Living Green

Yesterday I was reading Utne Magazine and I fell on an article entitled "Home Chemistry: Do you know what's really in your cleaning products?" The more I am opening my eyes to being environmentally friendly, as well as friendly to my own body, articles like this POP off the page to me since my answer to the title's question was, "No." I've noticed more and more articles popping up in magazines and not just in publications like Utne but even in mags like Glamour and Real Simple all concerning being "green" in your home. According to the article: "The average American household uses 40 lbs of these chemicals [synthetic chemicals hiding in popular cleaners] each year....Consumers have little to go on beyond mandated signal words like 'danger, warning, and caution.' These words tell us what will happen with acute exposure, but nothing about long-term exposure." A friend of mine who just moved to Colorado has been a huge inspiration to me. She makes all her own cleaning products. Thinking of her I hopped online to further research making my own. I found some great sites (some easy to navigate, some filled with oodles of info that I didn't know where to click first). Check out these great sites:

Healthy Living
http://www.care2.com/

Natural Home and Garden
http://www.naturalhomeandgarden.com/

How to Make Your Own Non-Toxic Cleaning Kit
http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/344

Seventh Generation-Get $10 in Coupons
http://www.seventhgeneration.com

Utne reprinted "Good Housekeeping" tips from Natural Home and Garden (March /April issue) seen below:

All-Purpose Cleaner
1 qt warm water
1 tsp liquid soap
1 tsp borax
1/4 cup undiluted white vinegar
Mix ingredients and store in a spray bottle. Cleans: Countertops, floors, walls, carpets, upholstery

Scouring Powder
3 parts baking soda
1 part borax
Use as you would any powdered cleanser. For lighter jobs, use baking soda alone

Glass Cleaner
4 tbs lemon juice
1 gallon water
(Or use 1/4 cup vinegar and 1 qt water) This recipe came out by Consumer Reports in 1992!

Toilet Bowl Cleaner
1/4 borax (Pour into toilet bowl and let sit overnight. Then scrub)