Do you have soap scum in your tub or shower?
Kitchen sink dull or scratched?
Surface stains on your counter?
Hard to clean food stuck on dishes?
Then you are going to be so happy that you found this DIY soft scrub recipe!
Here are a few of the reasons I love this cleaner:
- easy to make: only 4 ingredients (and one is water). only takes about 2 minutes to whip up a batch.
- inexpensive:Â only costs pennies per use
- effective: it works! You can see in photos below that I use this soft scrub to clean stuck on food from dishes, remove surface stains from counters, clean & shine sinks, cut through soap scum in bathtubs and showers, and clean dirt & grime from sinks.
- natural:Â non-toxic, no harsh chemicals, and eco friendly
Use diy soft scrub to clean stuck-on food from dishes
Use diy soft scrub to clean surface stains from laminate counters (this lovely mess was from making blueberry pancakes)
Use diy soft scrub to disinfect and restore shine to kitchen sinks
Use diy soft scrub to clean soap scum from bathtubs and showers
Use diy soft scrub to clean dirt and grime from sinks
What’s in this homemade soft scrub?
baking soda – acts as a mild abrasive to help remove dirt, grime, and surface stains
unscented liquid Castile soap – grease, dirt, & soap scum fighter
essential oil – degreaser, deodorizer, and disinfectant
distilled water – thins the consistency of the soft scrub so it can be spread out over the surface that’s being cleaned
Free printable labels and recipe cards
Be sure to click here get your free printable soft scrub labels and recipe cards. Feel free to use these printables yourself, share them with your team, or use them as handouts for a make & take class. Printable has three pages, so that you can print exactly what you need.
- 1st page –Â 1 bottle label & 1 recipe card (print this page if you just want to make soft scrub for yourself)
- 2nd page –Â 8 soft scrub labels (print this page if you want to share labels at a Make & Take class)
- 3rd page – 4 soft scrub recipe cards (print as many copies of this page as you need for a Make & Take class)
How to Make Homemade Soft Scrub Cleaner?
step 1:Â using a funnel, add 3/4 cup baking soda to a 8 oz jar or squeeze bottle
step 2:Â add 2 Tbsp unscented liquid Castile soap
step 3:Â add 2 Tbsp distilled water
step 4:Â add 12 drops essential oil
suggested essential oils that are great degreasers, deodorizers, and disinfectants:
lemon essential oil
sweet (wild) orange essential oil
grapefruit essential oil
tangerine essential oil
tea tree (melaleuca) essential oil
use 12 drops of a single oil or use a combination of essential oils (such as 5 drops lemon, 5 drops tangerine, and 2 drops tea tree)
step 5:Â use a chop stick or wooden skewer to stir soft scrub mixture together
once it’s well mixed, it should look like this (below)…
It should be a thin paste. If it’s too thick, add another teaspoon or two of distilled water to thin it out.
step 6: print out free labels (get them here)
step 7: cut out labels
step 8: put label face down on packing tape
step 9:Â adhere label to bottle
getting labels to stay stuck to squeeze bottles can be a little difficult. I’ve found the trick is to overlap the tape at the back of the bottle so that the tape sticks to the tape as well as the bottle.
Here’s the Soft Scrub Recipe One More Time
(get free printable of recipe cards here)
add 3/4 cup baking soda to a 8 oz jar or squeeze bottle
add 2 Tbsp unscented liquid Castile soap
add 2 Tbsp distilled water
add 12 drops essential oil (see suggested oils in step 4 above)
use a chop stick or wooden skewer to stir soft scrub mixture together
It should be a thin paste. If it’s too thick, add another teaspoon or two of distilled water to thin it out.
How to use
- Squeeze out a small amount onto the surface to be cleaned
- Using a damp sponge or microfiber cloth, scrub the surface
- If stains are really tough, let the mixture sit for a few minutes and then scrub again
- Rinse with warm water
caution: Baking soda is a mild abrasive. Test soft scrub in an inconspicuous spot to make sure that’s it is safe for your surface.
tip:Â if soft scrub dries out or become too thick, you can add a little more distilled water to thin it out.
Where to get supplies?
baking soda – baking aisle in the grocery store, or do what I do and get a gigantic bag of baking soda at Costco for about $6
unscented liquid Castile soap – I get mine here
distilled water – get it in the water section of your grocery store (or in place of distilled water, you can use boiled and cooled tap or filtered water)
8 oz squeeze bottle – I get mine here.  You cold also clean and sanitize an empty condiment bottle and use that. Or you could use a glass jar and scoop the soft scrub out. But I do really like my squeeze bottle for this soft scrub – it’s so easy and handy to use! Makes cleaning a breeze!
funnel – any funnel will do. Or skip the funnel – the opening is wide enough, you could just pour the Castile soap, water, and essential oils directly into the bottle (the bottle opening is pretty wide). For the baking soda, I recommend using either a funnel or create a makeshift funnel by rolling up a piece of parchment paper.
chopstick or wooden skewer – raid your kitchen drawers for something long and skinny that will fit down into the squeeze bottle. I use something like these 12-inch skewers.
click here for free printable labels and recipe cards
If you liked this post, here are a few other essential oil posts that I think you’ll like:
20 Favorite Roller Bottle Blend Recipes and Free Printable Labels
How to make essential oil inhalers + 24 favorite inhaler recipes
Clever & Creative Ways to Use Empty Essential Oil Bottles
calming diffuser blends for stress
soft & silky body butter with essential oils
essential oil face wash for your skin type
lavender, oatmeal, & milk bath soak for dry skin
25+ Easy DIY Gifts Made with Essential Oils
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