Getting Crafty: DIY Cleaning Wipes

Hey everyone! One of the things I want to incorporate into this project is homemade items. I love making things. It really doesn't matter what it is as long as I can say I made it. Those of you who came to my graduation party in December will remember my Christmas tree with the 30+ handmade rosettes. I just think homemade items add a touch of charm to a room, and I really want to bring more crafts into my decor. 

While some crafts simply look cute, I love nothing more than a handmade item that is not only adorable, but is also practical and saves you money. Today's project, in my mind, fits the bill.

How to Make Your Own Cleaning Wipes

Materials:

• 1 roll of paper towels.
  I chose an off-brand type with the pick-your-size perforations. That way I won't go through the wipes as fast.

• 2 large resealable containers.
  I used these: 

• 1 large kitchen knife.
  I used a serrated one, and it made a huge mess. I would go with a regular, non-serrated blade if I were you.
•  2 cleaners of your choice.
  I wanted to make a general, multipurpose cleaner as well as some window cleaner, so I chose lavender-scented Pine-Sol and Windex.

• 1/2 cup measuring cup

• Con-tact paper

• A Sharpie

• Decorative scissors

Method:

1. Use your knife to cut the roll of paper towels in half. Do not attempt to remove the cardboard tube at this time.

2. Stuff one half of the roll into each canister. Do not worry if it is a tight fit; when you remove the cardboard roll, there will be more room.

Before:

After:

3. Measure out your cleaning solution and pour the contents into the canister. For my multipurpose cleaner, I used 1 cup of Pine-Sol and 2 cups of water. This made a pretty strong solution, and was more liquid than I really needed, so you could reduce the amount pretty easily. For my window cleaner, I just used 2 cups of straight Windex. You could dilute your solution or make one from scratch, but Windex is one of my favorite cleaners (my fish tanks made clean glass a bit of an obsession for me), so I just went with that.
4. Remove the cardboard tube from the center of each roll. Now that they are soggy, they should come right out.
5. Pull the center paper towel up. This is your first wipe!
6. Make your wipes labels. I tried to print a fancy label onto my Con-Tact paper, but it just smeared. I then got over it and used a Sharpie. It worked just fine. I cut my labels out with some fancy craft scissors to achieve a pretty edge.

7. Stick your labels on the appropriate containers, and then you are done! I would wait at least 15 minutes to let the solution soak into the paper towels. I rotated mine a few times to ensure even coverage.

YAY!!

Results:

To test the Windex wipes, I cleaned my bathroom mirror. I used about 5 wipes for the whole thing (the mirror is pretty huge). I also couldn't remember the last time I cleaned that mirror, so it was pretty bad. I should have taken before photos, but I didn't. Sorry. Needless to say, the wipes worked perfectly! There was no smearing, minimal lint (and I think most of that was just dust), and all the toothpaste and water marks came right up!

To test the multipurpose wipes, I cleaned my stovetop. It wasn't too bad to begin with, but it did have some food spots that I had neglected to wipe off from the other night. I used one wipe, and the stove was spotless. As an added bonus, my kitchen now smells like lavender.

Conclusion:

Overall, I feel like this first attempt at cleaning wipes was a huge success. I am super happy with the outcome. In my tutorial, I mentioned the things I would do differently. I would use a non-serrated blade, and I would use less solution for the multipurpose cleaner. Other than that, I don't think I would really change much.

In the future, I would like to try making my own facial cleansing wipes. I have smaller containers, so maybe I could make three different kinds, or give two to friends. If you have any other ideas for wipes, leave  a comment below!

Final notes:

I've seen several tutorials out there for these wipes, so there are many different cleaning recipes to try. Check out Cynthia Ewer's tutorial HERE. I found hers to be quite helpful.

Each time I find one of my attempted crafts to be remotely successful, I plan on posting a tutorial either on here or on my YouTube channel, depending on what it is. I have several planned already, so stay tuned and hit that subscribe button!

Cleaning the Tanks

Hey everyone! Today I decided to tackle two of the major features in my living room: my fish tanks. Instead of a long post about how to clean an aquarium, check out this video:

Thanks for watching! Don't forget to subscribe here and on my Youtube channel, MissOddi. You can also follow me on Twitter @MissOddi.

And....... Update!

Nine days have passed since my last post, and my house is nearly unrecognizable! Last Sunday, I finished the kitchen. I reorganized every cabinet, washed out the refrigerator, and made my pantry actually functional for a change. I removed at least six bags of trash/random stuff I don't need, and one big pile of pots and pans is set aside for Goodwill.
Here's the best part: my kitchen is STILL clean. I've even used my kitchen and it is still clean. In fact, I made a huge mess this morning while making French toast for my boyfriend, and it was clean an hour later. I really feel like this change is actually working. My kitchen is more organized, so cleaning it only takes a few minutes now. I'm super excited about my shiny sink and spotless counters.
If you haven't seen it already, check out the video I posted last week about my completed kitchen:

My current project consists of three rooms: the living room, rec room, and my bathroom. I chose to tackle these three rooms at the same time because the messes are all quite similar. The majority of the mess in these three rooms is made up of laundry, trash, and dishes. So, unlike the kitchen where I moved from one cabinet to the next, I'm taking a divide and conquer approach to this project. I've made a list (sticky notes are perfect for cleaning lists) of what I want to clean up, and I am cleaning all three rooms simultaneously. For instance, first I went through each room and picked up all the dishes. Next, I went after the trash. I've been sick for most of the week, so the going is slow. However, I am making progress. All three rooms look much better. In fact, I really just need to start wiping things down and cleaning the floors. Assuming I don't have yet another migraine (three in three days last week), that is the plan for tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be posting another video as well.

So I know it isn't much, but here's my update: The kitchen is clean, and I'm still cleaning. Yay!

Operation Clean Kitchen

So my kitchen really wasn't too bad to start with. I had some dishes piled up in the sink and some mail on the table. Not really that big a deal. Here's the catch: my kitchen goes from "not bad" to "holy crap where is the floor/counter/kitchen" in about two seconds flat. The reason for this: it isn't organized very well.

As part of this growing up process, I am moving from room to room within my house and completely reorganizing them. Last night, I started with the kitchen. In the space of eight hours or so, I managed to empty out half of my cabinets, line them with new, green shelf liner, and put them back in (a better) order. After making sure my sink was shiny (a tip from the Fly Lady and a small victory for myself), I called it quits around midnight, promising to start back up again first thing in the morning.

Unfortunately, one of the side effects of working in childcare is that you wake up sick quite often. This morning, I woke up feeling like I had swallowed a box of knives. Not the best way to start the morning. I popped some handy dandy cold medicine and pain pills and crashed on the couch until they kicked in and the drowsiness began to wear off. It is now 2:20 pm, a whole five hours after I got up, and I just now returned to my kitchen project. 

Today's plan of attack is as follows:

1. Take out trash.
   Quick tip: I have about a billion pizza and soda boxes to take out with two bags of trash from yesterday. Instead of making multiple trips, I just rip each box up into small pieces and stick them in one of the bags. Anything to make one of my most hated chores a little more bearable.
2. Clean off counters and table.
   I made a huge mess yesterday, and I want to fix things up a bit before I destroy the kitchen for the second time in 48 hours.
3. Tackle lower cabinets.
   Most of these have pots and pans in them right now. I need to come up with a way to keep them organized so I don't go crazy. I also need to organize and clean out underneath the sink. I'm not looking forward to that.
4. Tackle drawers.
   Of the six drawers in my kitchen, three of them are junk drawers. My objective for today: only have one junk drawer, and make it as empty as possible.
5. Clean out refrigerator and freezer.
   I'm not a fan of this, but there is a lot of stuff in there that just needs to go. I either can't or won't eat about 80% of what is in there. Why let it take up space?
6. Tackle pantry.
   I need to assess what I have, and what I need. I also want to move all the extra kitchen stuff that I have in my living room closet into the pantry, meaning I need to declutter and find a way to make space.
7. Clear off counters again.
   I'm sure I've turned them back into little disaster areas by this point.
8. Sweep and mop floors.
9. Done!

 Before I get to work, I wanted to share a handy cleaning tip I learned yesterday. When I cleaned out my lazy susan last night, I found the copper shelves to be covered in dried vegetable oil. Dawn and regular kitchen cleaner wouldn't take it off. The solution? Baking soda. Use a little baking soda on a damp sponge and, with a little elbow grease, the dried oil comes right off! Now my lazy susan is clean and functional! Anyways, it's time to get started. Wish me luck!


P.S. In case you didn't see it already, here's my "Not a New Year's Resolution" video. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button!

Not a New Year's Resolution

In the last 24 hours, I've made some significant decisions about how I want to live my life. Currently I live a life of complete chaos. Aside from work, I have no real schedule, no set routine. Consequently I have allowed myself to get by without any real responsibility as well. That is about to change.

I'm 22. I have graduated from college, I am in a committed relationship, and I live in my own house. I am a grownup in every sense of the word. It is time I start acting like it. I am done with excuses. I have time now, and I finally have the energy. It is time for me to grow up and get organized.

Confession: my home is a disaster zone 99.9% of the time. I haven't cleaned my bedroom since last March. I'm not joking. The rest of my house is in fairly decent shape at the moment, but that is only because I had to keep it clean for company during the holidays. Most of the time, I don't bother with it either. I'm sick of living in this pit, however. Instead of cleaning my house for family and friends, I am going to keep it clean for myself.

This is not a New Year's resolution.This is me recognizing that it is time for me to grow up and start taking responsibility for my life. I'm in the process of finding my first "real" job. If I can't take myself seriously, why would an interviewer?

So here we are. I'm ready to make some changes. I do not expect a rapid, overnight transformation, but I do expect myself to treat this project as seriously as I used to treat school. To keep myself accountable, I plan on documenting my progress here on my blog as well as on my Twitter feed (@MissOddi) and Youtube channel (MissOddi). Stay tuned as I reorganize my home and revamp my life!