That Darn Dirty Oven!

I've been letting my well-used oven become a bio-hazard. In not wanting to use any harsh chemicals, because they suck quite frankly, and not wanting to use the self-cleaning option, as it stinks up the not-well-ventilated apartment like a tire fire, I've let it get out of control. Like so bad that it actually caught on fire recently, ha ha!
I stumbled upon a cute little book recently - The Naturally Clean Home, full of lovely recipes for making your own household cleaners. Many recipes make use of essential oils, so not only are they effective, but they smell incredible too. It's a happy little book :)

Of course the book has a few recipes for oven cleaners - so I gave the following a try today:

Serious Oven-Cleaning Formula

• 1/2 cup salt
• 1/4 cup washing soda or borax
• 1 box (16 ounces or two cups) of baking soda
• 1/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup white vinegar
• 10 drops thyme essential oil
• 10 drops lemon or lemongrass essential oil   

(You'll also need a spray bottle, some rubber gloves, and you'll find it helpful to have a scouring pad or some steel wool)

1. Combine salt, borax, and baking soda in a plastic or glass bowl. Add just enough water to make a paste
2. Remove oven racks and preheat the oven to 250ºF for 15 minutes, then turn off the oven and leave the door open.
3. Carefully spread the paste on oven walls with a sponge or cloth and allow to set for 20 to 30 minutes.
4. Combine the vinegar and essential oils in a spray bottle and shake well. Spray the oven walls and wipe clean. Rinse well.

With the help of some steel wool (that ended up looking like something you'd pull out of a clogged drain once I had finished) and some serious elbow grease (it helped me considerably that I accidentally broke my favourite tea pot this morning - so I had some pent up angst to use), I was able to get my oven pretty darn clean! Admittedly, it's not fresh-from-the-store clean, but had I a tad more time, and had I broken my Gramma's antique vase, it probably would have been close to new.

With absolutely no foul odor - in fact it smelled pretty darn good - and no irritation to my eyes or lungs or skin, and no harm to my asthmatic husband, my 1.5 year old daughter or fluff-muffin dog - I was extremely pleased with the result. See for yourself! 

If you pop over and visit us on facebook you can enter for a chance to win a copy Karyn Siegel-Maier's book "The Naturally Clean Home". Good luck!

Wool Dryer Balls Baby!

After having Evelyn I changed our laundry detergent to an environmentally friendly, baby friendly, fragrance free, phosphates free, hypoallergenic etc. etc. type - AND stopped using fabric softener. In doing so I lost what I love so much about clean laundry - the scent - and our clothes, towels and blankets became ridden with dog hair that was previously kept at bay by dryer sheets. BOOOO! So I went in search of a solution, and quickly found that people use Wool Dryer Balls in lieu.

Wool dryer balls are just that. A wool ball that you toss into your dryer with your wet clothes. The lanolin in the ball is supposed to soften the clothes naturally, and the balls act as an agitator to reduce drying time. I thought I'd give them a try to see if they worked on our dog hair issue as well.

Okay, I love these things! From different things I've read, it is suggested that you have 6-8 of them to actually do a good job, but in the pack I ordered I received 4 and they do the job just fine. Yes, our clothes are softer. Yes, the drying time is reduced. Yes, our pet hair gets wrapped up in the balls and not on our clothes anymore! Admittedly, they don't work as well as dryer sheets for the pet hair, but they're pretty darn good. I also get my scent back by putting a few drops of vanilla and tangerine essential oils on the balls - also not as fragrant as commercial perfumes, but natural and pleasant; it's not overpowering.
The only issue the balls do not address is static. But I'm willing to live with a bit of electricity in exchange for healthier laundry.

I purchased my balls from MiniMittens on Etsy - This is a crafter from Ottawa - so I also feel great about supporting a Canadian business too.

What a great gift these would make too; paired with a few bottles of essential oils - awesome!

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