Spring cleaning tips: How to make your own cleaning products

This is the first post in our blog series of Spring Cleaning tips, which will run through the end of March.

The Reali$tic Couponer is one of PennySaverUSA.com‘s closest partners and was kind enough to do this guest blog post for us about how to make your own cleaning products:

With all of the emphasis put on saving money these days I decided it was time to show you ways to save around the houseby negating the need to purchase certain products. Not only will you save money by making your own products, easily and for less than what you would spend with even the best sale and coupon combined, you’ll actually create a healthier environment for yourself and your family. Of course there are organic and natural products on the market that promote the same general idea, but often those products come with a much higher price tag.

Save money by learning how to make your own cleaning products.

My hope is that this series will help you save additional time by not having to seek deals and coupons for the specific items you can make yourself as well as save you money by eliminating the need to purchase those items. Below are common questions regarding making your own cleaners, beauty, baby and other products, then we’ll get to the fun part; making those products!

What kinds of products can be made at home?

All sorts of products! From household cleaners, to baby products, beauty products and more! My bet is that you already have most of the ingredients at home to make most, if not all, of them. If you don’t have something in the ingredient list to make a specific product, don’t worry; I’ll list coupons for the ingredients, if they’re available.

What are the benefits of making a product versus buying the product?

Aside from the obvious answer; you’ll save money because you made your products rather than bought them, you will also create a chemical free environment within your home. That is unless you’re a chemical engineer by profession and you can easily obtain access to the chemical ingredients found in most household products. Even if you are a chemical engineer, do you REALLY want that stuff all over your house? You’ll also save time. Saving time is just as important as saving money these days and by making a surplus of common household, beauty, baby & other products you’ll save time when gathering coupons and spend less time at the store as well.

Are homemade products as effective as commercially produced products?

YES! All of the commercially produced products on the market today started out as simple, but effective combinations. Why they turned into a smorgasbord of chemicals is beyond me, but a plethora of chemicals around the house can’t be a good thing. Also, the price of a product isn’t always a good indicator of its effectiveness.  Most of the time, you’re paying for the brand name anyway. Reducing a product to its simplest form doesn’t render it ineffective, just less harmful and more cost effective.

I hope that some of your initial questions have been answered. If you have more, feel free to leave a comment & I will do my best to answer it. Just know that I am not an expert in “Green Living”, just a mom trying to save time & money!

Are you ready to make your very first DIY product? Let’s get started! The first one is below. For the others, simply click the heading to get the full details on The Reali$tic Couponer‘s blog:

DIY Soft Scrub

What You’ll Need:
1/2 c. Baking Soda
1/4 c. Liquid Dish Soap
Glycerin (to keep mixture moist) – easily found in the pharmacy section of most stores.

Mix all ingredients in a sealable container and use as needed on surfaces suck as bathroom tile, countertops, etc.

All-Purpose Cleaner

Glass Cleaner