white vinegar

Last night, my mother stopped by to pick up my little girl for a sleep over. The potent vinegar smell left over from cleaning my counter tops caught her a little off guard. "What's that smell?"

I am not bothered by the smell of vinegar. I use straight white vinegar to clean my counter tops. Others recommend a mixture of white vinegar, lemon and water, but the mixture did not keep. White vinegar is used around the house for a variety of things.

All purpose - white vinegar in a spray bottle
Drain cleaner - 1/2 cup of baking soda followed by 1/2 cup of vinegar
Mold or mildew - straight vinegar
Scouring Powder - baking soda
Toilet bowl cleaner - Mix 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1/2 cup of vinegar. Let sit and then scrub with brush

For my floors (wood and ceramic tile), I use white vinegar diluted in water. I would say this works, but there may be something better. I have also tried making my own laundry detergent and dish washer detergent but they have run there course and I am looking for some new recipes to try. My recipes were Borax free so that may be why I was not seeing the best results. I did not feel that the Borax was the safest to thing to use, so I decided to hold off using it for the time being. I feel the laundry detergent was fine, my husband was very leery of the recipe. And the dish washer detergent did not leave our glass as clear. Here's the recipes I used, maybe the need some tweaking.

Laundry Detergent
1 oz liquid castille soap
1 cup baking soda
1 cup white vinegar

Dishwasher Detergent
1 cup liquid castille soap
1/3 cup salt
1 cup baking soda
1 cup vinegar
40 drops of Grapefruit Seed extract

Dissolve salt and baking soda with a little warm water. Add to 1/2 gallon of water. Then add Castille soap and vinegar. Fill remaining gallon jug up with water. Add Grapefruit Seed extract.

I would love to hear about your natural cleaning recipes. I am also looking for a Brand of natural deodorant that works well. With having the baby in a sling and working up a sweat nursing, the one's I have used in the past are not working. I am also looking a gentle recipe for the baby's clothes and personal care? Please share your experiences!!