Think that James (iej)
Brings up a very important and often forgotten point (20th century)
Here in the States and prior to WW2, most of the mainstay cleaning products in the home where basic.
Bon Ami, Barkeepers Freind, Soap Flakes, bar soaps, Borax, Sal Soda, vinegar, baking soda, Clorax. Somehow they managed to keep house with those mainstays.
After the war and since, 80,000 chemicals have been introduced into the home, that weren't there before. Not counting the ones now used outside the home.
The "better living through modern chemistry" happened shorty after the war. Tupperware was something that came out, using a chemical that was left over, and had been stock piled during the war. Someone figured out another way to make something else out of it!
Windex, Lemon Pledge, Commet, Ajax, modern detergents, dish washing detergents, toilet cleansers, products in aerosol cans became available All these...after the war, and of course were scented with combos of plant oils, and chemicals.
We've since become use to scents and cleaning going hand in hand, and we get mad when the scents are changed. It's extremely frustrating given the horrid scents there coming up with.
However...A thought provoking question is...Do we really need them? And if we used just those "basics" for a month or so...and then were reintroduced to laundry aisle at the store, what would our noses pick up?
To be honest here... I started relying mostly on those basic mainstays that were here first! And have for a good while. And guess what! you really can keep a house and laundry clean and fresh smelling with just those basics!
I certainly don't want to disparage anyone's favorite scent, but personally after being away from most of it. I don't want it back.
I still use Fels Naptha for certain things, and don't mind the smell, but it goes away, so dose vinegar!
