Yoreganics Review and Giveaway {CLOSED}

Congratulations comment number 17!

Being Eco-Friendly is very important to me as is getting rid of toxic, harmful chemicals in my cleaning products. After realizing what some of the ingredients in traditional laundry detergent are doing to our envirnment I started searching for an organic alternative for our clothing. I was lucky enough to find Yoreganics and Kim sent me a sample of her products. I received her Yore Laundry Sampler Trio (which contains soap nuts, Stain Remover, and Brighten and Whitens) and a tube of Lip Balm.
When I received the package my first thought was "Aww, how cute and tiny!" Everything came in this little drawstring sack and I thought it was such a cute packaging idea. It turns out that it wasn't just a packaging idea, it was a vital part of the sampler. Before I go on I must confess something. I had no idea what soap nuts were when Kim offered to send me the sampler. I THOUGHT I knew--in my mind I pictured an acorn (hey it's a type of nut!) shaped solid soap. Don't ask me where these crazy notions come from! When I opened the package I was so surprised to find something that looked like a bunch of dried cranberries. Luckily Kim includes a great little piece of paper explaining what the cranberry looking things are. Soap nuts fall from the Soapberry tree (sapindus mukorossi) found in Northern India and Nepal. The outer shells of these dried fruit berries contain saponin, which creates a natural soap when agitated in water. To use them you put a few in the drawstring bag and toss it in the washer. When you put the clothes in the dryer you take the bag out and set it aside for the next load. After a few washes you toss out the used berries and replace them with fresh. Some awesome things about Soap Nuts are that they are USDA Certified Organic: no nasty chemicals,Eco-friendly: sustainable & biodegradable, Economical: less than other detergents, Antimicrobial: great for septic & grey water systems, and A natural softner: no need for fabric softener/dryer sheets. I tried them for several loads of laundry and they did everything they promised! My clothes came out scent free, soft, and clean. I did worry that I would forget the bag and toss it in the dryer but that didn't happen.

Since the Brightens & Whitens claimed to be cloth diaper safe I decided to put it to the ultimate test. I won't go into details but I will say that prune juice stains cloth diapers. The stains drive me crazy but I didn't know what was safe to use on the diapers to get the stains out. I used some in my cloth diaper laundry and my microfiber came out bright and white like it had spent hours in the sun. I didn't notice any problems with my diapers like repelling after using it so I think it is safe to say it works great!

I haven't used the Stain Remover much but for the minor stains I've had crop up it has worked just fine. I really like the lip balm. It is a nice texture, not too creamy or sticky and not waxy. I love that it is organic. Since you basically eat lip balm each time your tongue touches your lips I really like knowing that it is organic and chemical free!

Kim at Yoreganics was great to work with. Her shipping time was literally next day for me. She is a real mom who has seen the effects of toxicity first hand and sought to create a better, safer alternative. I would recommend her products to anyone looking for a more natural, organic approach to life.

Kim is giving one of my readers the opportunity to WIN the same sampler trio that I received. That's three of her great laundry products (Soap Nuts, Stain Remover, and Brighten and Whitens) and a Lip Balm. The contest is open to all US addresses, must be 18 to enter, void where prohibited. The contest will end on Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 11:00 PM. One winner will be selected using random.org. Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Please make sure to leave your email address in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

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