The 7 Cleaning
Essentials We
Swear By

Cleaning the house is like brushing your teeth: No one really looks forward to it, but once you’re done, you feel better. And how well you do it depends largely on what products you’re using. Unscented detergents, organic cotton unpaper towels, a glass-bottled set of essential-oil-based cleansers—these are things you can get behind even if you dread laundry and postdinner countertops. Even better news: These items cut back on plastic and waste. And when you nix the toxic ingredients found in conventional products, you don’t miss anything: This clean stuff works just as well to…clean.

• 1

• CLEAN TOOL KIT

  If you’re sensitive to scents, the solutions in this natural cleaning kit have you covered—for your every chore. Scent-free laundry detergent that gently lifts away stains? Yep. Dish soap that cuts grease without harsh foaming agents? A dish scrubber that does away with kitchen grime? Yep. Yep. But what we like most about this line is that it’s refillable, so you’re cutting down on cost and unnecessary plastic in the recycling bin.

• 
  The Unscented Company
  starter kit
  goop, $65

• 2

• A BETTER (TRASH) BAG

  We’re privy to what goes into our trash but not necessarily what goes around it. And that is most commonly single-use polyethylene plastic bags, which contribute to landfill waste. But not these bags. They’re made of 90 percent recycled material, which curbs a bit of our waste problem—and reduces the use of crude oil to make new plastic.

• 
  If You Care
  recycled kitchen bags
  goop, $8

• 3

• STEAMED AND STREAMLINED

  If there’s some tool or method that supposedly makes getting ready in the morning easier and more efficient, we need to know about it. And when we tried Rowenta’s steamer, we decided we all needed one. It heats up in less than a minute and steams away wrinkles and tedious creases instantly—and it works even on our daintiest silk.

• 
  Rowenta
  steamer
  goop, $69.99

• 4

• CUT FROM
  A DIFFERENT CLOTH

  Paper towels are convenient, so when you swap them for something more planet-friendly, it needs to be equally efficient for the habit to stick. And once you start

  using these reusable unpaper towels, you won’t miss the old thing. The organic woven cotton works just as well (maybe better), soaking up spills, wiping down counters, and cleaning whatever else is dirty and in sight. The magic trick, though, is that they get even softer and more absorbent after a few washes. We keep one in our car, one at our desk, one in the diaper bag—and it’s hugely satisfying knowing that the detritus of our spills won’t end up in a landfill.

  Paper towels are convenient, so when you swap them for something more planet-friendly, it needs to be equally efficient for the habit to stick. And once you start using these reusable unpaper towels, you won’t miss the old thing. The organic woven cotton works just as well (maybe better), soaking up spills, wiping down counters, and cleaning whatever else is dirty and in sight. The magic trick, though, is that they get even softer and more absorbent after a few washes. We keep one in our car, one at our desk, one in the diaper bag—and it’s hugely satisfying knowing that the detritus of our spills won’t end up in a landfill.

• 
  Natural Linens Boutique
  unpaper towels
  goop, $32

• 5

• GENTLE WASH

  Washing your cashmere sweaters in this nontoxic detergent may qualify as an act of self-care. The incredibly gentle solution doesn’t break down fibers, so it leaves your sweaters (and silks and other natural fabrics) soft and intact. Which means they last longer. And the orange essential oil leaves just a faint hit of citrus across your wardrobe.

• 
  Tangent Garment Care
  fine wash
  goop, $22

• 6

• POWER BALLS

  Topping the list of things that drive us bonkers: pulling bunched, partially dry, mainly damp laundry out of the dryer. Things that keep us sane: these wool balls that make dryers more efficient and somehow leave clothes a little softer, a little less wrinkled, and totally dry—in significantly less time.

• 
  The Unscented Company
  dryer balls
  goop, $19

• 7

• THE ESSENTIALS

  Supernatural is void of everything we used to loathe about conventional cleaning products—odd-smelling solutions, toxic fumes, landfill-bound plastic containers. In their place? incredible-smelling essential oils and reusable glass containers. This set comes with four concentrates: one for the bathroom, one for glass, one for wood, one for countertops. And when your house smells like fresh basil, eucalyptus, and lime, you’ll be hooked.

• 
  Supernatural
  concentrates
  goop, $40
• 
  Supernatural
  starter set
  goop, $75