Friday, November 21, 2008

Frugal Fun Friday~Part One

"Cleanliness is next to impossible." ~Author Unknown

In an effort to save money, I have been trying my hand at making all types of homemade household cleaners.

And since I think trying to be frugal is necessary fun, and it's Friday, I am going to call these posts Frugal Fun Fridays.

So, whenever I feel like it, on Fridays, I am going to share with you the different cleaners that I try making at home. Complete with step by step pictures, of course.;)

I will also always give full credit to the people, books, or blogs that I get these ideas from, because I will humbly tell you all right now, that I did not come up with any of these ideas by myself. I am simply a Frugal Fun Finds Follower. (Just ignore me, please. I do love alliteration though.)

I got the idea that I am sharing with you today from this great cookbook that I bought called Dining On A Dime.



The first cleaner that I made is a Counter-top Disinfectant.
Here is the "recipe."



These are all of the "ingredients" that I used, plus water, of course.



The first thing that I did was to add one fourth cup of vinegar to the spray bottle.



Then I added one half cup of rubbing alcohol.



Followed by just two tablespoons of ammonia.



And last, but not least, I filled the rest of the spray bottle with water.



Once the lid was screwed on tightly, I gently shook the bottle to mix all of the ingredients. I also labeled the spray bottle, so that I would not forget which type of cleaner was in it. (Of course, I've never forgotten anything like that, but I've heard stories.)



I used this cleaner to clean my kitchen counter tops and table, and it worked wonderfully. I would love to figure out how to add a citrus scent to it. Do you know how I could safely do that? If so, I would love to know.

Well, that's all the excitement for this post, folks! But don't despair, there will definitely be more. Some Friday in the future, I will show all of you how to make your very own homemade window and glass cleaner. (I bet you can't wait....) ;)

"Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy." ~Author Unknown

One more thing....hop over to The Pink Potpourri blog.....There is a great giveaway going on! So, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and enter. Just click here to do so.

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Go on with your frugal self :)

much2ponder said...

Amy...thanks for making me laugh this morning. I love this post, your little comments make me laugh. I might have to try this cleaner. It sounds good. I wonder what the rubbing alcohol is for.

My Blessings From Above said...

Great idea! I make my own cleaners as well. I only use a couple and I use my window cleaner as my all purpose cleaner as well.

Gina said...

I have been wanting to try making my own cleaners, but have have never had a recipe. Thanks for posting one. I have never bought ammonia before. Can you get it at the grocery store? Thanks again Amy! :)

God bless,
Gina

Whitney said...

Wowza. I wouldn't know where to start, and my house would probably end up exploding due to the harsh chemicals I mixed. YOu are brave.

Anonymous said...

these are great and super helpful tips! thanks for posting them!

be sure to swing by my blog! we're having a giveaway!

Anonymous said...

Alright, Frugal Freda! Bring your Frugal self onto my way. LOL

Liz Harrell said...

Are you kidding me? The post man delivered Breaking Dawn FIRST? That man is insane. I'm so sorry!

valerie said...

Thanks for the recipe. I just love to clean when I can spray, spray, spray!

I think the book "Three Kinds Of Men" looks very interesting too.

And yes, if I'm ever near Crazyville...or if you're ever near the OKC area....we are definitely having Mexican and Starbucks! I still say we all need to plan at some point and time to all meet up for a blogging "convention." :)

Hope your weekend is relaxing and very blessed!

Love,
Valerie

Pamela (His maidservant) said...

It almost sounds toxic!! I bet Hobby Lobby would have a scent like the ones you put in candles and soaps?????

Have a blessed weekend!!

In His Graces~Pamela

diane b said...

Now can you invent something that will do the cleaning for you like a robot or something.Then i'll be interested.

Unknown said...

Great idea, but I hate cleaning anyway so this does nothing to motivate me. Maybe you can mix me up a cleaning kit and have it ready for me next time I see you. In fact you can bring it to me and show me how to use it:}

Laura said...

AS I was reading the 'recipe', I was wondering how it smelled! I don't know about citris, but I wonder if you can add any of those essential oil scents? It might be oily, I don't know. Squeeze in some lemon juice? Now I'm grasping! I admire your creativity, Amy! We all need some money-saving tips in times like these.

Smiling Shelly said...

Ah yes, an oldy but a goodie. I've heard of this mixture before too. In fact, I think the Queen of Clean has this very recipe in her book too.

Not sure how to give it a citrus smell....let me know if you figure it out.

Dee said...

I loved this, when I am in my own place again, I am gonna try all these tips and tricks, not because we'll be poor (which we might be but I hope we wont be) but becasue I will have my own place and I can!

I have missed you, where have you been at friend? I actually tired to call you again on Friday a few times, are you avoiding me? ;o)

diane b said...

Amy, Queensland is the skin cancer centre of the world. More people are diagnosed with skin cancer here than anywhere else and it is caused by over exposure to the sun's rays, hence compulsory hat wearing while playing outside. Unfortunately it only seems to work in Primary Schools. High school kids rebel against the rule.

Karma said...

ooooo! ahhhhhh!

very cool!!!!!

I'm still loving your blog over her in she-ville!

Jamie said...

Frugal and fun...you are my kind of friend! I think I'll give this a try.