A few more cleaning recipes

I have a massive headache today, so instead of getting ready to go to town and pay bills, I am resting for a bit. I have actually had a headache for about two weeks now. It just won't go away! 

So, I thought instead I would share two more recipes. The first one is for dishwasher detergent, and all it amounts to is:

Equal parts Borax and Washing soda

Essential Oil of your choice

I mix two cups of the borax and washing soda and then store it in a mason jar (we're big mason jar fans around here! I use them for everything!) with a tablespoon inside for dispensing. When I wash a load of dishes, I just put one tablespoon in the little cup inside the dishwasher and then sprinkle a few drops of Tea Tree Oil on top. I started out using only the powders, but our dishes had a weird whitish film on them. Once I stuck with it, but added a few drops of the oil, it worked. Every now and again a dish doesn't come as clean as I'd like it to, so I re-wash it by hand. But for the most part, I have been very happy with this mixture. Plus, it is so nice for the Borax and Washing soda to be duel purpose. It makes things very easy and very cheap!

I have also been making an all-purpose cleaner:

1/4 cup vinegar

Water (to fill average size spray bottle)

12-15 drops essential oil of your choice

I use an old Mrs. Meyer's Spray Bottle, which I believe is about the same size as a Windex bottle. I mix it all up, and use it for all surface cleaning, from the kitchen, to the bathroom, to the dining room table or the front of the television. It works great, and once it dries you cannot smell the vinegar at all, only a hint of whatever oil you have used. I use lavender because I love it, but there are so many great smelling oils that will smell nice as well as fight bacteria. If you use it for windows and it streaks a little, just mix another bottle of the same mixture, but add a few drops of ammonia and that should do the trick. I find that this mixture works fine for windows/mirrors if I rub till dry and it's not too cold out. It just doesn't evaporate as well without the ammonia in it. 

For toilet bowl cleaner, I simple sprinkle baking soda around the bowl, douse it with white vinegar, and the sprinkle with lavender or tea tree oil. Let is sit for a bit, scrub thoroughly, sit again and then flush. Sparkly clean!