"Just got back from a knackering weekend but my spirits were uplifted by my lovely clean house - what an amazing job, thank you so much. I could get used to this very quickly, you've made me very happy!"

Kirsty, Clifton (one-off spring-clean on 26th September 2010)

Organic Fortnight

Organic Fortnight started on the 3rd September and runs unil 17th September. If you're looking for an organic treat of the non-food variety you could do a lot worse than a bar of Organic Lavender and Rose Geranium soap from Cornwall Soap Box (£450 for 100g). Hand-made in Cornwall using organic olive oil this soap smells devine and is available to order on-line.

Eco cleaning keeps you fit...

My Green Cleaner got a name check in the August copy of Health and Fitness, along with The Green Housekeeper, who make fab eco cleaning products. It's always great to get a mention in the press and I'm now thinking of organising a photoshoot so I can get some more interesteing pictures together to send to journalists when they get in contact.

Lovely client feedback

Photo by Jesso18

When I set up My Green Cleaner my aim was to provide a great cleaning service using natural eco friendly products. As I've mentioned before, one of the great things has been receiving feedback from our clients. One of my clients wrote to me saying I ought to have client feedback on my site and wrote a review for me. I'm so grateful - thank you Nicola! Here is what she wrote:

About Me
Mum a.k.a taxi service, tutor, chef, social secretary and nurse (I have my moments, both inspired and those never to be mentioned ever again!!)
Wife (feedback tends to be good!),
Full time worker (surprisingly organised and together but have been known to try and hide in the stationery cupboard at moments of stress!)
Friend (always there for them, like they are for me!)
Housekeeper (completely PANTS! Don’t get me wrong….I love my home, I have great pride in decorating it and filling it full of beautiful things that I probably don’t need. I could identify a Farrow and Ball colour from 50 feet. However, for all the reasons above I find that I have little time left to keep my home tidy, clean and generally presentable to the general public!
This is where My Green Cleaner came to my rescue! They have helped me get my life back in order giving me back some much needed quality time. I now come home to a beautiful clean, tidy and calm home. Madeleine comes once a week for a few hours and let me tell you, those few hours last the whole week! My home smells gorgeous due to the Green Products used and I feel happier knowing that I am helping the environment and my family.
I cannot recommend My Green Cleaner enough. They have given me back a bit of my life that was lost somewhere under the sink, between the hoover bags and soap powder!

THANK YOU NICOLA! {blush}

Free P&P at Trevarno Skincare

Jamie is from Cornwall and one of the places we visit regularly when we're there is the Trevarno Estate & Gardens. It has beautiful gardens with a Victorian boating lake, Yew tunnel and a vintage soap museum! They make their own organic soaps and skincare and at the moment they are offering free P&P on their website. I love their Organic Lavender and Geranium Soap (£3.50 for 75g).

Which one to choose

I've been searching for a practical solution to our Green Cleaners carrying around our eco-products as easily as possible on their bicycles. I spotted the Cycle Chic stand when I did Bristol's Biggest Bike ride last year and have been waiting since then for some green panniers to come in stock.

Finally they're here and I'm spoilt for choice! I've narrowed them down to these two. What do you think?

Lovely handmade dishcloths

I've neglected my blog recently as My Green Cleaner has been so busy with spring cleans and end of tenancy cleans booking up the diary. But I thought I'd re-start my regular posts with these lovely hand knitted dishcloths from Magpie and a Dove on Folksy (£5.00). Enjoy!

A girls guide to cycling

It's been great for My Green Cleaner to be involved with Sustrans as I'm a big fan of cycling. They've produced a leaflet aimed at getting more girls cycling and I was delighted to be a part of it in their feature on cycling whilst pregnant. Can you spot me?

Gold stars for our cleaners...

Photo by Hula Seventy

One of the lovely things about running My Green Cleaner is the feedback we get from our clients. We get lots of great comments and I'm currently putting together a testimonials page for the website. In the meantime I have to give Zofia a gold star for the work she did for a client last week who followed up with this e-mail. Nice.

" I wanted to get in touch sooner to say thank you and to let you know that Zofia did an absolutely FANTASTIC job - I am so pleased. She did a thorough and professional job and was a really lovely person on top of it. She was totally reliable and trustworthy (I popped out for an hour or so and left her alone in the house and she just got on with everything - just perfect)"

Fairtrade cloths

It's coming to the end of Fairtrade Fortnight and this year's theme has been the Big Swap with the idea being that you swap your normal product for a Fairtrade one. Easy swaps to make are bananas, coffee or tea.

Here at My Green Cleaner we can do better than that. All the cleaning products we use are handmade in the UK and without the use of poorly paid or treated labour. If you're looking for some Fairtrade cloths to kick-start your spring cleaning then then I'd rcommend Minky's (£1.49 for 2 from The Ethical Superstore). They are made in the UK using Fairtrade certified unbleached cotton from West Africa.

Bikes are Best

Bike Belles is a cycling website designed to encourage all of us girls to get out and about on our bikes. It's a mine of information with tips on cycling safety, fashion and maintenance. My Green Cleaner was delighed to get a mention on the website after they discoved that all our staff use bikes to get around. Have a look at the full article on the Bike Belles website here.

Removing flattened carpet marks

Image by torbakhopper

If you're re-arranging furniture and are left with unsightly carpet marks from where heavy furniture has been standing try ice-cubes. Pop an ice-cube into each area that has been compressed and leave overnight. They don't have to be heart-shaped.

New compostable dishcloths

If you need an incentive to clean the dishes these might just be the thing. Maria Dahlgren is the Swedish designer behind these fab dishcloths (£3.50 from ScandiLiving) who hopes they “will make people smile as they clean!"

Of course sustainability is as important as looks for us here at My Green Cleaner so the fact that these are printed with vegetable dyes and made from cellulose derived from wood and cotton only goes to prove that good looks and eco cleaning credentials go hand in hand. They're not only machine washable but once they've reached the end of their useful life are also fully compostable. We heart!

Did you see me?

Thank you to the Sunday Times for it's lovely write-up on Bristol. Did you spot My Green Cleaner getting it's first media exposure (alongside lovely eco florists Bella and Fifi?) It was so lovely to hear from all my clients and friends who saw the article - thank you to everyone who got in touch! Here's to more column inches celebrating Bristol's eco finest.

Gold vanity case

Well it's not strictly about cleaning but on the basis that it could lead to a tidier bedroom, I'm including this lovely vanity case (£65 from Cooey) which I'm seriously pining for. Cooey sell a small but lovely range of products inspired by owner Imogen's collection of vintage treasures. Also available in a more sedate blue and pink as well if you're not feeling the bling!

Pretty Cleaning Things

There's nothing like the acquisition of new cleaning equipment to make chores that much more enjoyable and I've fallen in love with these lovely hand decorated brooms (£20.00) from Brush Strokes. Who could resist an bit of sweeping with a strawberry or chilli decorated broom!

Tea Towel Love - Part II

It's cold and dark and it feels like I haven't seen the sun in weeks. If you're feeling the same I'd recommend sprinkling a bit of cheer into your via one of the many fab tea towels available from To Dry For. What other way is there of getting a slice of Rob Ryan gorgeousness for under a tenner? Beautiful AND useful - what more could one ask for.