I have been trying to use green cleaning products around the house, but buying natural household items can get a bit pricey. So instead of investing in the natural household cleaners, I have switched over to using vinegar to clean my kitchen and bathroom. It works great, but to be honest with you I cannot stand the smell of plain vinegar. When I do purchase the natural cleaning products at the store, I usually purchase the citrus ones because I love the way they make the house smell. After doing a little research, I discovered that you can add all sorts of fun things to make your vinegar smell a bit better. For my experiment I added orange peels to my vinegar and let it hang out for a couple of weeks…Oh my god, it turned out amazing! I want to clean ALL of the things now! You are going to be surprised by how easy this is.
Supplies
- Glass Jar
- Peels from 2 oranges
- 1-32oz bottle of vinegar
- Spray Bottle
- Water
- A little bit of patience
- Peppermint Essential Oil
(optional)
Directions
1. Peel 2 oranges and put the peels in your glass jar.
2. Pour the whole 32 oz. bottle of vinegar over your orange peels.
3. Seal the glass jar and let the vinegar and orange peels hang out for 2 weeks. This is where your patience comes in. 🙂
4. After 2 weeks, strain your vinegar and discard your orange peels. Your vinegar should now look like this. I do admit it looks like a jar full of pee…
5. Pour your orange vinegar into a spray bottle with equal parts water. Add a dash or two of the peppermint oil if you are feeling sassy, skip this step if you are not. Voila! You now have a very fancy homemade citrus cleaner for around $2.
The citrus and the peppermint takes the edge off of the strong vinegar odor and it leaves your house smelling fresh and fancy. Have fun cleaning the heck out of everything in sight and you might as well get a second batch going, because you will go through the first bottle super quick. In my next batch, I am going to add some orange peels, lemon peels and rosemary. Yay, for gettin’ fancy with your homemade natural cleaning products!
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