Clementine Cleaner DIY (with many, MANY pictures)

I've seen plenty of recipes for orange cleaner on the internet for awhile now.  

We've been a clementine family ever since Sullivan was 3 or 4 and could peel it himself so I decided to try my luck with clementine cleaner awhile back.  Citrus is citrus, right?  

Much to my surprise, not only is this stuff amazing on it's own or diluted in a spray bottle with your normal cleaner...

but it completely OWNS those pesky upc stickers on the bottoms of my candle jars.

Even diluted, I spray this on the stickers, wait 30 seconds and they all just peel right off in one piece.  it's crazy good, you guys.  CRAZY. GOOD.

Here's what you need:

Clementines, vinegar & a jar.

seriously, that's it.

I used apple cider vinegar for awhile but I started with white vinegar originally.  

The only difference I've noticed is color and smell but not in the quality of the cleaner.

Step 1:

Peel your clementines.  Put peels in jar, put fruit in mouth.

Cuties is KILLING IT with this sticker.  too cute.

 

Step 2:

Pour vinegar over the peels, almost to the top of the peels.

Ok you caught me, there are 2 different vinegars being poured here.  I finished off my apple cider vinegar about halfway up.  I could have gone out to the store for more but today is the coldest day in Chicago in a very long time, so... no.  I finished off with some rice vinegar I had on hand.  slightly less acidic than most vinegars but it still does the trick.

Step 3:

Set your jar aside.  

Somewhere it's out of the way but still close enough that you can drop more peels in there as you go and add more vinegar.  That's its home for the next 2 weeks.  You might want to hire a metal guard chicken as well, but it's your call.

When your beautiful, bright orange peels look grey and soggy, it's harvest time!

Here I just use a glass measuring cup and hope for the best but feel free to make this process as easy or complicated as you like it to be. 

potato masher? hey, if that's what you're into...

Put the lid back on tightly, make the jar pretty if you like...

but there you go. 

Natural concentrated cleaner and sticky cleanup solution

A purpose for everyday kitchen scraps

Purge It Tuesday #1 Being Honest

Too much stuff! 

This is the current contents of my closet. Not too bad right? Wrong!!! 

By rough estimate I'd say I wear about 1/4 of these clothes on a regular basis. What's worse is we just moved last month and this is only what I've unpacked so far! There are still boxes in the basement of clothes.

So I'm starting my purge by getting honest with myself. I'm accepting the fact that I have too much ( I don't want to become one of those chicks on House Hunters who complains about closet space even when the closet is the size of my childhood bedroom). 

That was pretty easy to accept. The next part is a little more difficult. Being honest with myself about what is reasonable to keep. 

So I'm starting simply by trying it all on and being really picky about what clothes suit my body type, what clothes are comfortable and practical for my lifestyle, and what clothes make me feel good when I wear them. If it doesn't fit all 3 categories, it's gone!

Now, I must interject here. I'm a crafter, a creative soul. I want to modify everything! That's where purging gets tricky for me. So I'm giving myself some leeway here; if something doesn't suit me as is I'm allowed to put it in the modify pile.......but I have to actually do said modifications within a 2 week period or it's out!

Join me won't you? Empty that closet and find what fits, what works, and what you really like on yourself!

The Great Midwest Clothing Purge

We just got done with a move.........again. I've lost track of how many moves have happened over the past decade but trust me when I say too many. I've met every move with the excitement that comes along with big changes in life, and this move was no different in that regard. What was different was the way I viewed this move, this house. I no longer thought " We'll rent here for a year or two and then onto the next place/city/state". Instead I find myself hoping for a sense of permanency. I don't want to move again. I don't want to try out a new city or a new state ( unless it's Alaska.....Alaska + yurt = my own personal heaven). I want to stay put and get to know our new neighborhood and community. Even though our house is a rental I'm hoping maybe the tides of change can somehow turn to make it our own.

Maybe this is what happens when you hit your 30's, that desire for a sense of permanency? I've got another strong desire too; for simplicity.

If a move does anything it makes you realize how much crap you own! Friends, I will admit I have waaaaaaay too much. Mostly in the clothing arena. Sure, I just had a baby 9 months ago so I could use my changing size over the past year and a half as an excuse, but it'd just be an excuse ( I didn't buy or wear any maternity clothes this time around, but that's another post). The truth of the matter is I just like clothes, but I'm also very particular about clothes. So I tend to have several pieces that fit in the category of " it was on clearance, and even though I take it off after 20 minutes of wearing it because I can't stand a, b, or c about it, I'm still hanging onto it because someday maybe I'll find time to fix a, b, or c". If a category has a name that long I'm thinking it's time to move on!

So I invite you to follow along over the next few weeks with me on Tuesdays as I get brutal and purge my closet, my kid's closets, and maybe even my husband's (shhhh don't tell him, the man has more shoes than me). I promise lots of pictures that will make you feel better about the state of your own closet ;).