Saving Trees… One Cloth at a Time

Saving Trees… One Cloth at a Time

Norwex Paper Towel Alternative

Once we learn something is important, it is impossible to keep it to ourselves!

Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. 

Teaching and educating is my passion! My desire is to stir a ‘proactive spirit’ in people regarding their choices and the danger of harmful chemicals.  Many people are not aware that what they are currently using is harmful to our environment.

University of Bergen Study

The University of Bergen in Norway recently performed a study of 6000 people over a 20 year period, who had regular exposure to cleaning products. It was found that their lung function had been significantly affected as much as a person who had smoked a pack-a-day for 20 years as well as put them at a 40% higher risk of developing asthma.

The study revealed was that “the small particles from the spray [cleaners] can remain in the air for hours after cleaning. The small particles can travel deep into the lungs and cause infections and ageing of the lungs” Dr. Svanes explains.   Dr. Svanes, the main author of the study, recommends “You [do] not need a lot of chemicals after all, when cleaning. Microfiber cloths may be just as effective.

Norwex performed chamber tests to compare the number of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs or small particles) released by chemical spray cleaners and paper towel vs. Norwex Microfiber cloths and water.  The results were AMAZING!!!  Traditional chemical cleaners released 800 times the VOCs than Norwex products!  There is no need for dusting sprays, room deodorizers, artificial fragrances, floor cleaners, all-purpose cleaning sprays… when you have a Norwex EnviroCloth and water!

Problem: Paper Towel

Let me share some information about the truth about paper towel consumption in North America… and how Norwex provides a solution.

  • On average, a person uses and disposes of 2,400 – 3,000 paper towels every year.
  • Paper towels are used in 90% of households.
  • The average family of 4 uses about 26 rolls of paper towels a year. That’s an annual expense of approximately $91 for a single-use, throwaway item that is clogging our landfills!
  • Paper towel creates 13 billion pounds of waste every year! That works out to a whopping 3,000 tons of waste daily… comparable to the weight of 1650 economy cars!!!
  • Most are made from virgin tree fibre and used only once.
  • One paper towel is often not enough for many jobs, and some brands are even bleached with harmful chlorinated compounds—not good for your family or the environment.
  • Residential dwellings are the largest contributor to pollution, not industrial.
  • Long-term exposure to many of the cleaning products you use in your home every day has cancer-causing potential.
  • What does it take to produce just 1 ton of paper towels? Approximately, 17 trees and 20,000 gallons of water!
  • In North America, we have a huge paper towel habit.  3,000 tons of paper towel waste is produced every day and accounts for the consumption of approximately 51,000 trees and 60 million gallons of water!
  • Paper towels, even when made of recycled materials still produce an environmental impact. The recycling process still uses water, energy and chemicals.
  • If everyone cut back by one sheet of paper towel per day, it would save North America 571,230,000 pounds of paper towel waste, every year.  Now imagine, if, one-by-one, households began to eliminate paper towel waste altogether…what kind of impact would we see then?

Solution: 4 Norwex Cloths

Norwex is a company that provides solutions for problems like paper towel.  Let me highlight a few different eco-friendly Norwex products you could use to replace your paper towel.

EnviroCloth

The EnviroCloth is Norwex’s flagship product!!! The microfiber cloth has the ability to remove 99% of bacteria from a surface when following the proper care and use instructions. It contains Norwex’s exclusive Baclock™ agent – micro silver antibacterial agent – goes to self-purify and inhibits odours from bacteria, mold and mildew growth within the cloth within 24 hours so that it is ready to use again. The microfibers in the EnviroCloth are 1/200th the size of a human hair and if unravelled, have a maximum length of more than 3 million meters (10 million feet).  The splitting process that happens during manufacturing creates open spaces in the fibres and enables the cloth to lift away dust and dirt and absorb serval times its own weight in water. And it only needs water to clean; no cleaner, chemicals or sprays required.

Doesn’t that sound better than a disposable paper towel??Norwex Cloth

Window Cloths

Window Cloths are designed to be used with the EnviroCloth. Once you have cleaned a surface with an EnviroCloth, use a Window Cloth to polish it to a streak-free shine. No paper towel or window spray required. If you love clean windows, but hate how long it takes, the EnviroCloth and Window Cloth will take 50% less time to clean and leave you with better results. The Window Cloth or ‘polishing cloth’ is constructed of tightly woven Norwex microfiber with the self-purifying Baclock™ agent, is lint-free, traps dust and grime in the cloth so your surface is cleaner, only needs water so there is no “chemical muck” left behind. This cloth will change your cleaning regime.

Counter Cloths

Norwex Counter ClothNorwex introduced Counter Cloths as a great alternative to paper towel.  They are the same size as a half-sheet paper towel, come in beautiful colours, are made from 50% recycled materials, have a super-absorbent unique new weave for quick spill clean up. These beauties are perfect for your kitchen and bathroom.  They even have Norwex’s self-purifying Baclock™ agent in the cloth. Seriously, with these handy little cloths, you won’t ever grab for a paper towel again!

Napkins

Norwex NapkinsFor anyone who loves to use a half-sized paper towel as their dinner napkin, Norwex has an alternative for you too. On average, a family of 4 uses more than 3000 paper napkins/paper towels a year.  The Napkins are made from 50% recycled materials (5 plastic bottles per set of 4) and are lovely. They come in either charcoal or peacock blue, the microfiber also has Baclock™ agent so you can use them more than once before laundering, they are quick-drying and very absorbent, plus they make your dinner table look pretty. Saving trees and dressing up dinner all at the same time… not bad.

So, what can you do?

Let me give you a challenge! Next time you start a new roll of paper towel, take a pen and write in the date inside of the roll.  First, try if you can go 4 months with one roll, then 6… then try if your family can stretch one roll of paper towel to last an entire year!  You can do it!  Other customers have done it, I know you can do it too.  Imagine with me the impact that would be realized by simply changing the way we use paper towel.

Become an Educator

Since I started my Norwex journey in 2006, thousands of Consultants have been working with me to spread the word about these amazing products.  I believe Nelson Mandela’s statement about the power of education… which means, we have a lot more educating to do!  Every grocery and department store has at least one aisle stocked with toxic cleaning chemicals.  Only 2% of North American homes use Norwex products… we have a lot of people to educate! Join my team, become an educator and help Norwex make a difference.

Are you going to take the paper towel challenge? Leave a comment about how it went.  Was it easier or harder than you thought?

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Resources:

https://www.uib.no/en/news/115228/household-cleaning-can-be-bad-smoking-lung-function

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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.

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Do you use Chemical Spray Cleaners to Clean? You don’t have to…

Do you use Chemical Spray Cleaners to Clean? You don’t have to…

chemical free cleaning

What Do You Use to Clean Your Home?

I don’t think anyone really LOVES cleaning their bathroom… do they? But there is nothing like a sparkly clean bathroom (that moment before someone brushes their teeth and sprays the mirror or your favourite little boy needs to pee, again).  I think we can all agree that a clean bathroom is a good bathroom. 

Recently, the University of Berg in Norway conducted a study about the danger of using chemical spray cleaners over a 20-year period.  They found that using chemical spray cleaners over a 20-year period can be compared to smoking 20 cigarettes a day for 20 years, plus, these people had a 40% higher chance of developing asthma.  It is the VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that get released in the air and linger for hours when you spray the cleaner that travel deep in the lungs, and cause damage.  The thing about chemical spray cleaners, as Norwex knows and Cecile Svanes, Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care at University of Berg, Norway, confirmed is that, 

“These chemicals are usually unnecessary [for cleaning your homes]; microfiber cloths and water are more than enough for most purposes.” 

Keep reading to find out how you can clean your bathroom without chemical spray cleaners or VOCs … just a Norwex microfiber cloth and effective natural cleaners for those stubborn cleaning needs.  

 

Norwex Sale

Bathroom Sparkle (link) 

Bathroom norwex specialYou will never use anything else after you try Norwex’s Bathroom Scrub Mitt coupled with Descaler.  They make cleaning your bathroom so easy. The Scrub Mitt is double-sided (a scrubby nylon side and a soft absorbent microfiber side)… the Descaler uses the power of natural Glucuronic Acid, Organic Orange Peel Extract and Sodium Gluconate to break down soap scum, hard water and rust stains in your bathroom and leave it “sparkling.” No chemical spray cleaner required.

No More Tough Stains (link)

Norwex Stain RemoverNorwex’s Stain Remover is another eco-friendly cleaner!  It works to remove tough stains like coffee, tea, grass, makeup, lipstick, wine, fruit stains, mustard, protein stains from blood, greasy stains from butter and even removes yellow collar and under-arm stains.  The best part is that it is free from phthalates, petroleum solvents, glycol ethers, bleach, ammonia, hydrochloric acids and it is easy to use (just spray the stain and let sit 1 to 5 minutes and launder as usual!)  The Rose Quatrz EnviroCloth is a part of the new colour palette that Norwex released this year.  The EnviroCloth is made from superior microfiber with Baclock™ self-purifying micro silver agent and can be used to clean all the hard surfaces in your home.  It is these microfiber cloths that the Norway study is talking about, and for the record, a Norwex EnviroCloth and water has the ability to remove up to 99% of bacteria from a surface when following proper care and use instructions. Because of the this, you don’t need chemical cleaners. 

Tip: If you have a small stain in your carpet, make your EnviroCloth damp and then gently rub the spot… the cloth has amazing stain-removing abilities too!

BIG Clean for Small Hands (link) 

Norwex Pet to DryHave trouble getting your little ones to properly wash their hands? This cute Pet to Dry Pink Pig hand towel is a perfect encourager!  It is made with super-soft chenille microfibers with Baclock™ agent. Not only does it feel nice on small hands, because of the Baclock™ agent, it self-purifies as it dries making it a great tool to control the bacteria that makes us sick. Your kids will love the Peppermint Foaming Hand Wash… it smells so good and who doesn’t love foamy soap? Did you know? Foam Soaps are better for the environment, because a little goes a long way.  Wondering how Norwex’s soap foams even though it is chemical-free? The luxurious foaming action is due to the coconut and apple amino acids. Cool eh?

Spend & Get Special

Just one more special for October!  I love the “spend and get”… I’m dutch, I love a good deal!

Norwex Spend and Get Sale

Norwex Customer Specials

This month, the Norwex Foundation for a Brighter Future is Cleaning for a Cause and aiming to raise $40,000 for Breast Cancer Research.  By taking advantage of the Customer Specials and even Hosting a Party this month, will not only help you clean your home without chemicals and VOCs, but you will also be helping the fight against cancer.  

Resource:  “Household Cleaning Can Be As Bad as Smoking for Lung Function”  Kim E. Andreassen

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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.

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Testimonies to Eliminate Stink…Odour Eliminator

Testimonies to Eliminate Stink…Odour Eliminator

Our homes are often bombarded by unwanted odour.  Life is messy, stinky business.  And that is okay… especially because we usually love those and the activities that stink up our homes… such as hockey-playing boys, well-used running sneakers, sick kid during the night, cloth diapers, the family pet — like our new addition Bentley, just to name a few.

Norwex has a fabulous line of enzyme-based cleaning products, including: Sportzyme, Carpet Stain Buster, Oven & Grill Cleaner etc.  This post highlights the Odour Eliminator, another amazing enzyme-based cleaner that is effective because of the bacterial spores in the solution that work to eat up the organic matter causing the odour.  It is an organic solution that leaves a fresh scent without any dyes or chemical-laden masking fragrances.  My team and I have heard lots of great testimonies about the Odour Eliminator… Here are a few that may be a solution for you.

 

tip“I want to thank you for recommending Norwex Odour Eliminator as a way to combat pet smells in my home.

I am a cat owner and work very hard to keep my home fresh from a pet smell. After moving my cat boxes to another room, I noticed the “cat smell” in the room. Making sure there where no “accidents” on the floor, I sprayed the room with a mixture of the Odour Eliminator and water. I sprayed the entire room and left (I did not open any windows for airing). I came back a half hour later and the smell had lessened but was it was still there. I sprayed the room again and this time I also sprayed the litter boxes themselves.

WOW!!! I came back about one hour later and the smell was completely gone!

I am so happy to not only have the smell dissipated but the knowledge that it was done with a green product that is safe for pets.  It is amazing!

“Odour Eliminator has now become a part of my cleaning routine with my pets. I cannot thank you enough for making my house happy and healthy!”  Sincerely, A satisfied pet owner ~ Melinda

“I have a client who swears by this for her horse barn!” ~ Melissa Gregson-Webber

“The odour eliminator does just what the name says! It eliminates our cloth diaper odour in the wash with just a squeeze! It also works great to get rid of pet accident smells!” ~ Charly Ball

“At a show I did last night, a lady was having trouble with her cat going #2 in her dog kennel. She sprayed the kennel with a strong dilution of Odour Eliminator and the cat stopped.”  ~ Arlene George

“I love a capful of Odour Eliminator in my fabric softener slot with laundry. I have a boy who still wets at night and in the middle of the night will kick off his soaked bottoms and put new bottoms on. He sometimes leaves them under the covers and I don’t always find them until a day or two later. The smell is very strong. I love that the Odour Eliminator takes care of the source of the odour (as it is an enzyme cleaner) and doesn’t just mask it like scented detergents!” ~ Darci Cree Grifhorst

“I spray the soft surfaces with the diluted Odour Eliminator spray – curtains, pillows, cloth couches and chairs, rugs, etc. I clean 10 cottages every week and do this on a regular basis. Freshens and deodorizes without the heavy scent.” ~ Lois Gitzel

Cooking is another source of unwanted lingering odouring in our homes.  Here is a great tip on how to remove lingering smoke smell from burnt food.  Use 1:7 Odour Eliminator to Water and spritz the air, it works amazing!  Carole Kuypers, a fabulous consultant, admitted to burning the broccoli one night, “ It was broccoli, yes! I used the Odour Eliminator. Love that stuff… works great!”

As you can see there are countless ways to use Norwex’s Odour Eliminator!  It’s that fantastic… another simple way to keep our homes clean (& fresh) without harmful chemicals.

Leave a comment about how Odour Eliminator has been solution.

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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.

 

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Spring Clean Dusting

Spring Clean Dusting

Our homes collect dust. Dust is made up of all sorts of stuff – organic stuff like dead skin, but also toxic stuff from our environment.  Although spring cleaning includes dusting because of how wonderful it feels when the dusting is done, but it should also be done as a fight against toxins in our homes. The EWG or Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit organization whose mission is “to empower people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment”.  They conducted studies to reveal the dirt about dust in our homes. They found that dust,

“is a place where harmful chemicals are found. One recent study by the Silent Spring Institute identified 66 endocrine-disrupting compounds in household dust tests, including flame retardants, home-use pesticides, and phthalates.

The chemicals in your dust originate from both inside and outside your house:

1  Products inside your house “shed” chemicals over time — furniture, electronics, shoes, plastics, fabrics and food, among other things.

2  Outdoor pollutants enter on your shoes and through open and cracked windows and doors.

Once inside, the contaminants in indoor dust degrade more slowly (if at all) than they would outside in the environment where moisture and sunlight typically break them down.

One type of toxic chemical commonly found in household dust is chemical flame retardants (aka PBDEs). As highly flammable synthetic materials have replaced less-combustible natural materials, PBDEs have been added to thousands of everyday products, including computers, TVs and furniture — among many others.”

To read more: http://www.ewg.org/research/healthy-home-tips/tip-8-get-rid-toxic-dust

The EWG cautions that young children are at a higher risk of being exposed to these toxins because they spend most of their time playing on the floor putting their little fingers and anything they grab into their mouthes… so let’s get started and remove dust without adding any more chemicals.

You will need: Enviro Cloth, EnviroWand, Superior Mop CollectionMicro Cleaning Hand Pad

Walls – First you will need to wash your walls from fingerprint height and lower (everything above this height is just dust) using a well-wrung Enviro Cloth.  For any scuffs use a small square of a Micro Cleaning Hand Pad and give it a scrub.  For dusting, lock the head on your Mop, attach the dry head (yellow), and dust all the way to the ceiling.

Wood Furniture – Put a Dusting Mitt on each hand- the faster you can dust the better- and give the dusting mitts one spray of water.  It will remove all the dust, finger prints, coffee marks etc. and leave the furniture streak free.

Doors – Put a Dusting Mitt on each hand, spray with one squirt of water clean the details in your doors beautifully.

blindsBlinds – Put a Dusting Mitt on each hand and hold the blind with one hand and rub along the face and underside of each slat.  The mitts will hold a lot of dust while leaving your slats clean.

 

 

 

Watch how:

Door Frames – Bend the EnviroWand in an upside “U” and drag along the tops of your door frames.

Pictures Frames – Put a Dusting Mitt on each hand and hold the frame with one hand and dust with the other.

Light Fixtures & Ceiling Fans – Bend your EnviroWand and give it a squirt of water and gently remove all the dust from those fixtures.

Done!

Remember your EnviroWand can bend and flex, so give it a squirt of water and sneak it into areas you have never dusted before.

Between the Dusting Mitts and the EnviroWand you will be able to dust the majority of the surfaces in your home.  Isn’t that amazing?

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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.

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Spring Clean Outdoors

Spring Clean Outdoors

With the long-waited spring season comes the long-waited barbecue season!  Spring cleaning would not be complete without getting one of our favourite “tools” clean. As the BBQ works hard during the summer months to supply mouthwatering meals, I would like to show you a biodegradable, all-natural but tough cleaning system for your BBQ that works FANTASTIC!  It is one that you will feel comfortable cooking dinner on, right after you clean it.

BBQ – You will need: Oven & Grill CleanerSpirinett & EnviroCloth

  • Roll your BBQ onto a tarp or a used newspaper to avoid staining your deck — this is a greasy and sometimes drippy job.
  • Heat your BBQ to its lowest setting, approximately 150 degrees, turn off.
  • Spray the BBQ racks including the upper racks with Oven & Grill Cleaner, close the lid and let sit for five minutes.
  • Grab a small bowl of water and a use a Spirinett to scrub across the face of the BBQ racks.  This stainless steel ball will remove all the burnt on deposits and make your racks clean and shiny.
  • To finish the job, use an well-wrung EnviroCloth to wipe both the outside of the BBQ and the racks inside that you just scrubbed.
  • Bring your EnviroCloth to a sink and rinse well; rub it on itself to remove the majority of the grease.
  • Put your BBQ back in its original spot – ready for your next BBQ!

Done!

While we are outside let’s continue our “get it done” spring cleaning, by getting started on the windows. Our windows collect dirt, debris, whatever hit your window or what they left behind and creates another spring cleaning job. I would like to show you a simple method to maintain clean windows in your home that doesn’t not require paper towel or chemicals.

Windows – You will need: EnviroCloth & Window Cloth (that’s it)

  • Box the outside edge of your window with a well-wrung, flat-folded EnviroCloth.
  • Wipe the remainder of your window with the same EnviroCloth. Spray your window with a little water if you find the moisture is evaporating too quickly.
  • Use your flat-folded WindowCloth to polish the window – leaving a streak-free and shiny window.

Done!

For high windows:

  • Attach a well-wrung EnviroCloth to your Mop System head – after you have attached your wet mop pad (leaving it dry) – with the clip system.
  • Lock the head of the mop so it doesn’t swivel.
  • With an up and down motion, clean your window.
  • Replace EnviroCloth with a Window Cloth.  When your Window Cloth is dry you can only work in an upwards motion.  So give your window a squirt of water and polish from the base to the top of your window.

Done!

Lastly, we will clean our patio furniture.  Patio furniture is one of those things that gets dirty just by sitting there – not even being used.  But we want to use them this spring!!!  Again, this is a job that usually calls for paper towel and windex, but the Norwex method will eliminate the use of paper or chemicals. Even your kids can be the boss of the patio cleaning. So, let’s get started.

Patio Furniture – You will need: EnviroCloth & Window Cloth (that’s it, again)

  • With a well-wrung EnviroCloth, simply wipe down all the surfaces of your patio furniture.
  • Finish by using a Window Cloth to polish.

Done!


Now that your outdoor spring cleaning is well underway, sit and relax with a barbecue dinner tonight.

If you need a suggestion, check out:

Kalyn’s Marinated Beef Kabobs & Cookie Rookie Mexican Grilled Corn … Mmmmm

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Delores VandenBoogaard is an Independent Norwex Sales Consultant from Edmonton, Alberta Canada with customers and consultants throughout Canada and the United States including; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, North West Territories and Ontario. She also has customers and team members in; Michigan, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Arizona, Missouri, Colorado, North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Washington, New Hampshire, Iowa and Maine.

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