The only 18 things you need for a clean house

...as outlined by Christina Strutt, founder of the UK-based natural-products company Cabbages and Roses, in her new book, A Guide to Green Housekeeping, in bookstores this month ($19.95, CICO Books). Pick up a copy to find out how she survives—happily—without a Swiffer Wet Jet, and to discover her many other eco-friendly living tips, all beautifully photographed and/or illustrated. (Note: She's British, so you may have to look up some of the less-familiar items, like soda crystals. Or was that just me?)

From the book:
"This is a list of the housekeeping equipment and cleaning products that I find useful. I have no need for anything more—mine is a small but friendly cleaning-product cupboard. I lead a small but friendly life.

• Beeswax polish
• Baking soda, in industrial quantities
• Borax
• Chamois leather, for cleaning windows and rubbing off pet hair
• Distilled white vinegar, in industrial quantities
• Natural, ready-prepared cleaning fluids and detergent powder (such as Ecover)
• Enamel buckets—a good selection, preferably vintage. Why buy new ones when so many are available from flea markets and secondhand stores?
• Feather or lambswool duster with a long handle for reaching cobwebs and behind furniture
• Jam jars with screw lids
• Lemons, for various cleaning purposes
• Muslin, for food covers, straining jelly, etc.
• Old toothbrushes, for cleaning awkward corners
• Rags, for use as cleaning cloths. Make these from worn-out cotton dresses and t-shirts, towels, dish towels, and bed linens that are beyond mending. Cut the cloth into squares. Wash or boil used rags regularly. You may never need to buy another dustcloth; most people have enough rags to last a lifetime.
• Refillable spray bottles
• Soda crystals
• Washing line and wooden clothes pins
• Wooden bristle scrubbing brush
• Wooden-handled, bristle-brushed brooms (These last forever, unlike their plastic counterparts.) A hard-bristle brush is best for outdoor use and a soft-bristle brush for indoor sweeping.
• Wooden-handled, small bristle brush with tin dustpan (Plastic is not eco-friendly and is breakable.) As above, a soft-bristle brush is best for indoors while a hard-bristle brush removes dried mud and other dirt from carpets and rugs.”

Bonus: If you really owned only these cleaning products, think how lovely and white/brown/tan/silver your cleaning closet would be. Or, you know, just look at the picture and see it.

Addendum: I also really like some of her dresses and housewares. Worth checking out.