Cleaning Recipes

This is a super easy (and inexpensive!) way to make your own dish soap. You can customize it with whatever essential oils you like.

• Castile soap
• Water
• 10-15 drops lemon essential oil (If you would prefer to use a different essential oil, that’s fine! Any type of citrus is especially good for cleaning ability, and it will smell amazing. Check out this Citrus Essential Oil Kit to give you options to find your perfect blend.)
• Container to keep soap in

1. Add essential oil to the container you’re using.
2. Following the water dilution ratio on the Castile soap bottle (for Dr. Bronner’s Castile soap, the ratio is one part soap to 10 parts water), fill your container with the appropriate amount of water.
3. Add the soap and give the container a swirl to combine.

Does your couch need a refresher? Does your dog’s bed need a pick-me-up? Does your car smell like sports equipment? Do those running shoes need a spritz and a prayer? We all have those things that are harboring a less-than-pleasant smell, but if you’re like me, you don’t want to use a chemically-laden brand fabric refresher to do it. (Honestly, since giving up chemicals five years ago, even the slightest whiff of those things give me a headache!)

Fortunately, making your own healthy, chemical-free spray only takes two minutes of your time and you get the smells that appeal to you the most.

• Glass spray bottle
• 1/2 cup witch hazel or vodka
• Distilled water
• 40 drops of tea tree essential oil (If you want to use a different essential oil, that’s fine! Any essential oil that has antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antiviral qualities are recommended as they will kill the tiny organisms that cause the bad smells. Solve the problem, don’t just mask the symptom! Good alternative choices are lemon, cinnamon, thyme, geranium, peppermint, lavender, and Thieves.)

1. Pour the witch hazel/vodka into the glass spray bottle. (Use a funnel if necessary.)
2. Put a total of 40 drops of the essential oil(s) of your choice into the bottle.
3. Fill the rest of the bottle with distilled water.
4. Shake to combine before use.

I absolutely love this all-purpose cleaning spray. I use it to clean everything: kitchen, bathroom, windows…everything! I sometimes even use it to freshen the dog beds!

It’s a very easy spray to make, and it will last you a long time.

If you don’t have any Thieves Household Cleaner, don’t worry! We have another spray that you can make that’s just as effective. Click here for that recipe!

• Dark amber glass spray bottle
• Young Living’s Thieves Household Cleaner
• Water

1. Combine the water and Thieves Household Cleaner in your spray bottle. You’re aiming for a ratio of about 30:1 (30 parts water to 1 part Thieves Household Cleaner).
2. Don’t stress about getting the ratio exactly right. If you use a 32-ounce bottle like I do, add about an ounce and a little bit of Thieves Household Cleaner, then fill the rest of the bottle with water. For a 16-ounce bottle, add about 1/2-3/4 ounce of Thieves Household Cleaner and fill the rest of the bottle with water.
3. Shake well before using, then spray and wipe. You can test in an inconspicuous area first if you’re worried about damaging anything.

This is a great cleaning spray you can make to keep your kitchen counters, bathroom, and windows clean. Remember to test on an inconspicuous place before using.

• Glass spray bottle
• Thieves essential oil blend
• Emulsifier (Castile soap, solubol, or Witch Hazel)
• Water

1. Combine 5-7 drops Thieves essential oil per 1/2 ounce of water. If that’s too strong, reduce to 5-7 drops per ounce of water.
2. Shake well and spray.
3. If you’d like to use an emulsifier, you can add a few drops of Castile soap or solubol. Alternately, you can use a 1:1 ratio of Witch Hazel to Thieves as an emulsifer.

Click here to learn how to make your own Thieves essential oil blend!

If you’re looking for a safe, effective, and non-toxic laundry detergent, look no further! This amazing recipe only takes a few simple ingredients, and it’s great for your clothes, great for you, and great for the environment!

• 1.5 gallon container
• 1/4 cup washing soda
• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1/4 cup castile soap
• 50-100 drops of tea tree essential oil (Tea tree is a great choice because of all its anti-all-the-bad-stuff abilities. Lemon, lavender, and/or eucalyptus are also amazing!)
• Water

1. Add the washing soda and baking soda to your container.
2. Fill the rest of the container with warm water.
3. Once the water is added, pour in the soap and add your essential oil(s).
4. Before each use, give the container a gentle stir or swirl.
5. Use 1/4 – 1/3 cup per load.

You may need to stir the detergent every so often as the sodas may rest on the bottom if not dissolved enough.

This cleaner is crazy effective! It’s removed red wine and cat poop stains from tan carpets, jelly stains from the grey couch, and more. It does use hydrogen peroxide, so make sure to spot-test it first to make sure it doesn’t bleach out your carpet (it shouldn’t, but better safe than sorry, right?).

• 16 ounces of 3% hydrogen peroxide
• 1 tsp castile soap
• 1 tsp baking soda
• Spray bottle

1. Pour all of the ingredients into a spray bottle.
2. Gently shake the bottle to combine ingredients.
3. For use immediately.

As you probably know, the Thieves essential oil blend is absolutely incredible (if you haven’t heard of Thieves, check out our article about its benefits and how to use it!). Many essential oil companies have their own proprietary Thieves blend, but if you don’t want to pay for that (and it can certainly be expensive), then why not make your own?

• 12 drops of cinnamon bark essential oil
• 25 drops of clove essential oil
• 8 drops of eucalyptus essential oil
• 20 drops of lemon essential oil
• 6 drops of rosemary essential oil
• 2 ounce amber glass bottle (with a dropper)

1. Add the oils to the amber bottle and shake to combine.
2. Use anytime you want to take advantage of these amazing oils. Just remember to shake before each use!

Here at Mother Nature’s Truths, we love to give you options! So, here’s another variation on the recipe to make your own Thieves essential oil blend. Whether you use this recipe or the recipe directly above this one, making your own Thieves blend is an amazing way to harness the power of some incredible essential oils.

• 20 drops of cinnamon essential oil
• 40 drops of clove essential oil
• 15 drops of eucalyptus essential oil
• 35 drops of lemon essential oil
• 10 drops of rosemary essential oil
• 2 ounce amber glass bottle (with a dropper)

1. Add the oils to the amber bottle.
2. Shake before each use.
3. Use as often as you like to get the benefits of these amazing oils!

These handy wipes are an amazing alternative to those chemical-laden disinfecting kitchen wipes? I love using them to keep my bathrooms and kitchen clean without worrying about the potential side effects from conventional cleaning wipes.

If you’d prefer to use vinegar and essential oils, check out our recipe for that here!

• Container to hold your wipes (a large glass jar, or even an old wipes container or baby wipes container, work well—just make sure your container has a leak-proof lid)
• Package of coffee filters (when I can, I like to buy unbleached filters)
• ¼ cup Thieves Household Cleaner OR 25-30 drops of  Thieves blend (if you don’t have thieves, you can use lemon or tea tree)
• 4-6 cups water (preferably distilled)
• Note: If using the essential oil instead of the Thieves Household Cleaner, you’ll need to add an emulsifier. I like to use a few drops of Castile soap as an emulsifier, but you can also use Witch Hazel (if using Witch Hazel, try using a 1:1 ratio of Witch Hazel to oil).

1. Fill your container about halfway full with the water.
2. If using the Thieves Household Cleaner, add it to the water.
3. If using the essential oils, combine them with the emulsifier, mix, then add them to the water.
4. Put the lid on and shake well to combine.
5. Add the coffee filters (the amount of filters you add will depend on the size of your container).
6. Press them down until all of them are covered with the solution.
7. Put the lid back on, turn the container upside down, and let it sit upside down for a few minutes to make sure that all the filters get a chance to soak up the solution.
8. Turn the container back upright. Store in a cool, dry place (I usually store these under my kitchen sink for convenience).

Did you know there’s a super easy, effective, inexpensive alternative to those chemical-laden disinfecting kitchen wipes? These convenient wipes will help you keep your house clean without all the nasty side effects that can come with conventional wipes.

 If vinegar and essential oils aren’t your jam, check out our recipe for DIY Thieves Essential Oil wipes here!

• Container to hold your wipes (a large glass jar, or even an old wipes container or baby wipes container, work well—just make sure your container has a leak-proof lid)
• Package of coffee filters OR microfiber cloths (cut to fit your container)
• ½ cup white vinegar
• ½ cup water (preferably distilled)
• 15-20 drops essential oil (tea tree, lemon, or Thieves blend. Click here to learn how to make your own Thieves essential oil!) 

1. Combine all the liquid ingredients and shake or mix to combine (I usually do this in a mason jar, but a Tupperware container or some other container with a leak-proof lid works well too).
2. Put your cloths or coffee filters into the container you want to store the wipes in. How many you use will depend on the size of your container.
3. Pour your vinegar/water/oil solution over the cloths or filters.
4. Close the container, then shake it well to make sure all the wipes are saturated. If you have a large container and your wipes aren’t saturated, you may need to make another batch of liquid solution. You want the wipes to be covered, but you don’t need a ton of excess liquid. (That being said, having extra solution in your container won’t hurt anything!)
5. I usually store the container under the sink so it’s easy for me to get to when I need it. Whenever you need a wipe, just pull one out and use! If you used coffee filters, throw them away after each use. If you used cloths, you can wash and reuse them (coating them in solution first, of course).