The Fr ugal,
Homemade Clean!
Natural Cleansers Starter Kit
• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Borax
• Olive oil
By Lisa Barthuly
Somewhere
along the way,
we’ve lost the
art of making
things ourselves. Not
only are “homemade
cleansers” a frugal, healthier option, but it
also is a simple matter to create them.
We’ve been hoodwinked! We almost
believe we must have every cleanser on the
market—one for each room, appliance,
and item in our home. Not so!
Much of what is housed in your local
store’s “cleansers” aisle is just plain overpriced and potentially toxic Grab yourself
a box or two of some good old-fashioned
20 Mule Team® Borax, take a left, and
head to the baking aisle.
Huh!?
Yes, the baking aisle! Grab yourself a
few gallons of white vinegar and a few
bags or boxes of baking soda and you’re on
your way to making your own cleansers!
(Costco® is an excellent place to pick these
up at a great price!)
To get going on making your own
homemade cleansers, gather all of your
ingredients in one safe spot. (Reminder:
Although these ingredients are “organic”
in nature, they still need to be treated with
caution, just as you would carefully
handle any “toxic” cleanser. Keep them all
away from young-uns, and never mix
vinegar and bleach!) This not only keeps
you organized, but it also keeps the ingredients put up where no one can mistakenly
get into them. With a permanent marker,
be sure to identify the contents of all of
your containers (spray bottles, cans,
boxes, etc.).
I’d start with this list, to get yourself
going down the path to making your own
cleansers. Many of these items are probably in your home right now.
• Lavender Essential Oil
• Tea Tree Essential Oil
• Eucalyptus Essential Oil
• Grapefruit Seed Extract
• Orange Essential Oil
• Empty, clean sprayer bottles
• Old washcloths or rags
• Old toothbrush
• Green scrubbie pads
• Old glass canning jars and old plastic
containers (Reuse those sour cream or
cottage cheese containers!)
• A permanent marker
You can start out with just one of the
above listed essential oils, and if I had to
pick just one, I’d go with Lavender or Tea
Tree. All of these oils have natural antibacterial properties and require very small
amounts to do the job! These frugal, natural
cleansers you make up yourself will cost
pennies on the dollar compared to their
commercial, chemical-laden competitors.
