How to Clean without Chemicals

How to Clean without Chemicals

When the spring flowers start popping through the dirt and the days get just a little bit longer, I start getting excited for spring. I throw open my windows and start airing the house out and I also get the itch to start cleaning off the cobwebs and wiping away the dust that's settled during the winter. For years I thought that if my house didn't smell like bleach after a thorough cleaning, then it wasn't really clean, but I slowly started using chemical-free products and found that I could get my cleaning done without any harsh pollutants. I'm showing you how you can clean your home without harsh chemicals with products you probably already have in your home.

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DIY Metallic Mirrored End Table

I've been slowly putting together my teen daughters room. She loves metallics and silver and all things glam. I've shared several DIY projects from the room from the wallpaper to the tufted headboard to the painted bench at the end of her bed, but now I'm going to show you the metallic mirrored inlay end table I just made this week. She's been loving all of the mirrored dressers and tables we see but they are a little out of the budget. I finally found a solution and managed to make a similar mirrored table for a fraction of the price {under $20 to be exact!}.  It was an easy DIY project that I completed in a day and you can too! Come check out how I did it!

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Easy DIY Christmas Tree Basket Stand

Growing up my uncle had a Christmas tree farm. One of my favorite childhood memories was going up to the farm to pick out two live Christmas trees every year. While my parents were setting up the trees in their various locations around the house, the kids had an artificial flocked Christmas tree we used to set up in the hallway upstairs. We would surround it with our stuffed animals and it was something we could easily decorate on our own, unlike the 12-foot-tall trees we got for the other parts of the house. I loved that we had a tree that was all our own. 

I can't seem to shake the feeling that it isn't Christmas if I don't have more than one tree decorating the house. I picked up a small artificial tree this past summer at a garage sale for $2 and I decided that it was the perfect tree to work some magic on. I loved the idea of our old flocked Christmas tree, so I did a little DIY flocking. {more on that tomorrow! You aren't going to want to miss that tutorial.} All of the supplies were from the dollar store and it was so fun and easy.

Another recent trend that I'm loving is using baskets as a base. I saw a few Christmas tree collars lining the shelves at the store, but I was pretty sure that I could DIY a basket for a similar look. And I did. I just love how it turned out. Read along for the full tutorial on how to create your own Christmas tree stand basket.

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Clean Your Gas Range and Oven Without Chemicals

I don't know of many people that decide to just clean their oven on a regular basis. Heck, to be honest, I haven't cleaned mine since we moved in 8 years ago. I actually bought a huge bottle of this toxic oven cleaner, sprayed it inside and let it sit overnight before I could get in there to do any cleaning. {to be honest, the oven cleaner is better suited as a furniture stripper!} That's probably why I haven't cleaned the range since then. No one has time for a multiple day cleaning project. No one.

But alas, I was pulling my Costco sized lasagna out of the oven and that thing went rogue on me and I spilled the whole thing all over the oven door and inside the racks. I wasn't done cooking the lasagna yet so that stuff got baked on. Awesome. Nothing like a huge spill to encourage you to clean your oven, so the next day I went to work. To be honest, I wasn't sure I could clean my gas range with just steam but dang it if I wasn't impressed. Not a single chemical was used and in under an hour, top to bottom, every nook and cranny was clean. Don't take my word on it, come find out how you can clean your gas range and oven without any chemicals.

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Clean Your Fridge Fast!

I've got a few chores I despise. Cleaning my fridge is probably at the top of that list. I think besides our washing machine, our fridge is the hardest working appliance at our house. Unlike the washing machine though, the fridge is something every family member uses pretty frequently {I need to work on the kids and the laundry situation!}, so it takes a beating.  I think the reason I don't clean our refrigerator very often is because it just takes so long. Or so I thought! I had 15 minutes one day and my HomeRight SteamMachine plugged in and ready, so I thought I'd tackle the fridge to see how clean I really could get it in just a few minutes. It was kind of shocking! The SteamMachine did the hard work and I came behind to wipe up the messes. I'm pretty sure I won't be waiting as long between cleanings anymore because now I know how I can clean my fridge fast. Come see 6 tips on how you can clean your fridge fast!

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Polish and Preserve Your Decorative Pumpkins

I call it a healthy sign of adulthood when you have a favorite designer brand of pumpkin. My teenagers would call it "basic". We don't agree on a lot of things. I'm lucky enough to live close to a local farm that sells some amazing decorative pumpkins at a great price. Over the years I've learned a trick or two on how to polish and preserve them so I can get the most out of my pumpkins for the whole season. And by whole season, I mean from September until late November. I love how I'm able to take the muted colors of the various gourds and make them shine all season long. And now I'm sharing my secrets on how to polish and preserve your decorative pumpkins all season long.

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Buying High Quality Furniture at a Fraction of the Price: Getting a Deal on As-Is Furniture

I've always been cheap but I tend to gravitate towards really high-priced, high-quality items. Without fail, my favorite pair of shoes at the store will be the most expensive ones and the furniture I like at the store will be the highest priced. And they are always the items not included in any type of sale or promotion. Always. It's like a gift. However, I have found ways to purchase high-quality items at a fraction of the price because a) I'm frugal and b) I love a good deal. Sometimes you have to work for that good deal though. Especially when it comes to buying high-quality furniture pieces. As I age, I've learned that I just don't have time for buying things I don't like anymore, and sometimes it's hard to find exactly what you are looking for at the price that will fit into your budget. Which is why I'm sharing with you how you can buy high-quality furniture at a fraction of the price. It might take a little work, but in the end, it will totally be worth it to get a quality piece you love.

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5 Common Grilling Mistakes to Avoid on Your Charcoal BBQ

Summer is grilling season, and we all dust off the grill and get ready to fire it up to take advantage of those glorious warm days to have a backyard BBQ. Gas grills are certainly convenient but there is something that will never take the place of cooking over charcoal in my opinion. There really is more to a good backyard BBQ than just the ability to buy some steaks and light the grill. I'm sharing 5 common grilling mistakes people make when they cook on their charcoal BBQ's. Don't get caught making these mistakes!

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Painted Wooden Hanging Plant Stand with Chalkboard

I love a good hanging basket but I have one problem. Every year I kill the ones I buy. They hang up so high that I usually forget to water them because out of sight, out of mind. Also, I'm never quite sure how much sun or shade a plant gets so it's usually trial and error. But I got to thinking, hanging baskets are so pretty and when they hang you kind of miss like 50% of the flowers and plants inside because you just can't see them. So, why not move them down to a plant stand? I saw one of these wooden hanging plant stands at a home last year while I was going to garage sales and I thought it was genius. So come see how I made it my own and now I have this painted wooden hanging plant stand on my front porch to enjoy all 100% of the plant. Now here's hoping I keep it watered so it stays alive!

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Shrimp Hobo Foil Dinner Recipe

One of my most vivid memories as a kid was going to sleep away camp. For the first time ever, I made a meal in foil and cooked it over the campfire. I was so proud of that meal. Pretty sure it was the first thing in my life I had ever cooked. Fast forward now and I've made plenty of meals now, but my favorites are the ones that can be made in one dish, either over the fire in a foil packet or in a sheet pan. This shrimp hobo foil dinner is not only easy to make, it's the perfect summer meal for camping or for an easy clean up backyard BBQ meal. Come get the recipe and put it on your summer list!

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Painting Your Stairway the Easy Way

disclaimer: this post is brought to you by HomeRight. All opinions are 100% my own. 

Paint is one of my favorite ways to transform a room. It doesn't cost a lot of money but it makes a huge impact in a space. That said, painting is not my favorite thing to do. It takes time and some prep work, neither of which I like, but after it's done, the results are long-lasting and I'm always glad I did it. That's not to say that I'm not always looking for an easier way to do it and I think that HomeRight has figured it out for me. Especially when I tackled the stairway in my home recently. I was having panic attacks thinking about our two dogs running through trays of wet paint tracking cute little doggie paws all over our carpet. Not to worry, there was not a single paint tray involved and far less back and forth because of this, the greatest painting invention ever. 

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How to Clean a Front-Loading Washing Machine

This post is brought to you by HomeRight. All opinions are 100% my own.

I transitioned from a top-loader to a front-loader about seven years ago and I haven't really looked back.  I don't love that the front-loading washing machine comes with some cleaning and maintenance, but I do love that it's high-efficiency and it uses less water, which is a big thing since our family of five does a LOT of laundry! So why do you have to clean a front-loading washing machine? Because over time residue from your laundry detergent clings to the inside of your washer, especially to the rubber door seals. Those seals grow mold and mildew and that build-up can create an odor that can cause your washing machine to smell and that smell can even transfer to your clothes. And that my friends is why you need to clean your front-loading washing machine. But how? Well, I'm sharing how I quickly and easily clean my front-loading washer with zero chemicals and little to no elbow grease.

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Antique Fireplace Mantle Update Using Chalk Paint

I do love a good fireplace don't you? I don't know if it's because I grew up in a historic home where every room had a fireplace, but that may have something to do with it. I've watched my share of House Hunters. I get that a fireplace is on a lot of people's wish list, but not every home has one. I want to show you how easy it is to create a faux fireplace mantle that you can decorate and enjoy for every season. 

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DIY Painted Fabric Bench

I see some pretty bad looking pieces at garage sales. It's funny how some fabric can take you back to a certain time period. Pastel florals? Yep, definitely the late 80's and early 90's. It's taken some training, but I have been doing my best to try to see past the current state of a furniture piece and think about what it really could look like with a coat of paint or a nice sanding job. Usually it doesn't take more than a little TLC, and while I have been able to look at some solid wood pieces and think all they needed was a coat of paint, I haven't tried it yet with any upholstered pieces. That is...until now!

I picked up this solid floral bench for just a few bucks. My daughter had been looking for some similar benches to put at the end of her bed {a bed she made with her grandpa last summer-you can find the tutorial here}, with no luck in our budget. When I spotted this one, I thought I would give it a try.

It was so easy and I love the after! You can still see the subtle hint of the pattern through the paint, but it's not the obnoxious floral pattern that every shoulder-padded vest was made out of in the 90's. Come check out how I did it!

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{easy to make} Antler Jewelry Tree Tutorial

{easy to make} Antler Jewelry Tree Tutorial

I have a thing for antlers. They are spread all throughout my house. I love to decorate with them, so when I found a faux antler Christmas tree pick at my local Hobby Lobby, I picked it up. I knew exactly what I wanted to make with it.  I have a lot of small jewelry pieces and sometimes out of sight means out of mind. If I don't have something in front of me, I forget about it. But not now! I can see all my favorite pieces on the DIY faux antler jewelry stand and it's a beautiful art piece too! I'm partnering with HomeRight to share with you how I created this jewelry stand {for under $5!} and how you can too!

I took this faux antler...

and created this DIY faux antler jewelry stand. It's one of my favorite pieces in my master bedroom closet now.  I can't wait to show you how you can make your own too!

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