Article By: Mirna Cacic

Save your money and be environmentally-friendly at the same time by making these DIY dishwasher tablets! These tablets are much safer than store-bought tablets, and contain 0 harsh chemicals! They’re also Borax-free for those who are having a hard time finding Borax at the store! Each load of dishes will run you about $0.09! Make these today and make buying your own dishwasher tablets a thing of the past!

Supplies (makes enough for about 40 loads):

1) 1 cup baking soda

2) 2 cups washing soda – If you can’t find washing soda at the store, you can make your own! All you need to do is bake baking soda for about 1 hour at 450 F! That’s it! You can now make washing soda whenever you need it!

3) 1 cup citric acid

4) 1/2 cup salt

5) 1 tsp liquid castile soap

6) 1/2 cup white vinegar

7) 20 drops lavender essential oil (optional)

8) 2 ice cube trays

Step #1:

Place all the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them together.

Step #2:

Add in the vinegar a little at a time. You will see some fizz, but don’t worry! This is to be expected.

Step #3:

Add in the castile soap and mix. You can also add in the essential oil now if you like.

Step #4:

Press the mixture into the ice cube trays. Leave them to dry for 24 hours before taking them out of the ice cube trays. Store the dishwasher tabs in a container with a tight lid.

Photos: Mom 4 Real, Pins and Procrastination, Hello Natural.

We’ve got 3 easy ways to get your burnt pots looking new! We’ve all been there, not knowing what to do when our nice stainless steel pots are caked in burned food. Try one of these simple solutions to getting rid of burned food off of your pans with little to no scrubbing!

Solution #1: Baking Soda and Vinegar

Fill the bottom of the burnt pan with a little bit of water and add in 1 cup of vinegar. Bring the pan to a boil and add in 2 tbsp of baking soda. You should start to see little bits of black lifting off the pan. Empty the pan and use a scouring pad to get rid of any black bits that have been left. You should be able to scour them off easily. If you have any stubborn spots left, make a paste from baking soda and water and apply it to the spots. Leave the paste on for as long as you like and the burnt spots should lift easily.

Solution #2: Hydrogen Peroxide and Baking Soda

Pour a generous amount of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda into your pan. Use a spoon to mix the ingredients. Allow it to sit for 4-6 hours and you’ll notice all the burned bits have been lifted off the pan!

Solution #3: Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap With Tea Tree

Pour soap into your burnt pan and allow it to sit. The burnt parts should lift easily with a scouring pad.

Photos: iHerb, Green Idea Reviews, Apartment Therapy.

There’s tonnes of things you can make with lavender! We’ve rounded up 7 lavender crafts that you can make in a pinch! Take a look!

1. Deodorizing Disks

Easy to make with only a few ingredients, toss these disks anywhere you need deodorizing power! Tutorial here.

2. Lavender Dipped Letters

These are perfect for a nursery or children’s room! Follow along with the easy tutorial here.

3. Lavender and Rosemary Wreath

For this herb wreath, all you need is lavender, rosemary, a wreath form, and bobby pins! Make a big one to fit on your front door, or make several smaller ones to hang around your home. Check out the tutorial!

4. Homemade Lavender Beeswax Candle

This super cute candle in a teacup makes a great gift! Make it for Mother’s Day, or give them out as wedding favors! Tutorial here.

5. Lavender and Candles

Fill glass tumblers with dried lavender! As the candle warms the lavender, the lavender will release its scent!

6. Make Your Own Essential Oil

Try your hand at making homemade lavender essential oil! All you need is lavender and vodka! Tutorial here.

7. Lavender Sugar

This lavender sugar goes great with baking recipes. Use it instead of regular sugar in your favorite recipes for an added flavor boost! Super easy tutorial here.

Photos: One Good Thing By Jillee, Sarah the Architect, Lightly Crunchy, Shelterness, Condo Blues, Lazy Budget Chef, By Stephanie Lynn.

If you’ve ever had trouble cleaning your oven door glass, you’re not alone! We know what a pain it can be, and no one has time to scrub it! Save your hands and put your mind at ease with this easy cleaning solution!

Ingredients:

– water

– baking soda

That’s it! Mix equal parts baking soda and water until it forms a paste. Spread the paste over your dirty oven glass and leave it to sit for 30 minutes. When the 30 minutes are up, simply wipe away!

Here is the dreaded before picture:

With the baking soda and water paste:

And after! Squeaky clean!

Photos: DIYHSHP, Ikea Fans.

If you’ve had enough of dirty grout, we’ve got the solution! Choose from one of these 5 grout-cleaning recipes that are sure to get your grout looking good as new! Using only basic household ingredients, these recipes are great for people looking for a cheap and easy solution to cleaning their grout.

Recipe #1:

This recipe is mild, and can be used on all tile surfaces. You can also use it to remove stains from natural stone.

– 3 cups baking soda

– 1 cup water

Mix the baking soda until it forms a paste and apply it to the grout. Leave it to work for 10 minutes and rinse it clean.

Recipe #2:

Since this recipe uses vinegar, don’t use it on marble, limestone, or travertine.

– 1/4 cup salt

– 1/4 cup baking soda

– 1/4 cup vinegar

Mix the ingredients and apply it to the grout. Leave it for 20 minutes and make sure it doesn’t dry out. After the 20 minutes are up, give the grout a good scrub and rinse.

Recipe #3:

Use this recipe on light colored or white grout.

– 1/4 cup bleach

– 3/4 cup baking soda

Mix and apply to dirty grout. If you want to dilute the bleach, you can add water. The longer you leave the solution on, the brighter your grout will be.

Recipe #4:

This recipe works with all tile, except limestone or travertine.

– lemon juice

– baking soda

Mix into a paste and apply to dirty grout. Leave it for 20 minutes, then scrub and rinse.

Recipe #5:

Don’t use this bleach on colored grout, and test it first on marble surfaces.

– 3 parts baking soda

– 1 part hydrogen peroxide

Mix into a paste and apply it to your grout. Leave it to sit for 20 minutes and scrub well. Rinse with warm water. This mixture can also be used on poultice and natural stone.

Photos: Flooring Hunt, Deco Bizz, Skroutz On Deck.

We love using home-made cleaning solutions! The store-bought chemicals can irritate your throat and nose, and they’re not safe to come into contact with your skin, either. Using only a few simple and cheap pantry ingredients, you can create your very own cleaning solutions for cheap. Give the environment (and yourself!) a break and try these recipes.

White Vinegar

Vinegar dissolves dirt, soap scum, and hard water deposits. Although it’s a tough acid, it’s gentle enough to use on hardwood floors. White vinegar is also a natural deodorizer, and absorbs odours instead of masking them. If you’re worried about the smell, it goes away completely when the vinegar dries. If you have sensitive skin, vinegar is great as a fabric softener. Add 1 cup of vinegar to your rinse cycle instead of regular fabric softener. For hard water deposits on your showerhead, simply place 1/2 cup vinegar in a sandwich bag and tie around the showerhead with a rubber band. Allow it to sit overnight and rinse in the morning. If you’re looking for an all-purpose spray cleaner, simply mix 1 cup vinegar and 1 cup water in a spray bottle. This is great for countertops, backsplash areas, and floors.

Baking Soda

Baking soda has a mild abrasive action and has natural deodorizing properties. It’s a great replacement for harsh store-bought scouring powders. Sprinkle baking soda on your sponge for bathtub rings, vanity units, or removing food deposits from the kitchen sink. For tough stains and grime, make a paste of baking soda and water and leave it to stand for 10-20 minutes until the deposits have softened and can be removed easily. To keep drains running smoothly, pour 1/2 cup baking soda down the drain and a little hot water to wash the baking soda down. Allow it to sit overnight, and don’t use it on blocked drains.

Rubbing Alcohol

Rubbing alcohol is great on windows, mirrors, and hard-surface ceramic tiles. It’s also good to put it into a spray bottle and spray on points of contact to kill germs (door handles, steering wheels, toilet handles, toilet seats, etc.).

Ammonia

Ammonia is a strong window and all-purpose cleaner, and it’s stronger than vinegar. For a tough cleaning solution, mix 1 tbsp ammonia, 1tbsp dishwashing liquid, and 2 cups of water.

Photos: Trusper, Modern Survival Online, Good Ideas and Tips, Kendricks Stationers, DIY Life.

Cookie sheets are one of those things that seem impossible to clean. Oil and grease get stuck to them and are hard to get off. Before you give up and toss them out, try our cleaning recipe!

What you will need: baking soda and hydrogen peroxide.

Sprinkle baking soda all over the pan, then hydrogen peroxide, and then add more baking soda. Leave it to do its magic for 2 hours. When the two hours are up, prepare to be amazed! Your pan should look as good as new! Simply wipe the baking soda away, no scrubbing required!

Before:

After:

Huge improvement! It’s not perfect, but it looks so much better! And best of all, you don’t have to scrub it! So, if your cookie sheet has seen better days, give this recipe a try!

Photos: The Polka Dotted Turtle.

Patio furniture not looking up to par? Get it in tip-top shape for all your summer parties with these tips!

1. Vinegar

Break out your trusty bottle of white vinegar and use it to dampen a microfibre cloth. Rub the cloth over the rust. If the rust doesn’t come off easily, make sure the cloth is soaked in vinegar and leave the cloth over the spot until it soaks off.

2. Baking Soda

Mix the baking soda with a little bit of water to form a paste. Spread it over rusty areas, let it set, then scrub off.

3. Lime and Salt

Sprinkle salt over rusty spots and soak it in lime juice. Let it sit for a few hours and scrub the rust away. You can use the rind from the lime to scrub off the rust as it won’t damage the metal. If you don’t have any limes, lemon works just as well.

4. Potato and Dish Soap

Cut a potato in half and dip the cut end in dish soap. Place the potato over the rust and let it sit for a couple hours. If you like, you can use baking soda and water instead of dish soap.

Photos: About, Stevens Auction Company.

Weeds. Every yard has them. They are stubborn, pesky, and ruin your lovely lawn and flowerbeds. Buying generic weed killer from the store isn’t exactly the safest way to go about getting rid of weeds, as they are full of toxic chemicals. Keep your family and pets safe with these 5 easy solutions:

1. Boiling Water and Salt

This is the easiest and cheapest method. Simply boil tap water in a pot and add a cup of salt. Mix until the salt has dissolved and pour over any weeds. Be sure not to get it in contact with other plants, though, as this will kill anything that grows.

2. Weed Killer Spray Recipe

This spray is sure to kill any weeds it comes in contact with! Simply add 4 oz of lemon juice to 1 litre of apple cider vinegar. Pour into a spray bottle and spray thoroughly onto weeds.

3. Baking Soda

Since baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate, it’s extremely deadly to weeds. Simply sprinkle a generous amount over weeds, and avoid other plants or grass.

4. Dish Soap

Dish soap breaks down weeds and makes them vulnerable to the sun’s rays. Add 6 tbsp of dish soap to a spray bottle and fill it with water. Spray this mixture onto weeds on a sunny day when the sun can help dry them up.

5. Fire

Another method that is widely used is burning the weeds with fire. Sometimes this method has to be done several times before the weeds are completely gone.

Photos: Dobies, Craftsy, Organic Gardening.

More and more people are turning to all-natural cleaning products to clean their home. They are non-toxic, lack any harmful chemical smells, and only cost pennies to make!  If you or anyone in your family suffer from allergies, bronchitis, or asthma, reducing harmful chemicals in your home can help.  Here are six recipes you can make from items found in almost any household:

1. All-Purpose Cleaner

Add 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda into 1/2 a gallon of water and mix well. You can use this for windows, mirrors, and water deposit stains.

2. Air Freshener

Add 1/2 cup of vodka, 1/2 cup of water, and 8 drops of lavender essential oil to a spray bottle and shake well. Spray 3-4 times in areas that need freshening.

3. Stain Remover

Mix equal parts water and vinegar in a spray bottle and spray directly on stain. Leave it for a few minutes, then clean it with warm soapy water.

4. Bathroom Mold Killer

Add one part hydrogen peroxide (3%) to 2 parts water in a spray bottle. Spray on mold and wait at least an hour before rinsing.

5. Disinfectant

Mix 2 tsp borax, 4 tbsp vinegar, and 3 cups of hot water. Wipe on with damp cloth or use in a spray bottle.

6. Rust Remover

Sprinkle a little salt on the rust along with a squeeze of lime juice until well soaked. Leave it for 2-3 hours and rinse with a damp sponge.

Photos: Cleaning Dolls, The Happy Housewife, Ciulla Assoc.