apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Straight-up fresh air... natural odours like an ocean breeze or spring flowers. Open those windows, and let it all in!

I loathe the smell of household cleaners; even the "natural" ones are dreadful. I love the smell of fresh eucalyptus, but the Method bathroom cleaner that is eucalyptus scented is so strong and nasty it takes hours and several open doors/windows to get the smell out of my house. Unscented is always the way to go.

chemicals, chemicals, chemicals! I prefer natural cleaners, safe for me, for the environment and my animals! Vanilla & Eucalyptus are my favorite smells.

Canada is odorless :(

Studies have shown that children born into households that use the most cleaning products are more likely to get asthma and autism. And some plant compounds (like lavender and tea tree oil) mimic estrogens and can lead to things like breast growth in males. I'd be really careful what you use.

I love Murphy's oil soap--it brings back memories. . . Beware of Febreze though if you own a bird---it's fatal.

Method has some great wipes and sprays that smell great and are biodegradable (I use the wipes on my Swiffer wand)

I know someone will trot out the Swiffer/killing pets thing (disproven at Snopes http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/swiffer.asp )

My ex-roommate left behind a Swiffer Wet Mop. I've been wondering if it's possible to wash out the bottle and "refill" it with vinegar and water....... But when I tried using vinegar and water to mop my vinyl floor last week, it seemed to make the floor slippery. Could that be due to too much vinegar in the mixture?

Steam heat! And not just because I sing the 'steam heat' song from The Pajama Game when I'm cleaning.

parhelia -

Try a mixture of vinegar/h2o with a few drops of dish soap. I also like to add some lavender oil and some orange oil. I use this for a general purpose spray cleaner all over the house - and it smells great!

I'm interested in the Thieves cleaner--it sounds great, but I have read that essential oils are unsafe for cats. Anyone know if that is true and whether this stuff has enough of them (oils, not cats) to matter?

I'm EXTREMELY sensitive to scents, I hate most of the products out there. That said, these are my stable-ables

Dr Bronner's Sals Suds
White Vinegar
Bon Ami
Baking Soda
unscented Dishwashing Detergent
Armen Hammer Non-Scented Laundry Detergent
Lemon Oil
Those Dishwasher tablets found in the health food stores (can't remember the name - there's an orange on the box)

And once in a blue moon, I'll use Murpheys Oil Soap, a Tiny bit of bleach to kill mold (we have that here in Oregon), Oxiclean (I know, bad but it does get rid of stains really well).

One scent I've grown really fond of here in oregon is juniper. It's like a combo of pine, fir and sage. Wonderful.
You can buy smudge sticks (like incense) at the local stores and it really smells clean but not overbearing.

I'm totally with you on the Murphy's Oil Soap. I loved it when my mum busted that stuff out to clean the buffet in our living room, and this post has totally made me want to go buy some so I can clean the coffee table.

Not so sure about the Febreeze though. I find the scent way too cloying, not really fresh. I bought some to use in my ski boots and helmet because nothing gets that gross spring skiing sweat smell out, but neither did the Febreeze. My helmet just smelled like sweat with Febreeze on top. Totally disgusting!

Autism? Seriously, what doesn't cause autism. Vaccinations, diets, cleaning supplies-- oh, the vaccinations and diets claims are scientifically unsound. There's a big difference between saying "Chemicals kids = bad, use natural!" and "*STUDIES* have PROVEN that windex = autism!"

My favorite scented cleaning product is the lemon verbena all-purpose cleaner from Mrs. Meyers.

That said, we use a cleaning service that comes when we're not home, so I don't smell it very often.

I also like the Method cucumber-scented dish and hand soaps.

Studies have shown no such fact re kids and cleansers and autism. Let's ignore fake science, shall we?

Kids exposed to cockroach dung develop asthma at a greater rate than kids who aren't.

It's just that you all have that sister-site "re-nest"- all green and s***; whatthafudge??????????

I love a lot of the cleaners and scents listed in the article. I'm all about natural and have worked in the environmental field for years... but not every item and product in my home has to be "all natural."

Many of the products touted as "green" these days aren't all that much better for the environment than "regular" products. I'd hate to see AT switch to ONLY talking about "green" products.

Ooh. Thieves Cleaner is great! I use it all the time for just about anything I need to clean. It's highly concentrated, too, so a little goes a long way. I keep a couple of spray bottles with the diluted mixture so it's handy when I need it.

My cats don't mind it either. Actually, the antibacterial essential oils in Thieves Household Cleaner add an extra level of clean to my hardwood floors. I especially appreciate that when they cough up a furball!

I use essential oils around my cats all the time. They don't mind...sometimes they come in for a big whiff. The Thieves Cleaner people also sell therapeutic grade essential oils. That's where I get mine. (www.thievesoil.com)

Question: may I ask where the map was sourced from? I'm resourcing prominent flavors in various countries, for a food project, and am intrigued by it.

My favorite scents are lemon, lemon verbena and lavender, but I mix my own cleaners and bath products at home and use organic essential oils and what I grow in my garden for the scents. Organic essential oil is expensive but, I prefer it since I use some in cooking, with organic I don't have to worry about whether I picked up the correct oil or not.

I generally use Method's Naked all purpose cleaner, dish detergent and laundry detergent but I recently bought one of their lavender lemongrass aroma rings for my bathroom and I love it.

I'm also really fond of cedar blocks, I always keep a few in my closet. When the scent isn't as strong I just rub the blocks with some sandpaper for a few minutes.