Scrub scrub, sip sip?

Spring is great and all, but then somebody comes along and utters the phrase, "spring cleaning," and totally harshes your springtime mellow, right?

We have good news, tea lovers. Your favorite beverage to the rescue! While sure, you might want save your tea for sipping and just let Mr. Clean and those Scrubbing Bubbles handle life's messes, we're here to tell you the surprising ways you can clean with tea. And we're fairly amused that while giving your floors or windows a wipe down, you could take a sip of your freshly brewed cleaning fluid. If you want to, that is. Here goes:

• The tanic acid in a cuppa' black tea can help clean hardwood floors! (Check first in a small hidden spot for discoloration first.) Boil a pot of water and add 5-6 tea bags, and then let that steep for 10 minutes. Pour tea into your mop bucket, add cold water to lower the temperature if needed and mop away!
• Tea absorbs odors, so you could stash some green or black tea in your sock drawer like a sachet or in your fridge like you would a box of baking soda to freshen things up.
• Brew strong black tea to clean your windows with, just like you would have used Windex. It's obviously non-toxic, and while you can clean your windows with vinegar instead, tea sure smells better. This also works for shining mirrors.
• Before cleaning out your fireplace, sprinkle some wet tea leaves over the ashes, and that way the ashes won't rise and spread all over the place when you lift them out.
• In the garden, sprinkle new or used tea leaves around rose bushes, so that every time you water them, the plants get a boost of tanic acid to spur growth. We've heard this can also work with houseplants, but try it in moderation, first.
• If you've gotta clean this spring, at least reward yourself with a nice cuppa' tea afterwards. Cheers!

This is not a level of enthusiasm we have for cleaning, but ... maybe it'll inspire you?