Natural Spring Cleaning Favorites.

Who's thinking about spring cleaning right now? Me. I am.I have gotten frustrated with my home lately- keeping it clean. It possibly is just in my head- and my sweet hubby openly admits he's not as clean as I am. I'm starting up a new plan of attack for my house now though- I'm going to try to clean a little bit everyday. One room everyday. So far it is working pretty well.On top of that- I am trying to leave myself a little leeway when it comes to whether I actually do cleaning everyday. No extra pressure needed. :)A couple years ago I started trying to use more natural cleaning supplies- so I thought I would share with you what I have discovered and love so far in my search for natural options. I was making everything by hand for a while (all my laundry detergent, hand soap, dish soup, etc.) and it was too much to handle. So I don't make everything I use anymore- but I just make a little bit. Let me walk you through it though. :)

1 | mrs. meyers basil dish soap | shop

I love this brand... and I particularly love this basil scent. In my kitchen I use both the dish soap and the hand soap. I don't really enjoy hand washing dishes (who does), but this scent makes me happy and relaxed so it is perfect for when I have to scrub some pots.

2 | wool dryer balls | shop

I gave up dryer sheets a long time ago- and I kind of missed the benefits of them (softer fabrics and the nice smell). Wool dryer balls have kind of answered that problem- they shorten how long it takes to dry and soften the clothes. All you have to do is toss them in the dryer with your wet clothes and dry as normal. Plus, they can add nice scents to your clothing if you want as well by adding a few drops of essential oils... which leads me to my next favorite.

3 | lavender essential oil | shop

I know not everyone likes the herbal smell of lavendar- but I do (essential oils come in a lot of different scents). I use this to make my clothing smell nice out of the dryer (with the help my wool dryer balls) and I add a little to humidifiers to make the room smell. Essential oils are a natural way to make things smell wonderful.

4 | dishwasher detergent packs | shop

Dishwasher detergent was one of the first things I gave up 'making' - I just felt to overwhelmed with work and life and so on to find time to make some of my detergents. So I started buying the dishwasher packs. They can be a little pricer, but they make it so much easier- no measuring, just pop it in and go. Plus- I found a cute little glass container that I refill with the loose packets into it. It looks adorable.

5 | glass spray bottle | shop

I do still make a few mixtures for my cleaning solutions. They simple mixtures- citrus juice with water and a little shampoo with water. The citrus mixture is great for the all purpose in the kitchen and the bathroom. The shampoo mixture is a awesome mixture specifically for getting hair spray off the floors in my bathroom. I prefer glass bottles in general and the spray bottle makes it a lot easier to use my cleaning solutions.

6 | hand citrus juicer | shop

This goes along with the glass bottle- I never quite got all of the juice from the fruit I was using (grapefruit, lemon, and oranges mainly). I used to try to just squeeze out the juice by hand as I cleaning. That was a little tedious- so now I squeeze out the citrus juice and premix it into my spray bottle.  This awesome tool helps me squeeze out as much as I can- which is fantastic since I squeeze out a ton juice week by week.

7 | (refillable) laundry detergent | shop

I love this Method laundry detergent- it is concentrated so I don't have to use as much with each load and I like the clean and clear scent (my hubby didn't like all of his clothes smelling flowery or strong). Plus, I can just refill the bottle instead of having to buy a brand new bottle each time. It is fantastic.

8 | baking soda | shop

Baking soda is my favorite thing when cleaning my bathrooms and my kitchen (plus it is pretty cheap). It works wonders with citrus and vinegar to get rid of soap scum and water spots and stuff that gets stuck to my stovetop (have you ever had boiling home brew boil over and crust on your stovetop? I have... it is hard to get off). Besides baking soda has so many uses- deodorizer in cat boxes and in the carpets as I vacuum.

9 | squirt + mop floor cleaner | shop

We have hard wood floors on our first floor- and I've discovered that it is really important to have a solution that is specialized for wood floors. When I discovered this product from Method (I love that brand btw) I was pretty excited to try it out. It did not disappoint and I'm super pleased that it is really to use.

10 | distilled white vinegar | shop

Distilled white vinegar is another awesome (and cheap) cleaning product that can be used as disinfectant and remove odors. It can replace bleach in many instances. Just like baking soda it rocks in the bathroom an the kitchen (but just be warned there are a few things you shouldn't clean with vinegar). It smells a little off in my book- I don't love it and it doesn't smell clean to me... but I use citrus to help with that.

11 | citrus fruit

This one I have mentioned a couple times already- juice those lemons, grapefruits, and oranges! Grapefruit and lemon juice I use semi-interchangeably. I love the smell of grapefruit- so I tend to use that a lot. I use lemons specifically when I want whitening to happen (like on tile grouts and tile). Orange I use only for the scent- when I need more than just the grapefruit to help with the vinegar smell.

12 | 100% cotton wash cloths | shop

This is the most basic and necessary of all cleaning supplies since I have tried to stop using paper towels. I like getting a huge pack of white 100% cotton wash clothes- that are fairly inexpensive (so if one gets super disgusting it is not a big deal when I throw it away).Everything in this post is completely my own opinion by the way- I received no payment for this post.