Aug 17, 2019

Vinegar - A Must Have In Your House

It's Saturday morning. A time when we all should be in bed. But I'm up, bright eyed and bushy tailed😜, because I'm going on a trip today...haha. How does this fit in with my 'uses for vinegar topic' you might ask? It doesn't actually, but I'm so excited I just had to put it in. Anyway tell you more about that after I go.

So, I've always heard about the many uses of vinegar but was skeptical at first. Frankly I didn't quite like the smell, so for years I kept ignoring the 'little man in my head' that kept saying...'try me, try me'... each time I looked at a vinegar bottle. I did my research, many years too late, but nevertheless, as the old adage goes...'it's never too late for a shower of rain'...well in my case, and maybe yours, it's never too late for some bottles of plain white distilled vinegar.

What can I say, I tried it a few years ago and I am hooked. It's cheaper, environmentally friendly and so very versatile. So I've decided to share with you my top 5 uses for vinegar. Feel free to drop a comment and let me know how you use it.

MY TOP 5 USES

1. Laundry Oh the joys of using less or no fabric softener...fresher smelling cloths, no fears of an allergic reaction and money saved. I am happy. I add a cup of white distilled vinegar to my medium or large rinse load (use smaller or larger amounts depending on your load size). It also helps to remove the lint from your clothing, especially dark clothes. I find that it also helps to remove that pesky little soap scum that can be left on your clothing during the rinse cycle. Furthermore it leaves your clothing smelling naturally fresh...which can be great for us extremely allergy sensitive individuals who end up with sinus issues due to the strong smells emanating from some of these fabric softeners. And last but by no means least. For those whiter whites, just add a cup full to your wash cycle along with some baking soda and let your laundry soak for about 30 minutes. If you have time to spare let them soak over night...Marvelous!!!

2. Floor Cleaner

Mix equal parts of water and vinegar and wipe away. You can also add a few drops of your favourite essential oil to the mix.

Want to jazz it up a bit. Add some citrus peels, like orange or lemon - whatever smell you like - to undiluted vinegar and soak for about two weeks in a glass jar. Remove citrus peels and strain off any unwanted particle and store in a glass jar. When ready to use, just mix equal parts with water and clean away.

3. Removing Salt from Salted/Cured Meats When cooking salted/cured meats such as codfish or mackerel, we tend to boil and boil and boil. When all we need to do is soak the meat in a water and vinegar mixture overnight and then cook for a few minutes the next morning. Or, if you are on the semi-lazy side like me, just add it to the boiling water. Depending on how much salt you want to remove, you may want to throw off the first set and add fresh plain water to the second boil.

4. Removing Pesticides and Unknowns from your Vegetables I soak my green leafy veggies in cold water with a 1/4 cup, or less, of vinegar added to remove any pesticides, dirt or bacteria from the vegetables. Read more at http://goodgreenhabits.com

5. Use as an after shave for your underarm Most people may read this last one and say 'what the heck' and maybe that's because that's what I said the first time I saw it too. So of course I had to try it...what could it hurt anyway! And so far I think it works. I usually wax, but sometimes I use the depilatory creams or a regular shaving cream and shaver. When I use the depilatory creams they tend to have this weird chemical smell and sometimes they itch. What do I do? I simple put some undiluted vinegar on a cotton swab and use it to wipe under my arms. It removes the 'chemical' smell immediately and I don't have any itching afterwards. Not to worry the vinegar smell dissipates very quickly.

That's it folks...my top 5 favourite uses for vinegar.

But for more interesting stuff you can head on over to One Good Thing By Jillee and check out her list, 50 Amazing Uses For Vinegar That You’ll Want To Know.

Check out the video below as well.