with some alcohol-based solutions and additional tips are all available from No Ordinary Homestead.



Polish silverware: Fill your sink with hot water, sprinkle in some baking soda and add a sheet of tin foil. Let the silver soak for an hour, rinse and wipe clean.
Clean a vase or bottom of a container by adding rice to your cleaning solution. The rice scrubs all those hard to reach places!
Get rid of the smell in your sink by crushing orange or grapefruit peel in the garborator.
Sprinkle borax anywhere you've had rodent problems. They won't come near it.
Mop your floor with vinegar and hot water. Add a touch of olive oil for polish.

The Natural Way to Minimize Pores!

Pores are tiny hair follicles in the skin. They may take on a larger appearance when they are clogged with dirt or oil. They can also become larger due to the increase of dead skin cells that gather at the base of the pore. The most effective means of minimizing pores naturally is to keep them clear. This includes regular cleansing, exfoliating and care. Whether you choose to make your own skin care products at home or buy them, you can naturally reduce your pores with a few quality ingredients. Oats, cucumber, sugar, mint and even steam are some of the recommended components to look for or include. Here are a few suggestions for how to minimize pores naturally.

1. Clean your skin with a mild, all-natural soap. Cleansers with oatmeal, goat milk or cucumber are recommended for clearing pores.

2. Exfoliate the skin with an all-natural scrub. Whether you make your own or buy one, some good choices for exfoliating include ingredients such as sugar, whole oats or strawberry seeds. These items have a gritty texture that works well for removing dull, dead skin cells. Look for these and other exfoliants in natural skin care products or homemade product recipes.

3. Use an all-natural toner to deep clean your pores. Avoid products that contain alcohol or peroxide because these can dry your skin.

4. Try opening the pores with a steam bath. This can be done by boiling a pot of water on the stove and then putting your face directly over the steam for approximately 15 minutes. Or you can run hot water in the sink, place a towel over the back of your head and put your face down to catch the steam in your face as it rises. The towel will hang down the sides of your face and help trap the steam. The steam will help open the pores and clear away any residue.

5. Drink plenty of water every day. Hydrated skin not only has a more healthy appearance, but also assists in healing itself.

6. Mix a solution of apple cider vinegar and crushed mint leaves. Combine 2 tbsp. (30 ml) of each into a small glass bottle. Let the solution sit for 1 week then strain out the mint and add 1 cup (236 ml) of filtered water. Use this like a toner, preferably at night because it does have a strong vinegar odor.

7. Try a solution of baking soda and water. Stir 2 tbsp. (30 ml) of baking soda with a small amount of water until a paste forms. Apply this paste to your skin and allow it to dry for approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse with warm water.

8. Apply ice directly to your skin for a quick fix. The cold will naturally shrink your pores temporarily and allow you time to apply make-up or sunblock without it getting deep into the pores and causing them to clog. Be sure to thoroughly cleanse away any make-up or sunblock as soon as you can.

9. Avoid smoking and second hand smoke whenever possible. Smoke reduces the amount of oxygen, blood and nutrients flowing to the skin. This inhibits the skin's ability to repair itself naturally

I did this because my birthday is coming up in 3 weeks and I want my skin to be in tip-top shape! Try some of the tips and let me know the results. I tried the baking soda clay mask and it really is miracle in a box. I immediately saw a change in my pores. Hope you all enjoy!

Goodbye, Pepsi Generation. Hello, Beyoncé Generation.

Pepsi, on Thursday, will attempt to launch its brand — and hired hand Beyoncé — into the pop-culture stratosphere with a 60-second commercial featuring the wildly popular pop singer. The spot, by ad agency 180 LA, launched at 9 a.m. ET Thursday on Pepsi's YouTube channel, features Beyoncé reliving her past and exploring her future while watching herself in a mirror dance to her new song, Grown Woman.

The move comes at a time when top-draw celebrities are increasingly calling the sponsorship shots as they reach for more creative control and push harder to embellish their own brands, even as they get paid millions to hype sponsor brands.

Earlier this week, rapper Jay-Z announced he's opening his own sports agency to represent top athletes — including Yankees star Robinson Cano. LeBron James, whose brand is global and who even has part-ownership of a British soccer team, has said he became a businessman the first day he stepped onto an NBA court. And Justin Timberlake now considers only wide-ranging sponsorship deals with a chunk of creative control.

"We're entering the age of the celebrity industrial complex," says Patricia Martin, author of Renaissance Generation: The Rise of the Cultural Consumer and What it Means to Your Business. "It's no longer about taking a fee, but about two brands coming together so they both move product."

Martin traces the beginnings of this evolution back several decades to the heydays of basketball legend Michael Jordan and singer Michael Jackson. Since then, she says, the power of the celebrity has grown multidimensional with the rise of social-media celebrity packaging.

"Celebrities don't just want creative approval anymore," says Noreen Jenney Laffey, president of Celebrity Endorsement Network. "They want creative control."

Beyonce performed during this year's Pepsi Super Bowl XLVII Halftime Show in New Orleans.(Photo: Ezra Shaw, Getty Images)

Beyoncé will have much of that, and more, including:

• Song power. Her new song, Grown Woman, will be seen and heard by more than 1 billion people worldwide by the time the campaign ends.

• Design power. Beyoncé will help design the new cans with her image that will be handed out at special Pepsi-sponsored events — but not sold in stores. Pepsi will sponsor her upcoming concert tour.

• Content power. Beyoncé will play a role in establishing the Pepsi Creative Development Fund, which will be devote to the co-creation of innovative consumer content.

"She is at the epicenter of pop culture," says Brad Jakeman, president of PepsiCo's Global Beverages Group. "We couldn't have asked for a better creative partner."