One advocate for organics, Belinda Forsyth is confident the bets way most people can have of achieving this is producing their own products so homeowners know exactly what is going into a cleaner.

Ms Forsyth explains how essential oils and Castille soap can be used for 'green cleaning' and provided tips on how to make chemical free cleaning spray, hand soap, carpet deoderiser and laundry soaker.

She has been holding free workshops in Ballarat as part of an educational push to spread the word.

Ms Forsyth said she first started making chemical free cleaning products for her home a few years ago and has been sharing her learnings with others since.

"I had this light bulb moment and thought 'why has nobody told me that you don't need a toxic chemical to clean your bathroom, that you can use a natural product instead?'," she said.

"When you make your own you know exactly what is going in it, it ends up costing you less and you are not buying plastic all the time because you can refill the bottles you have got which reduces your waste."

See Ms Forsyth's 'green cleaning' recipes below.

Ms Forsyth said she had seen a growing interest and willingness for people to change their habits and reduce their household's environmental impact.

"It just takes a bit of education. We have grown up just thinking that you go to the shop and buy something, not really knowing what it is," she said.

"I think everyone can do things like make their own cleaning products. Making change can be overwhelming so I always say to people to do one thing a month. If you try to change 20 things in your home at once you just won't do it, it is too overwhelming. When you do one thing a month it becomes habit."

READ MORE: Plastic free shopping to cut rubbish, zero waste a growing trend

Belinda Forsyth's natural household cleaning workshop was held as part of a week-long series of workshops at The Source Bulk Foods Ballarat this week.

Other workshops provided inspiration on using wholefoods in the home and tips to make sustainable changes, including how to reuse glass jars that can no longer be put in kerbside recycling in Ballarat.

See Belinda Forsyth's recipe for Healthy Turkish Delight below.

The store will host Fire Tonic tasting and recipe workshop on Friday, a sustainable self care workshop on Saturday and a raw foods workshop on Sunday, all run as drop-in sessions from 11am to 2pm.

The Source Bulk Foods Ballarat owner Janet Smith said the positive response from the Ballarat community to her plastic free shop during its first year of opening was encouraging for future growth of the waste free movement.

"I think the community is really starting to embrace the zero waste aspect of living, a different way of living and a different mindset," she said.

"People are ready for a change, are realising the impact it has on the environment and are looking for answers and simple ways to make a difference. It can be really simple steps, as simple as changing to a Keep Cup or using a bamboo toothbrush. It is all about small changes making big differences, step by step."

Visit belindaforsyth.com/ for more information on making chemical free household products and The Source Bulk Foods Ballarat on Facebook for more details of the birthday week celebrations.

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