Posts tagged washing
April 6, 2012 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, Health Care, Herb Recipes, Hobbies & Crafts, Natural Beauty, Personal Care · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, cosmetics, crafts, diy, ecology, handmade, herbs, homemade, how to, natural, non toxic, recipes, safe, washing
Although most people are happy with the huge array of choices we have in our department stores and find that most commercial products work well for them, there are many of us who find hair care challenging and difficult. For me, it’s an allergy to fragrances and a sensitivity to chemical additives. If I use the wrong shampoo, my head itches, flakes, gets a rash and sometimes burns for long periods of time, even as long it might take me to wash the residue out with another shampoo. So my search for shampoo has become a real challenge. I just can’t use whatever my sister leaves in the shower. Mine has to be fragrance free, without dyes or chemicals and usually has to have organic ingredients. Same for my hair color. I have found a few products that work for both purposes, dyeing and washing, but they are expensive and I have to order them online. In the meantime, I have come up with a lot of homemade alternatives and most of them are really good.
In my next post, I will give recipes for making homemade rinses and conditioners. I am also working on an ebook about homemade hair dyes and the methods for using them. Here, in this post, I want to share some of my recipes for homemade shampoos. These are safe, non toxic, hypoallergenic, easy to make and to make adjustments to. You will see when you get started on the recipes and after you use this stuff, you may be inclined to give up the commercial chemical based products you’ve been using most of your life.
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March 27, 2011 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, herbs, Home and Garden, Personal Care · Tagged cleaning, cleanser, diy, handmade, home, homemade, how to, non toxic, safe, washing
If you are like me, you are looking forward to Spring for the new blooming flowers, the heated sunshine, the wildlife emerging from their long hibernation and open windows ushering in fresh air. But when I open our windows I see dust flying. When the sunshine comes pouring in I see the dirt bunnies and the crumb stashes in the dark places. A lot of this stuff is leftover from the holidays! Boy does that sofa have some body oil stains on the arms! And I cannot believe there are old potato chips behind the entertainment center. All winter long our home is like a dark cave. Now the sunshine is revealing way too many blemishes and I am not looking forward to cleaning.
One of things I hate about spring cleaning is the cost of the new supplies. Floor cleaners, furniture wax, rug shampoo, upholstery cleaner, bathtub scrub, window wash and air fresheners! Not only does this stuff put a huge dent in my wallet but it ends up adding tons of chemicals to our home environment. I hate the residue. I have to wipe the furniture down every time I walk past it just because I can see that oily sheen. This year I am passing on air fresheners altogether. The effect is only temporary while the lingering spray ends up all over the house, on surfaces. And it makes me sneeze. So this year I am trying some new ideas. I thought I’d share them with you. Here are some great recipes for natural cleaning alternatives. Some of them will save you money, some won’t. But all of them will help detox your home after the long winter has passed.
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February 17, 2010 · Filed under Environmental Detox, Health Care, Home and Garden, Personal Care · Tagged antibacterial, antibacterial soaps, cleaning, cleanser, cosmetics, healing, health, Health Care, Personal Care, products, safe, shopping, toxic, washing
It seems like you can’t even buy a soap that isn’t “antibacterial” anymore and often that those soaps are cheaper than the others! Indeed, it seems like antibacterial soap is everywhere now, in everything from shampoo to bar soaps. The idea is that we are crawling with germs and this stuff will keep us from getting sick. However, being an old lady these days I remember a time before they invented this stuff and I don’t recall being sick all the time. So are they really an upgrade in our lifestyles or is this just overkill?
Well, according to doctors in hospitals all across the country there is growing concern over “antibiotic resistance” which is fast becoming more dangerous than the germs themselves. We have developed antibiotic resistant bacteria that are responsible for killer diseases like MRSA and flesh eating bacteria. The general consensus is that factory farming is to blame for this with the non stop treatment of farm animals to prevent infections. But there is also a concern over the use of antibacterial soaps and sprays. Our immune systems need to be exposed to germs in order to develop resistance to them.. and the current rage over antibacterial environments does not allow that to happen.
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June 15, 2009 · Filed under Environmental Detox, Home and Garden, Personal Care · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, eco, green, health, non toxic, products, safe, shopping, toxic, washing
I have done a lot of posts in the past that have covered the area of cleaning the home and doing it in an environmentally safe and non toxic fashion. But there is always more to discuss, as the concept of cleaning goes beyond just scrubbing the tub and scraping the stove. You also clean your clothes, your body and the outside area of your residence. In truth, all of this cleaning requires chemicals of various kinds and even the stuff you are sudsing up with in the shower can be toxic both to the planet and to you.
Consider first the washing of clothes. Did you know that only the toilet wastes more water than the washing machine in the average household? It’s that wasteful… and expensive! And as that water drains out, it takes with it the chemicals from your laundry detergent. This means they end up in the drinking water supply and how do they clean drinking water? With chlorine and other chemicals, all of which amplify the toxicity of the detergents you use. While popular, name brand detergents do a great job cleaning your clothes, they also do major damage in the environment. They also have an effect on you and your family, either on the front end where they contact your flesh through the wearing of the washed clothing… or on the other end where they end up in your glass.
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May 13, 2009 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, Home and Garden, Personal Care · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, cleanser, green, health, how to, non toxic, products, safe, shopping, toxic, washing
It is always a dilemma for those of us who want our world to be clean and really clean when faced with choices of what to use while considering both our own health and our environment. I have found, over the years, that many cleaning products sold in retail stores are sensitizing at the least, generally toxic and often downright dangerous. As a young woman, I made my living cleaning other people’s houses and made quite a good living at it. It was hard work, of course, but not bad for your health in that regard. Yet I was exposed to some of the most dangerous solutions made by man; germicidal algae destroyers, scum strippers, wax removers, wood stains, aluminum greasers and shiners, as well as the regular old poisons, bleach and ammonia. I remember smoking my cigarette through bleached white fingers. And, over time, I would get dizzy, nauseous, light headed, breathless and downright stupid, just out of the blue and often after scrubbing down a couple of houses. In time, even our customers began to complain. Being clean, I learned over time, did not necessarily mean sandblasting the world with chemicals.
Of course, smoking didn’t help, either. Thank God I was able to quit.. and no longer do it. So no comments about that, please! And look for my future post, coming up shortly, on the toxic chemicals in cigarettes and some natural, non toxic and herbal recipes for your own safer, cheaper, homemade cigarette. But it wasn’t until cleaning chemicals became a real problem for my health that I began to make different choices. It is just too easy to snatch up the bottle of ammonia to clean the windows and the bleach to clean up the countertops. Commerical products are cheap and accessible, ready to use and easy to store. Just push a button or pull a trigger and wipe! Wow. Everything is clean… and possibly dangerous. If you are curious about what I am talking about here, then read my posts on detergents , air fresheners and dangerous chemicals and how they affect you and your family. And when you are ready to consider a simple, easy, inexpensive and non toxic solution that will tackle just about every cleaning problem you have, then read on. I even have a recipe for you to try today.
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April 15, 2009 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, Home and Garden, recycling · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, cleanser, diy, eco, garbage, green, home, how to, non toxic, projects, recycling, reuse, saving, washing, waste
It’s that time of year again! Time to crawl out of the heated house into the sunlight of the natural world and start tending the garden and cleaning up the home. I always loved spring cleaning when I lived alone because it was so easy! But now that I have a house full and I’m the “house spouse” of the crowd, it is a lot more work. So I have a method of working through it while thinking about the planet at the same time, a sort of “ritual” that makes it all happen faster. I thought I’d share that method along with some great ideas that can be modified to suit your individual situations. And hopefully this will help your spring cleaning go green.
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February 17, 2009 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, herbs, Hobbies & Crafts, Home and Garden · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, cleanser, diy, eco, green, handmade, herbs, homemade, how to, natural, non toxic, projects, recipes, toxic, washing
We have all become really dependent upon antibacterial properties in just about everything we use. Even though they say that overexposure to antibacterial elements makes us more receptive to bacteria and also creates resistant strains in the environment, I just don’t feel right about cleaning without it. Conversely, I feel that as long as I do use antibacterial stuff I can do just about anything I want! Whether or not this is true and it’s very likely not true, I am still committed to antibacterial properties in my cleaning supplies.
The thing that does concern me, however, is the toxic chemicals that are being added to those products in order to create an “antibacterial” cleaning product. Isn’t there another, more natural, less toxic way to reduce bacteria in our environment? I mean, doesn’t nature have something out there that will kill or, at least, put a damper on bacteria? Being a herbalist and naturalist, I always go here first. And once I did, I found some great, inexpensive and long lasting substitutes for chemical antibacterials. Here are a few new recipes for all of you to try!
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January 16, 2009 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, Home and Garden · Tagged chemicals, cleaning, diy, eco, green, herbs, home, homemade, how to, kitchen, natural, non toxic, washing
Most people don’t think much about dish washing detergents. What matters is if the dishes get clean and then what else could it matter? But there are many things you should be considering about using this stuff and when you realize how greatly it affects you, I think you will start thinking about it when you shop
As a person who was allergic to detergents at a very young age, I have since been forced to find solutions. My mother, who was a nurse and noticed the reaction first, did not cease having me wash dishes or clean house, she simply bought me gloves. But this problem extended well beyond the kitchen and reared it’s ugly head everywhere, from the shower to the laundry room. I was always itching, always red, always stuffed up and sick. There just weren’t any solutions to my problem back in the day
But what does this have to do with me, you say? Well, you don’t have to be allergic to something to have it affect you and, in fact, I have since come to discover that my reactions were not always allergic, but actually SENSITIVE, and this to chemicals and toxins in the products I was forced to use. In my search for solutions to all of these seemingly unsolvable problems, I came across a plethora of facts and solutions that I would like to share with you.
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October 21, 2008 · Filed under diy, Health Care, Herb Recipes, Natural Remedies, Personal Care · Tagged bath, bathing, handmade, healing, health, herbs, homemade, how to, natural, recipes, remedies, shower, washing
The most popular way that people consume herbs is in a tea bag. This is because most of these come prepared and ready to use and do not cost much. This is an effective and simple method of using herbs to heal and refresh the body. But I would like to see folks using herbs in more imaginative and expansive ways. One of the best ways to use herbs, for the health of both the inside and outside of your body, is in the bath. This method treats the skin, hair and nails but also is absorbed through the pores of the skin to help the healing process on the inside, as well. You should consider the medicinal qualities of any herb you use, whether you drink it in a tea or use it in the suds. Your body will be affected either way and sometimes to surprising effect.
Herbs are powerful and potent plants that should be used with consideration and care; although they can do some kinds of damage if used incorrectly, the side effects are usually mild and, unlike medicines made in the lab, any damage that is done is usually reversible. It is impossible to overdose on a bath bag or a herbal water used in the tub. And long term effects require consistent exposure, so consider this in all cases. If you are looking for intense, long term healing effects, you should use your potion every day if possible. Otherwise, use herbs sparingly. An occasional dunk in the bath will refresh and revitalize your body and mind and is not likely to cause any real change in the system. But those of you who are really ailing, consider using herbs in a bath on a regular basis to help ease the suffering and expedite healing of the body. Here are some of my favorite bath recipes and a note on each herb used and what effects you can expect it to have.
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October 15, 2008 · Filed under diy, Environmental Detox, Home and Garden · Tagged chemicals, cleanser, green, laundry, natural, non toxic, recipes, safe, washing
I thought it might be a good idea to present some natural, non toxic methods for removing common stains. I worked in a hotel laundry many years back and there was a quota there for stained linens. Every so many linens we saved from the trash we would get bonuses on our paychecks. Needless to say, our supervisor considered herself the “queen of stain removal” and had a method for everything. Of course, many of these methods involved chemicals and toxic elements. And bleach was not a favorite, although you might think it would be. It slowly destroyed the towels and thinned the sheets so that their lifetime use was shortened and resulted in a cash loss. In reality we never used bleach except in last ditch efforts with large blood stains or excessively moldy shower curtains, when the choice was either taking drastic measures or tossing the item out. Overall, we used gentler, kinder methods in order to save the linens.
Being a herbalist and naturalist I was eager to find non toxic and less destructive methods of taking out stains. The first rule of thumb in all cases is an easy one. Do not run an item through the wash and then the drier without first removing the stains. Once set in, they are high impossible to remove. Bleach won’t even do the trick once a fabric has been “set in” by washing and drying. Always treat for stains before washing and do it as soon as possible; it is always easier when the stain itself is fresh. In fact, wet stains, including blood and grape juice, will mostly come out with a flush of cool water if the stain is still wet and fresh. But even then, with wet blood or wine, most of the liquid will wash out but will often leave a “ring”. I have no idea why that is, I just know it from seeing it time and again. So even those items will require a “pre treatment” for stains before being dropped in the machine. Here are some basic guidelines and simple, non toxic methods for getting out most stains.
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Harmony Green 