Sun & Earth Review & Giveaway

I have been using a few of the Sun & Earth products for a while now and have even tweeted out about them so when they asked me to review their entire Fabric Care Line, I said 'Yes'. They also shared their excitement about the launch of the Laundry Detergent REFILL Stations at Whole Foods in NJ, NY, and CT.

But first, a little more about Sun & Earth. Their products made with non-toxic ingredients including coconut and orange oils that clean and shine beautifully and have an appealing scent. All of the laundry and cleaning products are free of petroleum based cleaners, chlorine, phosphates, dyes and perfumes that leave a residue. In addition, they are not tested on animals.

Now, more about the refill stations: They are an easy-to-use fill nozzle stations where you reuse the laundry detergent bottle and cap that you already have (marked on the bottle) and refill them at Whole Foods. Since you pay by the ounce, you are in control over how much you spend and that can help all of us stay on budget. Wow, they meant it when they coined "Don't Recycle, Re-Use and Re-fill."

Okay, now I bet you want to read my thoughts about these products as I have put them all through the wringer for the past month (or more).

Xtra Concentrated Dish Liquid:

Pros:
· A little goes a long way. This is truly a dish liquid in which I use very little as it does not rinse right off the sponge or only make it through 2 plates.
· Smells great
· Cleans wonderfully
· Does not irritate or dry out my hands-how is that possible?
· Generous sized bottle so I get a lot for money and lasts a long time
· Website states that you can even use it as a fruit & veggie wash – who knew?

Cons:
· As with all brands, the liquid will pool around cap and drain down side of bottle. Can’t anyone invent a design that eliminated that issue?

All Purpose Spray Cleaner:
Pros:
· I have been using this product before I was sent it to review it and I love it.
· Multi-use for sure. I use it on the kitchen counters, bathroom sinks, counter, outside of toilets, door knobs etc.
· Citrus Scent that I enjoy
· I even used it as floor cleaner until they sent me the new floor cleaner.

Cons:
· The citrus scent is a bit strong. Now, I love citrus scent but I think some can be removed and it will still be refreshing.

Concentrated Floor Cleaner:
Pros:
· Scent-The cleaner leaves a very light, citrus scent and not an overbearing one as with most scented floor cleaners. Most floor cleaners give me a headache.
· The floor felt and looked very clean
· The floor was not slippery afterward as with some cleaners

· The bottle states that it works on wood floors as well although I did not try it on them yet (I am lazy when it comes to cleaning our wood floors)

Cons:
· Unless you want some artificial high gloss shine, there are no cons.

Deep Cleaning Laundry Detergent: (both Citrus Scent & Unscented):
Pros:
· A little does go a long way so it is very economical.
· Cleaned my clothes and I have been using it a long while now so I already knew it was a keeper. · Does not leave a strong scent on clothing

Cons:
· Cap Marking: You cannot see the marking inside the cap which makes it challenging to know the correct amount to add.
· Cap Drainage: I found that the excess liquid in the cap did not drain back into the bottle as fast as it could in order to avoid build up on the rim.

Note: I also gave some of the unscented detergent to a friend and she also noted that a little does go along way. She did think the detergent did a good job on her colored clothing but not as good on her whites as her usual brand.

On the Spot Instant Stain Remover:
Pros:
· Convenient to carry around
· Did a great job getting out even older stains even thought it is made for removing fresh stains.
· Can use it on clothing, draperies, furniture.

Cons:
· None

Fabric Softener Dryer Sheets:
Pros:
· No slimy feeling on fingers or clothes. The biggest issue I had with dryer sheets in the past is that you had a slimy feeling on your fingers after handling them and I often felt a 'layer' on my clothes.
· Not overly scented
· Made my old towels feel newer (Newest ones are from our wedding 8 years ago)
· No static cling—especially important to me as get shocked so much (actually my biggest pet peeve in the winter. I can not even touch the car door without a jolt )
· Left one in the dryer after one use and it went though another load but did not shred apart all over the clothe.

Cons:
· None

Ultra Fabric Softener:
Pros:

· Clothes were softer and I wish I had used this with the kids were babies (don’t we a love the extra softness when they are so little).

Cons: None

GIVEAWAY Details: 50 oz 2x Laundry, 22 oz. Xtra Dish & 22 oz. All Purpose Cleaner.

To enter, you must answer one or all of the following questions (can do in one comment or separate) and be sure that a valid email address is available:

* Would you try the refill station if there was one located near you? Is it intuitive? What questions do you have about it? Do you understand the idea behind it? *

Additional Entries (Null if entry above not completed): These are optional however, you MUST leave a comment for each one separately.

1. Join the Savor the Thyme Facebook Fan Page and leave a comment with your FB name

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3. Post this on Twitter (can do every day if you wish but need separate comment for each entry) "Entered to win Sun & Earth Products @savorthethyme Plz RT http://bit.ly/d3xOjI #sunandearth "

4. Subscribe to the Savor the Thyme RSS feed (on the right sidebar).

Contest ends 11:59 pm EST on Wednesday, March 17th, 2010.