For the longest time, cleaning the bathrooms was my least favorite chore. Aside from the obvious gross-ness of the whole task, the process seemed to take forever and as soon as I was done they were dirty again.
So, I devised a system to make this daunting duty a little friendlier. Gone are the harsh detergents, headache-inducing fake fragrances, and uber-expensive household cleaners. I now opt for a homemade approach to tidying the bathroom that gets the job done and saves me lots of money.
I use only two ingredients: vinegar and castile soap (I like Dr. Bronner’s Almond because the scent is softly sweet). I find the notion of “antibacterial” in the bathroom to be hilarious – as soon as one of your loved ones uses the bathroom gone are the “benefits” of antibacterial products!! Plus, unless you’re living in a hospital, antibacterial products are bad for your health and bad for the environment (as I wrote about here).
Why vinegar? Vinegar is acidic, so it does a great job of breaking up mineral deposits, soapy residue, and water spots. It is non-toxic and inexpensive – a homemade mother’s dream product!
Here’s my typical bathroom procedure:
I stop up the sink and fill it with hot water. Add in a couple good squirts of the castile soap and 1/3 cup of vinegar. Wearing a cute pair of plastic gloves, I take a clean rag and scrub the faucet, sink and counter top. Using the same rag, I then wipe off the outside of the toilet (including the seat).
To the toilet water, add one tablespoon castile soap and 1/2 cup of vinegar. Let sit for a few minutes. Toss in the rag, and scrub away.
You can use the sink solution to clean the floors, too. I’m still working on a good homemade glass cleaner, so while I continue to experiment I use Method brand to freshen the mirror.
Afterwards, the bathroom looks and smells fresh. The task is done and I’m free to play with Evelyn!!
Homemade Mothering is a movement that aims to simplify life and foster self-reliance while being kinder to our families and the planet. Its about encouraging people to get back to the basics when it comes to mothering and homekeeping. 
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I'm also a big fan of vinegar…as I'm allergic to almost every type of fragrance out there. Great Blog, thanks for all the helpful hints!
Now that I've gotten rid of the conventional products I absolutely cannot stand any artificial frangrance — even perfume gives me a head ache now!
I have a great way to clean the bathroom AND have extra time to play with Kinsey. It's called a cleaning lady! No really, loving your blog and keep it up, I would love to find some time in between our non-stop moving to try some of this stuff. I'll let you do the research and then I can steal your recipes. 🙂
What about Nature's Source from Windex for glass cleaning? It's a natural product that cleans glass and mirrors to a streak-free shine.
Thanks for the info. I'll try it.
Have you tried cornstarch for streak-free glass? I have heard about it, but haven't tried it myself.
Here's a link to glass cleaner for you, Maureen!
http://www.easy-homemade-recipes.com/no-streak-glass-cleaner.html
And if you ARE worried about disinfecting with your homemade cleaner, add a few drops of Tea Tree Oil, a natural disinfectant and something that I add every time I do a load of cloth diapers! :0]
Thanks, Jessica! I've been trying a few different versions of homemade glass cleaner. As soon as I have it perfected, I'll blog about it.
Vinegar water n cornstarch makes amazing glass cleaner!!!!
I read somewhere that vinegar and Castile soap cancel each other out. I think it was on dr. Lisa Bronner’s site.
I don’t know about that, but it might be true. I never had a problem with castile soap, but I stopped using it because it got rather expensive. I use dish soap now, and it seems to work great.