cleaning Archives

using knitted dishcloths

How do you keep handmade dishcloths clean without doing hours of extra laundry? Here’s our system for using knitted dishcloths.

tip tuesday– remove crayon from painted surfaces

How to get crayon off painted surfaces cheaply and easily with an item you probably have at home.

tip tuesday–clean your drains chemical free

Here’s a chemical free way to clear out your drains and leave them smelling fresh.

tip tuesday–hooked on hooks

Organising the laundry, one cup hook at a time. It makes the work flow so much easier when the second most important ‘work-horse room’ in the house gets a declutter and streamline.

tip tuesday–washing machine maintenance

What common and inexpensive household product will keep your washing machine (and your clothes) clean, fresh and free of soap build up?

tip tuesday–make your own cleaner using rubbing alcohol

These tip comes from Julie, a Frugal and Thriving reader from the US. “At our medical doctor’s office, I noticed they spray and clean counters, handles etc using 1/2 water and 1/2 rubbing alcohol. This also works for mirrors and windows very well.” Other uses for rubbing alcohol include cleaning CDs and DVDs, mozzie bites, [...]

fyi: vacuuming and dusting routine

Yes, because I know you’ve been waiting with bated breath to find out how I vacuum and dust my house. Actually, I wrote most of this article in my head while I was vacuuming, so it only seemed right to jot it down and not to waste it. BC (before child) cleaning day was Saturday [...]

tip tuesday – bicarb for stains

Somehow, while I was writing on the freezer bags, permanent marker ended up all over our kitchen bench. Wiping it with a cloth and vinegar didn’t budge the stain, but a sprinkle of bicarb soda and a wipe with a damp cloth saw the marker stain disappear in an instant. Plain bicarb soda also cleaned [...]

tip tuesday – quick tidy strategy

We have a rule in our house: never walk up or down the stairs empty handed. We have a drop off point at the top and bottom of the stairs where items that need to be relocated back to their proper place are left for when one of us next treads the stairs. This keeps [...]

getting the washing dry without a dryer

You know you’ve reached adulthood when your first thought on a sunny day is “I’ll get the washing dry today.” Sunny days however, have been few and far between over the last few months and washing has been an all week chore, when it is normally a two day chore. The humidity doesn’t help. Even [...]