Summer means light-coloured clothing, and light-coloured clothing often means stains! You don’t have to resort to harsh, toxic stain removers to lift the stains out, whether they're grass stains, spilled wine, or coffee. We’ve got the guide to easily removing tough stains on all fabrics, from your favourite jeans to light summer dresses.

Pre-Treat

Made with natural ingredients and free from dyes and synthetic fragrances, the WOW Stick uses the power of nature to lift stains out of all fabrics. The WOW Stick contains lemongrass and sweet orange essential oils, which work in combination with the cleansing ingredients to combat any odours caused by the offending stain.
To use, just wet the stained area of fabric, and then rub the WOW Stick onto the stained area. Agitate the stain under water, and repeat until the stain has begun to fade.

Launder

Nellie’s Oxygen Brightener uses the oxygen to penetrate stains, stripping away dirt, odour, and grime – perfect for getting out these pesky stains. The Oxygen Brightener’s chlorine-free formula is colour-safe, septic safe, hypoallergenic, environmentally-friendly and biodegradable, so you can forget about toxic ingredients! Use the Oxygen Brightener along with the Laundry Soda for the ultimate stain-fighting clean. All you need is a tablespoon for a small-sized load, or 3 tablespoons for a large load. Use 3 tablespoons for super-stained clothing.

Dry

Dry your clothes as you normally do – hang dry on the clothes line, or toss into the dryer with your favourite Lamby Wool Dryerballs! We love to use the Scented Wool Dryerball in Simply Fresh to give a subtle, beautiful scent.
No more stains, without using harsh chemicals. Your skin, your clothes, and the Earth will thank you!

Summer is slowly coming to a close, and soon your kids will be spending less time at home and more time in school. This is the perfect opportunity to get your house back to the clean and orderly state it was before school was out for the summer. Every household is different, but we have a checklist for a few things we should all be doing around this time of year, including the tools you’ll need.

Back-to-school clothes inspection

Put on the no-nonsense drill sergeant’s hat for this back-to-school wardrobe makeover. With your child’s help, throw out or donate anything that’s too grungy or small to wear to school again this year. Make a list of what you’ll need when you go back to school shopping in the days ahead (a new sweater, pair of pants, etc.) based on what’s heading out the door.

If school uniforms are part of the program, this is the time to start ordering new sweaters, sweatshirts, and the like.

Any stains, smudges, or plain ol’ dirt? Tackle them with the Nellie’s All-Natural WOW Stick for stains, the Oxygen Brightener for non-bleach brightening and whitening, and - of course - the Laundry Soda for giving everything a deep, natural clean.

Take that momentum and turn to the rest of the house: go through your home and make a list of anything you don’t need anymore (old school supplies, toys, furniture, old appliances, etc.). Either donate these items, sell them, give them away to friends and family, or throw them out. It’s much easier to clean with less clutter in the house!

Tidy the bathrooms

Clean out kids’ bathrooms of last semester’s grooming remnants and restock as needed.
Help the kids clean out their bathrooms of last semester’s hair gels and stretched-out scrunchies. Make sure your son or daughter has everything needed to streamline morning grooming. This is especially important if you’ve got teens. If you have a couple of kids with a shared family bathroom, avoid the “It’s hers!/It’s his!” fights by keeping it simple and taking care of the issues now.

While you're there, have the kids help you with chores by wiping surfaces down with the All Purpose Cleaner while you scrub the toilet with the Toilet Bowl Cleaner.

Create a homework space

Create a homework centre. Choose a place where each child can work in comfort and without distraction. Stock nearby drawers or cabinets with school supplies.

If you already have a place, now's the time to go out with the old and in with the new and plan ahead for paper chaos. Set up ‘in’ and ‘out’ boxes for school papers. Kids can unload backpacks and drop off papers to be checked, signed, etc. in the ‘in’ box. You can leave signed papers, money, permission slips, etc. in the ‘out’ box.

Organize and entryway backpack zone

Create a backpack drop zone near the entry door. They’re going to drop those backpacks the second they’re inside anyway, so be prepared with a place to catch them. Whether that’s in cute storage cubbies or tucked in a closet, a designated space prevents scrambling in the mornings. Be sure to give the lunch boxes a good scrub – use the One Soap for a natural and fresh cleaning.

Time for a shop

Once you have a classroom supplies list, plan a day to go back to school shopping with the kids.
Make a back-to-school shopping checklist of everything the kids would need for school, from anything to classroom supplies to lunch boxes. When you’re home, make sure that everything is neatly labeled with names.

The sun is out, the weather is great, and the kids are at home. Believe it or not, but August is the perfect time to get ready for the end of summer and the beginning of fall. Take advantage of the weather and with the extra hands around the house, and deep clean now to welcome fall and back-to-school (even better). We’ve got an easy to-do list for you, tackling everything from inside to outside and the tools and products you’ll need. Happy cleaning!

INSIDE

• Focus on your home's ‘public’ rooms first: the living room, family room, entryway, guest bathroom, etc.
• Clean from the ceilings down to the floors. Begin by vacuuming the drapes and window treatments, followed by cleaning window sills and window wells. Vacuum baseboards and corners.
• Vacuum upholstered furniture. To get rid of any stains, use the Nellie’s All-Natural WOW Stick, or take to the dry cleaners if necessary.
• Wash interior windows.
• Clean the walls: dust, wash, rinse, and dry any painted or wood-paneled walls with a mix of warm water and Nellie's All-Natural One Soap in Fragrance Free.
• Turn mattresses front-to-back and end-to-end to ensure equal wear.
• Launder all bedding: mattress pads, pillows, duvets, blankets, and comforters, making sure you can tuck the family into warm and cozy beds. Don’t know how to tackle this? Don’t worry, we’ve got some how-to’s for your mattress, pillows, and duvets.
• Straighten out your closets – declutter, reorganize, and switch to your transitional summer-autumn wardrobe.
• Prepare the kitchen for more nights inside: clean and organize kitchen cabinets, paying extra attention to baking supplies, pans, and equipment. Give your cabinets a wipe down with the All Purpose Cleaner.
• Clean kitchen counters of all appliances that you have not been recently used. Clean counters look cleaner, and provide more room for cutting, chopping, and prepping.
• If you can, pull the refrigerator away from the wall and vacuum the condenser coils. For bottom-mounted coils, use a long, narrow brush to clean coils of dust and debris.
• Spruce up the computer: dust the CPU, clean and wipe down the keyboard, and dust off the monitor with a microfibre cloth.
• Check the dryer exhaust tube and vent for built-up lint, debris, or even birds’ nests! Additionally, make sure that the exterior vent door closes tightly when not in use.
• Schedule a fall inspection for your furnace – don’t wait for the first cold night!
• Drain any sediment from your hot water heaters.

OUTSIDE

• Clean the patio furniture and get ready to store it away along with umbrellas and the kids’ summer toys.
• Touch up the paint on your home’s trims, railings, and decks. Use a wire brush to remove any flaking paint (be sure the prime bare wood first).
• Check caulk around the windows and doors, re-caulk if necessary.
• Inspect external doors and garage doors. Do they close tightly? Fix them now with weather-stripping and door thresholds if needed to make sure you’re not dealing with a draft in a few months.
• Wash exterior windows with a mix of warm water and One Soap in Fragrance Free.
• Drain and store garden hoses.
• Check gutters and downspouts. Clear of debris if necessary.

There’s no better day than the when you realize you won’t be needing your thick and heavy sweaters, coats, and boots again this year. Breaking out the summer wardrobe is cause for celebration, but it’s a bad idea to ball up your winter clothes and chuck them into the back of your closet. They’ll sit there for months on end, and since they’re pieces that you invested in they’re worth preserving!

We’ve outlined how to store your winter clothes properly, for the easiest transition possible.

1. Clean everything first.

The biggest and most effective tip is to machine wash or dry clean everything you plan to store before packing it all away. It’s icky, but moths and insects are naturally attracted to our everyday scents, such as food, perfume, deodorant, and smoke, which can linger in the fabrics despite being unnoticeable to you. Using a natural laundry soda, like Nellie's All-Natural Laundry Soda, instead of a chemical detergent, removes odors instead of covering them up with synthetic scents. This is ideal for long-term storage!

2. Remove all of the plastic from your garments.

Never store anything in the dry cleaning plastic it came in. The plastic is ideal for trapping moisture, which can cause fibers to dry out and cause the yellowing of fabric.

3. Invest in plastic storage bins.

You may be tempted to try those as-seen-on-TV plastic vacuum bags, but many experts warn against them since you use a vacuum to suck out all the air, which again dries out the garments. Clothes need to breathe, so plastic bins are fine for non-delicate items like t-shirts, jeans, wool sweaters, or polyester. Just make sure to pack things loosely to ensure optimal air flow.

4. Pack delicates differently.

For your delicate items like silk, organza, or cashmere (or anything that’s just extra special to you), remove them from the dry cleaner’s protective plastic immediately, wrap them in acid-free tissue paper, and place in 100% cotton-canvas storage bags.

5. Don’t hang your sweaters…

If you’re lucky enough to have a spare storage closet, resist the urge to hang your sweaters, as they can become misshapen beyond repair. Alternatively, fold them and place them in your plastic bins of your fabric storage bags with the heaviest garments at the bottom. One thing to remember: don’t shove all of your sweaters into one bin. Air needs to circulate to keep your fabrics fresh and to prevent mildew and mold from forming. You may also want to add cedar-scented panels to keep pests away.

6. …And don’t hang most coats.

Yes, it’s true! Believe it or not, coat storage is more effective when each item is gently folded, instead of hung if the coats are wool, leather, faux fur, or down. First remove everything from the pockets and fasten all snaps, buttons, and zippers, and then gently fold the coat. Then, loosely stack them into boxes, storage bags, or plastic pins. This will help to better retain the shape of your coats than hanging them in the closet.

7. Commit "CCDD" to memory.

This means “cool, clean, dry, and dark.” The last thing you want your storage environment to be is too hot, too dusty, too damp, or too bright.

8. Invest in boot trees.

After spending your hard earned money on beautiful footwear, don’t let the leather or suede break down in your closet! Buying a few boot forms can do wonders when it comes to maintaining the shape of taller boot styles. It’s always best to keep your boot standing upright, but space is often at a premium in your closet, so you can lay them flat on their sides in your plastic bins. Just be sure to condition the, first, and lay some cotton (like an old shirt, pillowcase, or a muslin shoe bag) over each pair to keep them clean.

9. Pack shoes with tissue paper.

If your cold-weather shoes aren’t tall boots, but instead things like ankle booties, pumps, or loafers, loosely packing them with clean tissue paper before storing will help maintain their shape while they sit in storage, but be sure to wipe them down first.

Now you’re all set to swap out the kits for the bikinis, and can look forward to perfectly maintained clothes when Winter rolls back around.