The Organised Housewife » Tips, ideas, inspiration and motivation to help keep you and your household clean and organised

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Feb 22 2011

It squirts so easily!

Category: Kitchen • Tips

I buy Palmolive detergent in a large 4L bottle from Big W.  I find it more economical and trying to do my bit by reducing the amount of plastic in our landfill.  I used to refill an old bottle but it soon got grubby, very sticky and didn’t look all that fancy on my kitchen bench.  

I am a minimalist and don’t like clutter, but I do however like to keep my detergent on the bench for easy access.  I have been searching for something different to store my dish washing liquid in. On my recent trip to Sydney, I found exactly what I was after, it’s looks like a bottle that holds tomato sauce, it is perfect and it squirts the liquid out so easily:D.  It was $1.25, bargain, so I purchased two and use the other for my cooking oil.

I did have a nice ceramic soap dispenser to hold the hand soap but it went rusty inside (so now I am back to using the standard store bottles), at least I know when it’s nearly empty (again I refill using the bulk packs). I also have a ceramic pot from IKEA which happily stores my kitchen sponges.

How do you store your detergent and sponges?

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  • samantha savva

    I have to admit, I am terrible when it comes to washing up detergent. I normally just buy the cheapest that is on sale at the grocery store. It hides under the kitchen sink as they are normally quite horrible to look at. However now I have seen this I will definately be adding it to my shopping list this week. I too use the store bought hand soap dispensers but I definately buy the bulk packs and refill. SO much cheaper.

  • http://www.facebook.com/tammyflynn.tupperware Tam

    I store my detergent and hand wash behind my sink and the sponges/cloth in the actual sink. Our kitchen is in the middle of the house and the sink faces directly into our living area so I can’t really hide it anywhere (apart from putting it in the cupboard, but we can’t lock out doors so don’t do that because of the risk to our youngest child).

    I have my favourite 2 products being Cussons Kitchen Hands (odour eliminator one that is a lemon scent) that I use in the bathrooms as well and for dishwashing liquid use Blast Ultra Plus (lemon/citrus scented too). Not the most attractive containers but at the moment that’s the least of my worries with still a major chunk of the declutter challenge to complete yet hehe

  • Alicia Ilievski

    Eeeee I am always changing my idea of what I love in this area. I actually dont mind spoiling myself on good dishwashing detergent, dispensers and hand soap. I figure its something I spend a lot of time using so I always try to spice up my life…..OMG is anyone reading this….sooo saaaad LOL
    Anyways my all time favourite is to use Enjo hand soap. The bottles are lovely. They are a little on the exe side so at the moment we dont have any in the house. I do love them.
    I really love the detol hand soap complete with no touch dispenser. They have these on sale for the whole kit for $10 every now and again. I like this because it is a bit of a novelty. I also like the smell of both type.
    I am currently using the Method dishwashing liquid…its less chemicals and the bottle makes me sooo happy (umm again another saaaad moment LOL)
    Love your little set up and think it might be time to revamp. Mostly I repurpose any nice looking soap bottles. Change is as good as a holiday right?
    Ohh and I looooove Ikea for everything EXCEPT soap bottles (they all rust) I will not try any more of them from there.

  • Melissa

    Hi

    I have an over the door hanger from Howards Storage world (the type that you use in a shower although it is slightly shorter than the nomal kind) on the cupboard under the sink. I store soap, hand sanitiser, dishwashing liquid and the sponge on it.

    Love it!

    • Katrina

      That sounds great Melissa, I would love to see a photo of it.

  • April

    I got my squeezy bottle today! Now i can help the environment by refilling!

    Thank YOU Katrina for this never ending source of information!!!

    • Katrina

      Good on you April, we can all do our little bit. I love my squeezy bottle, especially for the oil too.

  • Linley

    I have a small rectangular melamine tray that my sponge/dish soap/hand soap sit in. Catches the drips and makes wiping down the bench easier. Love the squeezie, refillable sauce bottle idea!!!!!

    • http://www.theorganisedhousewife.com.au Katrina

      It’s so much easier with the squeezey bottle, looks nicer too on the bench.

  • Sabrinamica

    I know this post is old but I wanted to share anyone, we put our dish liquid in a glass olive oil/dressing decanter (which is really pretty) that wasn’t being used. We actually have two so sometimes one is filled with bleach and they look really nice sitting on the sink.

  • Sabrinamica

    I know this post is old but I wanted to share anyone, we put our dish liquid in a glass olive oil/dressing decanter (which is really pretty) that wasn’t being used. We actually have two so sometimes one is filled with bleach and they look really nice sitting on the sink.

    • http://www.theorganisedhousewife.com.au Katrina

      They would look really nice and decorative. Clever reuse of the decanter!

  • Adelle

    I use a hand soap dispenser to put dish washing liquid in (either a one like the pic above, or you can buy a decorative one) and only 1 or 2 squirts – no using too much! And although I also have hand soap at the bench it isn’t a big deal if someone accidently uses the dish washing liquid :)

  • Ali

    I used to have the messiest bench ever, now I have a container in cupboard underneath that holds all my cleaning tools for doing dishes and detergent bottle lives next to it so now i have nothing on my bench besides cake mixer, kettle etc, looks way better now..

  • Gelelosa

    Hi Katrina, Where did you buy your soap dispenser squeezy bottle? I love that idea! I also use bulk detergent (bought from a wholesaler where I also buy liquid laundry detergent, both in 4l containers) and I bought one of their clear plastic pump dispensers for the detergent, which also sits on my bench. I keep a soap dispenser and hand sanitiser there too. I have a basket attached to my under sink cupboard door which stores the brushes and scourers. I tend to drape the Wettex over the edge between the double sinks, as I tend to use it so often!

  • Helen James

    I have a rubber grip mat on the bench with a pretty green pot on it. In that sit my brushes. I have a small sponge in a saucer next to the pot so that any drips from from the brushes can fall on to it. It soaks up sooo much water but never really gets wet (hard to describe). Next to the pot is my detergent. It is a big bottle. I like to have all these things where I can reach them easily to do the dishes. Thanks to the 20 day challenge for helping me to organise my kitchen window sill I now have a pretty area for brushes, scrubbers and detergent.

  • http://www.facebook.com/christina.papps Christina Papps

    i use a white cntr i bought from target on sale which was meant for little pots. It has little “feet” at the bottom which is great as it “lifts” & doesnt get wet underneath.. a good thing since I have a wooden window seal so water sitting on it is not a good thing. it’s “country” looking.. really simple & pretty. I put a chux at the bottom to collect any water / dirt & put all my brushes, detergents, sponges & antibacterial spray which i use all the time. very handy & looks neat & pretty :)

  • Tam78

    My mother in law bought me a groovy little soap dispenser that uses only a small amount of handwash. Have a look for yourself here

    Cuisipro: Foam Pump
    http://www.cuisipro.com/Foam-Pump-plu83-7579.html