Thursday, April 6, 2017

Creating a Low Tox Home



There's a lot of info out there about the types of chemicals used in our cleaning products, skincare products, makeup etc these days. It can all get a bit overwhelming. However, it's actually fairly simple to use natural methods / products and start slowly switching out those chemicals bit by bit. Today I'm focusing on the home, but I will create a separate post for skincare and makeup. 


Bathroom & Kitchen

For most of our cleaning in both the kitchen and bathroom we actually don't use sprays or anything at all. We use these microfibre gloves which only require water. By scrubbing away dirt and grime better than any chemical could, using these gloves has actually been tested to be cleaner than using chemicals. Hara have their lab tests on their website if you want to check them out. You seriously get a professional clean in half the time. I swear by these gloves! They last for ages too so you're saving money on constantly buying cleaning products.



For other areas that we don't use the gloves I like to use essential oils to make up my own remedies or I buy natural products from stores like Nourished Life or Shop Naturally. Here are some recipes for you to try out if you're after DIY:


TOILET CLEANER
Sprinkle baking soda into bowl
Dash of vinegar around rim
2 drops lemon or tea tree essential oil
Use toilet brush to scrub rim & bowl. Flush.

FLOOR CLEANER
2-3 litres of hot water
Squirt of Dr Bronners Sal Suds
1⁄4 cup white vinegar
10 drops essential oil of choice


FOAMING HAND SOAP
1 tbsp Fractionated Coconut oil or other liquid oil (almond oil, sunflower oil, jojoba oil)
10 drops essential oil
Cooled boiled water to top up
Use an empty foaming hand soap bottle. Add all ingredients except water. Add water slowly to top up to avoid over foaming.


Living

Again, for most of our cleaning we use microfibre gloves and cloths so we have no need for any other products. Instead of air fresheners we use a diffuser with certified pure therapeutic grade Essential Oils. That way we're not breathing in chemicals plus we get added benefits from different essential oils.



Here's some DIY recipes:


CARPET DEODORISER
2 cups baking soda
15 drops Lavender essential oil (sometimes I like to swap this for Geranium)
15 drops Rosemary or Tea Tree essential oil
Combine all ingredients in a mason jar, cap, and shake well. Replace cap with baking paper, secure, and poke holes in paper. Apply liberally to carpets. Leave for 1-2 hours. Vacuum up thoroughly.


FURNITURE FABRIC SPRITZ
1/4 cup baking soda
5 - 10 drops your favourite essential oil
Water
Spray Bottle
Add baking soda to spray bottle followed by your essential oils, top with water and shake well to dissolve baking soda. Spray on upholstery to freshen up fabrics.


Laundry

There are plenty of natural washing powders out there. We love Hara Australia's Saponella washing powder. It's manufactured from naturally occurring soapstone which is ground to a powder and combined with an extract from the saponella plant. So gentle for the skin. A similar product are organic soapberries.

I like to add some tea tree and or lavender essential oil drops to the load if anyone's been sick in the house. Especially sheets and towels. Some lemon essential oil can freshen up a load if you've forgotten about it and need to re-wash. 



I'd love to hear any home cleaning DIY's you've been loving. Please share! The best way to start on your path to a low tox home is to do it one step at a time. Just start replacing things slowly. You don't have to do it all at once. Here's a great guide that Beauty Counter have made called "The Never List" of questionable and/or harmful chemicals that you should avoid when buying products.

Must watch!! The Human Experiment. I watched it on Netflix, not sure what other TV networks it's available on. It will give you an insight into just how many chemicals we're exposed to on a daily basis that we really shouldn't be, via our food, products we use around the home, and on our bodies. Some of which are already found in the umbilical cord blood of newborn babies!