DIY Life

I don't use many store-purchased products to do my cleaning. I always end up with terrible migraines or my lungs hurt from breathing in the cleaning product. When I take the time and effort to make my own cleaning products, life suddenly gets much better and healthier, at least in the cleaning department.

Baking soda, lemons, vinegar, and salt are four items that can basically clean everything in your house, from countertops to clothing. I love making homemade cleaning wipes, knowing that when I use them, I will not suffer the consequences of cleaning. I also like to make my own homemade furniture polish, since, in my opinion, I get a better clean and a better shine with homemade polish.

Grab a lemon out of your fridge and squeeze the juice out of it. If you don't happen to have a lemon, then grab a container of lemon juice and pour out about four tablespoons into a small spray bottle. Mix the lemon juice with three tablespoons water and two teaspoons olive oil. Put the sprayer in the bottle and shake well. You now have an excellent homemade furniture polish. Anytime you want to polish your furniture, you should make a new batch, as the olive oil may become rancid if you only polish your furniture once a month. When I use homemade furniture polish, I use a soft terry cloth instead of paper towel. The cloth just seems to give a better shine to the furniture.

Make your own car shampoo and save a few bucks. It's easy! Remember: there's nothing very magical in the store-bought bottles of car wash solution. All you need is some detergent that will remove dirt and oil residue without damaging paint. Here are some suggestions:

The site MakeYourOwn recommends the following recipe:

• 1 cup liquid dish detergent
• 12 T powdered laundry detergent
• 1 large bucket of water

If, like me, you want to avoid washing any harmful substances into our waterways, here's an environmentally-friendly solution from About.com:

These flower-wrapped candelabras may be a bit tall for use as centerpieces on each table, but depending on your arrangements could work well. Either way, I think they would make extremely elegant centerpieces along the head table.

Floral designer Carolyn Shepard is the designer of this stylish arrangement. She chose deep pinks and reds wrapped around an antique style candelabra. You could follow her instructions and get the same stunning piece, or pull from your own color and style preferences, following her basic how-to, and create centerpieces that are uniquely you. Here's what you'll need to get started.

Nearly all pet owners have a dirty little secret that we all desperately want to keep under wraps: sometimes our perfectly trained, dander & body function free little people actually poop and pee other than in their prescribed locations ...only occasionally of course. Unfortunately, the tell-tale smell from these occasional mishaps can linger, well, forever.

Even after using various pet odor removing products that caution you against using them around animals a faint scent always remains to remind you and spill the beans to your guests that your cat or dog isn't perfect. I learned a simple, 100% effective, and all natural solution to even the foulest of pet odors by applying a little kitchen knowledge.

I really dislike coming home to a stinky house. When I walk in my front door, I fully expect the air to smell wonderful. After all, I am a stay at home mom, and it is my job to make sure my home smells clean and inviting. If it doesn't smell up to par, you can be sure that lil ole me will suffer a hissy fit, while frantically trying to eliminate the odor.

Remnants of last night's supper, yesterday's dirty diapers and that smelly kitty litter box can all be forgotten by making your own air fresheners. Chrisjob over at Curbly.com has compiled a list of things to do with items you should already have stocked in your fridge and pantry. Vinegar makes a great deodorizer. Citrus peels make your garbage disposal smell wonderful. You can make any room smell good by dabbing a few drops of essential oil on a light bulb.

Chrisjob also offers you links on how to make your own potpourri and how to make your own paper air fresheners. I don't know about you, but I need my home to smell wonderful since I am in it almost 24 hours of every day. Taking the time to make sure my home smells inviting to others certainly makes me feel like I am a decent housekeeper, even if there are dirty dishes in the sink.

Play dough is one of those things that parents and kids can sit down together and waste a whole chunk of time just playing around. You are the architect of whatever creation you've got planned for that little chunk of dough. Store bough play dough dries out pretty fast and has that disgusting smell. You know the smell, some of you probably like it because you immediately associate it with the fun of play dough. Still, the homemade stuff lasts way longer and gives you a lot more flexibility with color and fragrance.

Instructables posted this homemade play dough recipe. It's the same one that I've used many times and it works well. I've left out the cream of tar tar a few times and it does decrease the elasticity, so I'd recommend having some on hand.

You've set the date, time and location for your special day. You've debated over and have finally chosen the wedding theme that suits your personality. Now what about the invitations? Being the frugal DIY'er that you are, you can make your own memorable and much more personal wedding invitations that can save you quite a bit of money.

You can do something unique that won't look like the same invite that everyone else is doing. Homemade invitations can symbolize the special love that you and your soon-to-be spouse share. If you get stumped, there are many articles on how to make your own. wikiHow gives a great article with steps and tips on how to make cheap homemade wedding invitations. If you need help coming up with more ideas, enter 2n-invite.com. They have a free printable wedding template for you and free, printable unique wedding invitations, wording ideas, and hints on how to come up with a unique verse.

Making your own wedding invitations certainly does not mean you are being cheap. I think it is sweet and romantic. Plus, there is the advantage on how much money you will save. If you think it will be too much of a hassle and too time consuming to make your own invites, just think of that little fact. Money. You could splurge on something else for your special day with the money you save when you create your own special invitations that people will be sure to remember for years to come.

Have you ever gotten your baby up in the morning only to find that her butt looks as red as Santa's nose? This often happened with my oldest child. She would sleep right through a bowel movement, but scream bloody murder in the morning. Many of the baby rash ointments just wouldn't do the job of making her little butt happy again. I decided to try some things and make my own butt paste and see if this would help ease her (and my) agony.

Ingredients:

• Vaseline
• Cornstarch
• Non creamy Desitin
• Maalox

Mix 1/2 cup Vaseline and half of the tube of Desitin. Add about 2 tablespoon cornstarch. Mix again. Add about 2 tablespoons of Maalox. Add more cornstarch or the other ingredients if necessary to bring the mixture to a more pasty consistency.

The result will be a white greasy paste that should be used at every diaper change until the rash is 90 % gone. Then switch to pure cornstarch. Cornstarch absorbs the moisture and will effectively eliminate the diaper rash.

Using Maalox in the mix will eliminate the red bleeding diaper rash and neutralize the acid that is causing that sensitive little baby butt to burn. The cornstarch will also do the same. This mix cuts a nasty diaper rash healing time.

Store in an airtight container so that the mix lasts a long time and will not dry out before your little one gets another bad rash. Don't forget to label the container so that it doesn't end up as a cracker spread by someone who thinks it might be a tasty treat.

I like pretty much everything that makes my life easier when it comes to the job of cleaning. Since I have been cleaning everything with everyday items I have in my home, like baking soda, lemons, and vinegar, I decided that I would get away from buying commercial wipes and make my own. Homemade wipes smell better, are cheaper, and are generally free of harsh chemicals. Here's how:

I love laundry starch. It makes ironing so much easier. However, store-bought starch often can damage old linens or have a synthetic that does not decompose. Good news: it's super easy to make homemade ironing starch with natural ingredients that easily decomposes.

1 pint cool water
1 tablespoon corn starch

Dissolve corn starch into water and put into spray bottle. You can use other starches as well, but corn starch is most convenient. Also, the best kind of corn starch is organic starch since it doesn't have the extra chemicals that come with generic corn starch.

Regardless of what starch you use, make sure to shake before each use to redissolve the starch. If you don't plan on using it often, make small amounts or refrigerate the unused portion; however, make sure to let the mixture return to room temperature before you use it. See? I told you it was easy.

Becoming a parent means that your life will never be the same. Having a child comes with bigger financial responsibilities and if you are on a tight budget, means sometimes feeling a little overwhelmed. Finding alternatives to basic baby needs can help a family that might be struggling harder than before the baby came along. That was my case when our first born came along 4 years ago. It was even tougher when we had another child 2 years later. But a personal friend was kind enough to give me a tip on how her sister made her own baby wipes, thus saving quite a bit of money each week. By choosing name brand baby products for your materials, the end result will be quality homemade baby wipes.

The first thing you need is a good roll of paper towel. I use Bounty paper towels because they are soft and gentle. Find a towel you like, get it wet, wash your face with it, and if you are happy with the result, then you now have the paper towel you will use to take care of that little baby butt. Remember, if it doesn't feel good on your face, it sure won't feel good on their bare bottom.

Cut your roll of paper towels in half, using an electric knife. Pull out the cardboard and place a half roll into a round air tight plastic container, or an empty baby wipe box. Sometimes it is hard to get the cardboard out, so I take a large chef knife and work my way around the cardboard, cutting the paper away so that the cardboard easily pulls out. If you are careful and take your time, the paper should not tear.