Do It Gorgeously: How to Make Less Toxic, Less Expensive, and More Beautiful Products (52 page)

HOW TO

1.
Mix all the ingredients together in a glass measuring cup.

2.
Carefully pour the mixture into the bottle. Apply to your furniture with a clean, dry rag.

CARPET CLEANERS

You’ll find a dizzying selection of carpet cleaners, deodorizers, and spot removers at every grocery store. I’ll let you in on a little secret: None of them work as well as plain old borax. This inexpensive, eco-friendly ingredient will take care of all of your carpet needs.

SPILL/STAIN REMOVER

If you have just spilled a drink or the dog has done his or her business on your nice new carpet, follow the procedure below and you’ll be able to breathe easy again.

1. Have a bunch of clean, dry rags handy.
   
2. Blot the liquid with a rag.
   
3. Pour a little ice water over the stain.
   
4. Sprinkle borax all over the stain.
   
5. Lay a damp rag over the stain and, with your knuckles or the back of a spoon, press the rag into the stain, making sure the borax is working its way into the carpet fibers.
   
6. Blot the stain with a clean rag and repeat until no more liquid comes up.
   
7. Spray or pour a little ice water over the stain to rinse and blot again with another clean rag until all the borax has come up.
   

Steam Cleaning

Despite the fact that manufacturers of steam cleaners say you have to use a particular product for
their
steam cleaner, you don’t! Those steam cleaner solutions are very expensive and I find that this recipe works just as well, if not better.

HOW TO

1.
Simply mix all the ingredients together in a bucket.

2.
Pour into the cleaning solution chamber of your steam cleaner.

Carpet/Upholstery Deodorizer

Once or twice a month, or depending on how much pet activity has been going on in my home, I deodorize my carpets, couch, and chairs as follows.

HOW TO

1.
Pour the baking soda into a measuring cup or small bowl.

2.
Add the essential oil and combine really well with a fork. You may have to break up the drops of oil with the fork to make sure that the oil is evenly distributed in the powder.

3.
Sprinkle liberally all over your carpets and upholstery. Leave for half an hour.

4.
Vacuum off. When you vacuum your carpet, move the vacuum very slowly, going with the grain of the carpet. The vacuum will have a better chance of sucking up all the powder, which will bring up the grime and odor, if you move slowly.

INTERIOR WINDOWS

My favorite interior window cleaner is club soda. I use a different cleaner for exterior windows (see “DIY Diva”), but this one is a bit less messy and more suited for smaller windows. I don’t want water sloshing everywhere when I’m inside, so I don’t use a squeegee.

Simply get a large bottle of club soda from your grocery store and apply it liberally to a clean rag (I use old facecloths). Use circular motions to remove dust and grime from your windows, and a clean rag to polish.

The Bedroom

Musty Closets

If you have musty or damp-smelling closets, here’s a great solution.

HOW TO

1.
Cut a leg off an old pair of pantyhose.

2.
Mix the baking soda and borax together in a measuring cup.

3.
Pour mixture into the leg of the pantyhose and tie a knot just above the filled part.

4.
Tie the hose (with the remaining part of the leg) onto the hanging bar of your closet.

5.
You can also pour the mixture into an old shoebox and punch 10 to 15 holes in the top. Tape the box closed and keep it in a corner of your closet.

Linen Spray

Being as scent-obsessed as I am, it stands to reason that I use my linen spray rather often. You can buy linen sprays at great expense from fancy home and garden stores and catalogs, but now you’ll know how to make one yourself. If you put it in a lovely old-fashioned-looking glass bottle with a cute homemade label, it makes a wonderful hostess gift or birthday present.