I was reading about the natural anti-bacterial benefits of lemon juice the other day, when I realized that many DIY cleaning products seemed to include the citrus in their ingredients. Apparently, lemon is a natural disinfectant and the citric acid found in lemons naturally, is used in many cleaning products already. This discovery also happened to be the same day that I ran out of my DIY Bathroom Scrub.
I got an idea.
I mixed up lemon juice, baking soda and water into a paste and tried using it as a scrub for various cleaning projects around the house.
The result? AMAZING.
Here’s what I did.
Savvy’s Super Simple Scrub Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup of lemon juice from 2 juiced lemons
- 1/2 cup of baking soda
- 1 tbsp. water (optional)
- small glass or ceramic bowl
Directions:
Pour the baking soda into the small bowl or jar. (I like using salsa jars). Then slowly add the lemon juice and stir. The lemon juice will make the baking soda fizz, just like when you add vinegar to it. (It’s the acid from the fruit reacting with the soda, but no worries, it’s harmless). Keep stirring the mixture until it’s the consistency of cake icing. Just thick enough that if you had to rub it onto a vertical surface it wouldn’t slide off. You may need to add a little more lemon juice or baking soda or water to get the desired consistency. It’s really odorless, but if you want, you can add a few drops of an essential oil to the mix. (I would stick to something that has good anti-bacterial properties though, like, lemon, orange, cinnamon, tea tee, or eucalyptus).
How to use it:
Scoop out about a tablespoon and rub onto the surface you wish to clean, then using a damp microfiber cloth or paper towel, rub in circles until surface is clean. Then rinse the surface with water, or a 50/50 vinegar water mix to remove any excess residue.
Where to use it:
I used this stuff on just about every ceramic,stainless steel, chrome and coated glass surface (not the mirrors), in the house. See the list below:
- porcelain bath room sink
- stainless steel kitchen sink
- milk glass shades in kitchen
- chrome faucets
- bathroom tub
- shower floor
- shower walls
- washing machine and dryer surfaces
- switchplates
- flower pot
- pet bowls
- door handles
- stained coffee mugs
- ceramic sink
- more stuff I’m sure I haven’t thought of yet
My favorite use was to clean the grease and grime off of the milk glass shades on the chandelier in the kitchen. (see the before and after pics below).
Before
After
Pretty amazing huh? Instead of scrubbing the shades until I lost feeling in my fingers, I just wiped this stuff on, and wiped the grime right OFF! I can’t tell you how happy I am right now. *dances around*
To be honest, I really don’t know what the shelf life of this stuff is, because every time I whip up a batch, I seem to use it all up!
* What’s your favorite DIY scrub?
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- DIY Bathroom Scrub Recipe
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