At first it seemed like something fancy and unnecessary but after a few uses, I became addicted. If you aren’t changing your sheets that day, just spritz your pillows and sheets before you make up your bed for the day. Later that night when you return, you’re swaddled in the relaxing scents of essential oils and your sheets smell fresh and clean.

It’s delightful.

Caldrea makes and entire line of home care products, from kitchen cleaning product to baby nursery care items.  If you are looking for cleaning products not made of harsh chemicals, the all natural products at Caldrea have something for every room in the house.

You can purchase them at their website or at various stores – which you can research on their store locator feature.

For natural cleaning power with fresh results, I’m giving Caldrea a prop. Sometime I hope to check out their other products!

Written by Gidge, who is a mother of a 7 year old boy and 5 year old twin boys. A transplanted Hoosier, die-hard Colts fan and professional call center manager, she likes long walks on the beach, penguins and playing ping-pong. Her turn-ons include sleep and silence. Read all about her life here.

It’s plant based, biodegradable, safe for septic systems, great for sensitive skin and is phosphate and petrochemical free. Ecos is scented with magnolia and lily – a combination which makes the scent-phobic in me think “blech” but it’s actually very pleasant both in use and in the clothing after it’s been folded or hung. They also offer lavender and lemongrass scents.

The price per load of Ecos is only a little bit higher than regular detergents at the grocery store but was actually cheaper at Costco with a $3 off coupon. With the built in soy-based fabric softener, you’d likely be saving money even at the more expensive grocery store.

The Ecos bottle suggests using 2 ounces of detergent for a full load and less for smaller loads. If you’re using a high efficiency (HE) washer, you only need 2 tablespoons. I’ve been using the same bottle in my front loader for a few months and am only now considering buying a new bottle.

The new bottle? Will be Ecos. It’s that good.

Written by Nicole, who blogs about whatever strikes her fancy at Much More Than a Mom. She’s a mom first, and then a whole bunch of other crazy stuff, including a teacher, fitness & yoga instructor and mother to two. She is also the founder & senior editor at The Opinionated Parent, where one of her favorite things to do is give great stuff away.

To enter go to The Naked Binder website and look over their line of eco-friendly binders. Leave a comment here telling us what you like about their company and products. There is a lot to like, so it shouldn’t take long to browse. Entries will be accepted through January 12, 2009 at midnight (C.S.T.).

You can receive a second entry by blogging about the contest (linking to it) or adding us to your blogroll. Just e-mail us with a live link or let us know you have it posted on your site. You do not need a blog to enter, just leave us your e-mail address so that we may contact you. As always, it is Props & Pans policy NOT to distribute any information you give us (including your e-mail). Thanks for entering!

The spines on the binders are very flexible due to a design which seems to be made for extra flexibility. The hinges have been independently tested and have held up brilliantly through over 50,000 openings.

And did I mention the binders were made of recycled material? So not only are they good to use, but they are good for the environment. In fact they are probably the most eco-friendly 3 ring binder on the planet.

What’s not to love?
• 100% recycled board, 97% post-consumer waste
• completely recyclable
• acid neutral board
• no plastic, vinyl or toxic chemicals
• 1” ring holds 170 sheets of paper

All in all, I would have no problem recommending someone spend the money to purchase this very attractive binder.

Written by Perri, a homeschooling mom of 6 kids – 2 that are grown and out of the house and 4 younger ones who help wreck and clean the house. Perri also has two precious grandchildren. She spends a lot of time doing ministries with her church, volunteering in the community and baking a mean cheesecake. She blogs about her family’s life at My Life in Bits & Pieces.

If you ask my daughter what she wants to be when she grows up, she’ll say an artist. While all her friends want High School Musical or Disney Princess gifts, all she wants are some crayons and coloring books. So she was thrilled to receive her interactive cards & soy crayons from Stubby Pencil Studio.

The eco-friendly cards had the cutest pictures on them and included bright & colorful envelopes that were perfect for mailing to loved ones. There’s also a place on the back where kids can write their own messages. A great item for sending to friends or relatives!

The soy crayons were amazing, especially since they’re made from soybeans. The colors were bright and went on smoothly. They didn’t smear or rub off. As an added bonus we also received a Gourmet Chocolate Scented Pencil made from 100% recycled newspapers. I could have sworn I was sniffing a Hershey bar, because it smelled that good!

The best part of all these items are that they’re made from recycled products and are friendly to our environment. It’s a great way to teach children about going green. We loved them!

by Kailani

What fun for kids! The owner of Stubby Pencil Studio sent my kids 2 sets of cards along with a Smencil and some soybean crayons. Now if you are as clueless as I was, a Smencil is a scented pencil. In our case it was an orange scented pencil. The pencil, along with the cards sold by Stubby Pencil Studio, are made of 100% recycled material.

These greetings made saying thank you fun. They come in packs of six, with a bright assortment of colored envelopes. The cards are stenciled with designs and ready to be colored by the sender. On the back of the cards is a space for your child to fill in with the “colored by” and “age” information of the young artist. The soybean crayons did not leave a waxy look like ordinary crayons do and seemed to be sturdier than other crayons.

There are several assortments of cards sold by Stubby Pencil, including birthday, thank you and holiday card sets. At $7.95 per set of six cards, they are just slightly more expensive than regular cards at your local major retailer. The only negative thing anyone in my house had to say about the products we received was that the envelope glue tasted yucky. When I suggested they could use regular cards from somewhere else, there was a resounding no. My kids love these cards and it makes corresponding enjoyable instead of a chore.

by Perri

I’ve always enjoyed sending cards and notes to family and friends. When our son came along I visioned him drawing pictures and making cute notes in the cards we sent out. Problem is that he found the store-bought cards too boring and didn’t have enough attention span to sit and make an entire card by hand. Then, Stubby Pencil Studio sent us several packages of cute cards with rockets on them and my son was thrilled. They outline the picture in black and let the artist color it in as they wish.

These cards have been perfect to send to family we don’t see very often. They enjoy receiving a special note in the mail from us, but it’s something they can hang up on the refrigerator as well. Besides from the cards, Stubby Pencil also included a set of soy crayons that didn’t smear or flake off like regular crayons sometimes do. Add a smelly pencil to that mix and my son was in heaven! All this and their products are eco-friendly and made from recycled goods too. These items would make the perfect birthday present. I’m thinking of ordering a few sets to put in a little gift basket.

by Emily

Stubby Pencil note cards are a creative way for your kids to greet friends and relatives with whimsical creativity. My kids loved coloring their stationery and sending them with the postal carrier. Of course Nana & Papa were on the receiving end 500 miles away and called to rave about what they found in their mailbox. The kids were proud of their “work” and remembered mailing them earlier in the week.

The finished Color ’n Kids Cards are keepsakes for sentimental folks with the artist signature and information on the back. I would guess that the cards are posted on the fridge will have a place in the gallery far longer than a traditional thank you note or birthday card. These sets are an ideal gift for the hard to buy for child and parent.

by Helene

You are probably curious, like I was, as to why someone would choose dirt. These candles are formulated from the beginning to the end with natural things. They use a soy wax made with organic ingredients and all natural cotton wicks. There are essential oils that help produce bold, yet comforting scents. Plus they burn for over 60 hours! I choose the Heart Breaker candle which combined berry, rose, thyme, geranium, orange and herbs for a delicious aroma that filled our home.

Besides being friendly to the environment the Dirt Candles are made with full biodegradable products and are soot-less. Even the containers are recycled glass. I’ve noticed many candle-makers are starting to consider things other than scents when producing products.

Most people would pass these candles by if they were looking through a catalog or browsing online. The name attracts your attention, but since most people look for candles based on scents, they may bypass this product based on the name alone. I’m glad I had the opportunity to try one and this will certainly be a must-have in our home.

Celery Street is offering Props & Pans readers a free candle. Visit their blog and leave a comment telling them which scent of Dirt Candles you would choose. Their offer is open until December 9, 2008.

Written by Emily, who is a married working mother of a very energetic 6 year old son. They recently moved out in the country and live on a rock road. Emily had to give up high-speed internet and she blames the realtor for not informing her ahead of time that it was not available. She writes at her personal blog, Fenicle and loves to review new things.

A couple of years ago, when we moved into our new home, I was determined not to use any toxic or chemical cleaners. Not only for the safety of my family, but also for the longevity of my new counter tops, appliances, fixtures and flooring. I had a few criteria that needed to be met though; mainly price, scent and it actually had to clean without too much hard scrubbing on my part! It took me a few tries and some of that other green stuff ($) to finally find a product line that I was happy with, but I did, and actually the one I liked the most surprised even me!

Made by a large corporation known for toxins and chemicals, Clorox turned over a new leaf (a green one even), and created a line called Green Works. Each of their products is over 99% natural ingredients that are biodegradable. They are not tested on animals and use recycled packaging. Plant based materials are the composition of the cleaners and the best part is they work!

The line encompasses products from an all purpose cleaner to dish soap, so no matter what you want clean, they’ll be a product for it. While I have the original scent of the products, I noticed that they have a new scent to some of them now like Simply Tangerine.

The last time I picked some up at the store, I paid $2.83 for a bottle, very reasonable cost, especially for the type of product it is, and I have seen them pretty much every store I’ve been to. The one thing I’ll mention about Green Works is that the products don’t disinfect. Clorox is working on that however, and say that their scientists are focused on evaluating natural disinfecting ingredients.

So if reducing risk of toxins to your family and home is important to you, and you haven’t tried an all natural cleaning product yet, I encourage you to grab a bottle, the next time you are at the store. How much better is it, when you turn around to scrub those toilets again, to know that there is some lasting effect to your cleaning!

Written by Tammy, who is married to the perfect man and together they are the parents to a precocious 12 year old girl, whom Tammy homeschools. She loves to travel and gush over all things Disney (preferably those two things can be done at the same time!). Tammy also enjoys knitting and reading. Her guilty pleasure is playing WoW with her husband and daughter. She blogs at Three Different Directions.

Nature’s Gate Asian Pear & Red Tea Shampoo & Conditioner have taken up permanent residence in my shower. The smell is enough to make me want to shower several times a day, and not just for the few minutes of privacy and silence that if affords me. I don’t know how a scent can be rejuvenating and relaxing at the same time but if it’s possible this one can do it.

Not only do these products smell fabulous and work just as well as, if not better than, the salon products that I used to use, but they cost just a fraction of the price. Available at my local organic grocer, they generally range in price from $6.99 on sale up to $9.99.

by Nicole

I still love it even after months of drinking it constantly! What you may ask? Crystal Lights Raspberry Lemonade! It’s sugar free and only 5 calories in a severing, not to mention it tastes so good and is very refreshing. It comes in a large container with mini containers inside so it doesn’t go stale or get hard when it’s humid and damp out.

It’s also available in the little packets for on the go. Just open, dump in your bottle water, shake and drink! If you haven’t tried it, don’t be intimidated by the sugar free and low calories, it tastes every bit as good as regular lemonade without all those extra calories and you won’t get the tummy ache from too much sugar. This is definitely a drink we’ll be drinking all year round!

by Andrea

I had my two children trying out the Long Mountain Designs and both the onesie and t-shirt we reviewed were equally great. The black tiger has enthralled my three year old who doesn’t want to take it off and the peacock onesie with the little jewel is adorable on my daughter.

I like how the t-shirts have a cute little tag on the bottom that reads “OrganicTee.” It’s nice to show that off for people that don’t even realize there is such a thing out there (and I was one of those not that long ago.) I didn’t have any problems with the clothing shrinking in the wash or the colors fading. I hate when you get a cute outfit and it either doesn’t fit after one wash or the color looks bad. Both items fit wonderfully and give my kids a great look without all those chemicals that they don’t need next to their skin all day long.

If you are looking for high quality, 100% organic cotton, made with pve-free and non-phthalate inks with designs from around the world you need to check out Long Mountain Designs. Let your child’s unique personality and style stand out. You can also get 10% off your first order, check out the homepage for details.

Written by Andrea, who is a stay at home Catholic wife and mother. She strives daily to perfect her vocation as wonderfully as possible. Andrea has two young children and hopes someday to have more. Her interests stem from being a mother and living her faith. She blogs for fun about things that interest her at Momma In Flip Flops.

Enter by leaving a comment HERE. Visit Nina & Tom’s website and tell us what t-shirt you love the most. The contest is open until August 7, 2008.

You can receive a second entry by blogging about the contest (linking to it) or adding us to your blogroll. Just e-mail us with a live link or let us know you have it posted on your site. You do not need a blog to enter, just leave us your e-mail address so that we may contact you. As always, it is Props & Pans policy NOT to distribute any information you give us (including your e-mail). Thanks for entering!