This house has the first tiled shower that we’ve ever had (usually it’s the one-piece white plastic shower situation), and I’ve noticed that the tile and grout seem to have a much greater potential for mildew buildup than the other showers did. The shower also has a dark, multi-colored brown tile (not my favorite as you can imagine), which makes it extra hard to spot mildew buildup as it appears (I used Elsie’s beautiful new shower for the pics in this post though – isn’t it dreamy?). Thankfully, you can use a shower spray between each shower to help cut down on bacteria growing in the shower and have longer periods between more deep cleanings. And the best part of making this shower spray at home is that it’s all natural too!
1 cup water
1 cup white distilled vinegar
10 drops tea tree essential oil* (You can add a few drops of lemon essential oil* to this too if you want a lemony fresh smell.)
spray bottle (you can use a cute plant mister or a larger spray bottle as well)
*Note: There is debate over certain animals (cats especially) coming in contact with too much of certain essential oils like lemon and tea tree. To be honest, there is a very wide range of opinions on what is safe or not safe, so make sure to look up what essential oils you want to use and see if they are OK for your pets. If you are nervous about using the oils in this recipe, then no biggie! Just use the water and vinegar and you will still have a wonderful natural spray that will just be a bit stronger on the vinegar smell.)
Credits // Author and Photography: Laura Gummerman.
22 Comments
This is such a good tip, I will definitely try this. And the bootle just looks amazing, I have to get one!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
I use sooo much tea tree oil, it is insane 🙂
Your spray bottle is so cute! Love the recipe.
We have a new shower with white tile, too, and it’s a whole different ball game! Preventative maintenance is a great idea though! I’ve also recently gotten into essential oils and love the uses they have beyond just smelling great. Will definitely have to give this a try.
-Molly
http://www.modcircus.com
I’ve been meaning to make something like this – when I do a thorough cleaning I literally just shake a bunch of baking soda all over my tub and shower and scrub away, but I am too lazy to do this often.
Oh man, though, your spray bottle is adorable but it must be such a pain to spritz the entire shower with that little thing! I will have to bow to function over fashion and reuse an older cleaner bottle. 🙂
I’ve been wanting to use less chemicals in my home as well. Thanks for sharing this!
Laura
http://laurelandfern.com/
For a deep clean, I use hot water, vinegar, and dawn dish soap. Not totally natural, but it gets the job done and is less caustic than the usual shower cleaner fare!
I absolutely hate cleaning the shower, for some reason it’s just one of those tasks that always gets neglected in my home. I really need to make something like this to keep close by so it stays cleaner and I can stay lazy a little longer 🙂 I’ve been moving towards cleaning with mostly vinegar and essential oils so this recipe is perfect. Love the spray bottle, I may need to order one of those! 😀
Love that cute plant mister, and natural cleaners. Thanks!
Lovely idea. I’m excited to look around at your blog more.
Thanks for sharing.
Having a nice clean shower is the best! I love the spray bottle!
http://www.thebeautydojo.com
Just about to mix some of this up 😉
Amy | http://www.yankified.com
Where is the jar from?
I really want to move towards using more natural products. I tend to try and use natural products on myself so it makes sense to use them when cleaning my home as well. And this looks super easy to do!
eloue.blogspot.co.uk
A generation and more, so much on the market was natural, organic. Vinegar cleans; vinegar also deodorizes.
Vinegar and lemon/lime juice have been in my cleaning cabinet for a while, and tea tree oil has been in my medicine chest for a while, but I never thought to combine the two. It’s a great idea, given the antimicrobial properties of tea tree oil.
And as a random aside, I have that exact same plant spritzer in silver!
Thank you so much for all the time and effort required to share your amazing and beneficial posts. My Mother was a huge fan of throwing bleach all around the house (and any pesky intruders as well), as a result I have an allergy to bleach products and have had to come up with safe, organic solutions. The use of Tea tree oil is a game changer!
How was it?
This is so great! Thanks for sharing a natural shower cleaner I will definitely be putting this to use =o)
https://dreamofadventures.blogspot.com
Hey guys!
I won’t reccomend getting essential oils from amazon, since you don’t know how long have they been storaged and if they were in the right conditions. Essential oils must not be exposed to heat, sun or high temperatures, plus their packaging must be a thick well closed brown glass. I’m an argentinian designer huge fan of beautiful mess, and essential oils and natural products now living in miami.
Check my essential products website, for me this are THE BEST ESSENTIAL OILS in the market. It’s a swiss brand hope it helps!
http://www.swissjustusa.com/essentialsjust
facebook.com/essentials.just
Have you ever tries Swiss just products? They also have a tea tree cream!
http://www.swissjustusa.com/essentialsjust
Will this work for a shower door that has a film on it do to hard well water? My daughter-in-law has tried EVERYTHING WITH NOOOO LUCK.
WOULD APPRECIATE ANY INFo on this. She needs to use a pumice stone to get the ring off the commode.
Thank You–Patricia