Green Cleaning for Dummies - Week 8: Final Week

**Green Cleaning for Dummies is an 8 week series
WEEK 8:  You've Come A Long Way Baby!

You Can Consider Yourself a Tree Hugger!

So you should be at intermediate level now and you are well on your way to making more green changes in the weeks to come.   Here are a few more recipes for you to add to your arsenal.   These are the last friends you will meet in this series:  Aloe and Witch Haze.

Recipe:  On the Go Lemony Fresh Sanitizing Handwipes

1/4 cup alcohol (or substitute with one or two drops of tea tree oil)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup aloe juice (optional)
1/2 lemon juiced
Paper Towels cut to size and folded, or reusable flannel/cotton cloth
Sealable ziptop plastic bag or small flat tupperware

Mix all the ingredients and paper towels/cloths and seal in a flat tupperware container or a small jar.  Your container should be small enough to be easily portable and stored in a purse, diaper bag, or glove compartment.  This is meant for travel cleaning on the go.       Paper towels is a convenience but you can buy recycled ones to compensate, using cloth requires you to take care to have a place to toss the used ones (easy to do, just keep a small toss bag in the car or diaper bag)


Recipe:  Easy Soothing Baby Wipes

2 cups of witch hazel
1 cup aloe vera juice
Paper towels or reusable cotton/flannel cloths

Find a suitable container to your liking (a big one for the home and a small flat one for on the go).    Mix well and use like regular commercial wipes. 

Baking Soda and Vinegar Parting Tips:

• To deter ants:  Sprinkle baking soda along ant paths outside the home and spray crevices with vinegar.
• To kill weeds in cracks and crevices:  Spray with straight vinegar
• To clean tools and pots:  Mix baking soda and vinegar into a paste, schmear on your tools and garden pots, rinse clean, and dry thoroughly.
• To keep outdoor cushions fresh:  Store in bags sprinkled with baking soda before storing for the season.
• To freshen the dog:  Sprinkle baking soda on fur, leave for a few minutes then brush off (best done outside!)
• To remove fleas:  Wash dog or cat in a solution of vinegar and water.  Don't rinse -- let air dry.
• To freshen pet beds:  Sprinkle with baking soda, let sit for an hour or more and vacuum clean.

COOL TIP:  Put large bay leaves strategically in your cabinets to deter bugs.   I have bay leaf "bits" in open mini preserve containers in the corners of my cabinet labeled  Bug-B-Gone.