FABRIC REFRESHER
You can make your own fabric spray to refresh your sofas, carpets, curtains and other fabric surfaces. Half-fill a spray bottle with boiling water, add 2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda and a few drops of your favourite essential oil, shake to mix and leave for about 30 minutes for the mixture to infuse. Always spray items from a distance of at least 20 cm/8 inches and be careful around pets and children.
CARPET REFRESHER
For the freshest carpet, add 15 drops of your favourite essential oil to 200 g/1 cup bicarbonate of soda. Using a sieve, liberally sprinkle the mixture all over your carpet or rug, leave for a few hours, then vacuum it up.
This is one of my favourite tips; I do it myself once a week!
CARPET STAIN REMOVER
Mix equal parts white wine vinegar and water in a spray bottle. Spray directly onto the stain, let sit for several minutes, then clean with a brush or sponge using warm soapy water.
For fresh grease spots, sprinkle cornstarch (cornflour) onto the spot and leave for 15–30 minutes before vacuuming.
For a heavy-duty carpet cleaner, mix together 50 g/¼ cup salt, 50 g/¼ cup soda crystals and 60 ml/¼ cup white wine vinegar. Mix into a paste then rub into the carpet stain and leave it for a few hours. Vacuum it off.
DRAIN CLEANER
This is something I recommend you do weekly to prevent nasty odours and blockages.
Pour 100 g/½ cup bicarbonate of soda into the drain, then add 120 ml/½ cup white wine vinegar and leave for 15 minutes. The chemical reaction will help to break down fatty clogs. Flush with boiling water from the kettle.
Caution: Plastic pipes can be damaged if excessive boiling water is used. If you don’t have metal plumbing, use warm or even cold water to rinse instead.
DISINFECTANT
Fill a spray bottle with 2 teaspoons soda crystals and 4 tablespoons white wine vinegar, then top up with hot tap water. Spray directly onto surfaces and wipe off with a damp microfibre cloth for powerful cleaning.
CROCKERY STAIN REMOVER
Remove coffee and tea stains from cups and mugs by adding 1 heaped teaspoon bicarbonate of soda to each, then filling with boiling water. Leave for about 30 minutes, then drain and rinse. You’ll be amazed by the results!
CHOPPING BOARD CLEANER
Rub a slice of lemon over wooden or plastic chopping boards to disinfect the surface.
For tougher stains, squeeze some lemon juice directly onto the stain and scrub in a little salt. Leave for 10 minutes, then rinse clean.
CERAMIC OR GLASS HOB CLEANER
To save your hob becoming a sticky mess, make a point of cleaning it after every use. To remove stuck-on food, wet the area with hot soapy water and sprinkle with bicarbonate of soda. Cover with a damp towel or kitchen paper and leave for 30 minutes, then wipe with a clean damp cloth.
Microfibre cloths
I use a lot of microfibre cloths; I love how easy they are to clean with. Microfibre is a blend of polyester and polyamide (nylon) and each fibre is up to 50 times finer than a human hair. Ideal for high powered cleaning, the fine hairs in a microfibre cloth pick up and trap more dirt than standard cloths. General purpose microfibre cloths also have a small electrostatic charge, which makes them very effective for picking up dust.
Microfibre cloths can be used for almost any cleaning job and work particularly well if you clean with the ‘S’ action. Making an ‘S’ shape with the cloth means that you more effectively cover the entirety of the surfaces you are cleaning.
Dusting
Used both damp and dry, microfibre cloths make ideal dusters.
Electronics and glassware
Microfibre cloths are particularly good for cleaning electronics and glassware, including television and computer screens and tablets. As microfibre cloths don’t pick up debris, they will not leave scratch marks.
Stainless steel
With just water and vinegar and using the ‘S’ action, microfibre cloths are great for giving stainless steel a shiny finish.
Chrome
When cleaning your chrome taps, use a microfibre cloth dipped in a solution of vinegar and water. This will remove any water marks, ground-in grime, and soap scum, leaving your taps beautifully shiny.
Eyewear
To clean glasses, rub them really well with a little rubbing alcohol on your microfibre cloth.
Grout and tiles
Grout can be very hard to keep clean and bright white. After scrubbing grout with a small hard brush or a toothbrush, use a microfibre cloth to wipe away any soapy suds and buff the grout and tiles clean and dry, leaving them super shiny.
Washing up
Another great tip is to use your microfibre cloths for the washing up. Microfibre cloths don’t cling onto bacteria, so they don’t end up smelling. When you’re finished, make sure to wring out as much water as possible and hang up to dry.
Drying dishes
Microfibre cloths soak up water really well so are also great for drying the dishes. Use a separate cloth for drying after you’ve finished washing up.
Top tips to keep your microfibre cloths working for you longer
COLOUR-CODING CLOTHS
When cleaning your home, it’s important to clean away the germs, not spread them around. Please don’t use the same cloth for multiple household tasks. Imagine using the same cloth for the loo and the bath! Yuck! Try using a colour coding system for your microfibre cloths – this will stop cross-contamination of dirt and bacteria around the home.
Here’s my system:
PINK for the SINK
BLUE for the LOO
GREEN for CLEAN
YELLOW for DUSTING
I use pink cloths for cleaning sinks, draining areas and work surfaces in the kitchen. In the bathroom, I use pink to clean the bath, shower and sinks.
Blue is for the toilet and only the toilet.
Green is actually for cleaning glass: mirrors, picture frames, windows, TV screens and glass-topped furniture (Green for Clean just sounds better!).
I use yellow for general dusting: furniture, skirting boards and banisters.
You can of course create your own system – just make sure it works for you!
WASHING