one-day course naturally clean

venue: Windmill Hill City Farm, Bristol

Do you sometimes wonder about the types of chemicals you might be filling your home with when you 'clean' your home, your clothes and yourself? Would you like to explore simple but effective alternatives? By making your own cleaning products you can have more control over what goes into your home and on to your skin. You will also benefit from always having fresh products that are simple but fascinating to make.

This course offers an opportunity to explore just what we think we mean by 'clean'. You will look at how modern products are formulated and why, and see what this means for us, our homes and the wider environment around us. The course will focus on how you can reduce the number and strength of chemicals around you, remembering that even 'natural' substances can be toxic. It is important to understand what you are dealing with, and to make considered choices to determine how necessary their uses really are.

The course will introduce you to alternative options for cleaning, through a mix of information & discussion sessions and more practical sessions, in which you will learn how to mix & store fresh household, laundry and body cleansers for yourself.

home sweet home: explore the science of bacteria and the action of modern cleaning products, and what manufacturers and marketers base their approach on. A practical introduction to a range of alternatives to the toxic cocktail of commercial cleaners, taking a more natural approach aimed at ensuring a healthy balance of micro-organisms instead of waging a chemical warfare against all 'germs'. Learn how and when to use the alternatives, how to mix them, and how to store them.

clean clothes: learn more about how typical products work, what they aim to achieve and what this means for our skin and our waterways. Look at alternative options, from eco-balls to lemon juice. Learn how and when to use more natural options for laundry care and stain removal.

personal pampering: take a look at the heady mix of chemicals we put on our bodies, seeing just what we are feeding ourselves through our skin. Explore what is known (and what is not known) about some of the staple ingredients of our common toiletries. Learn more about alternative options for looking after ourselves, and create some luxurious, natural treats to take home and pamper yourself with.

more on natural cleaning

mixing vinegar and bicarbonate of soda to make an effective but gentle all-purpose cleaner

come and learn how to make your own fresh effective cleaners from a range of natural materials

squeezing an orange into a luxury milk bath soak - to be used instead of chemical bubble baths