Try using black tea as a natural and safe alternative to dish soap or hand soap!  Or even a metal scouring pad!  It really does work and in our tests, we pitted tea against brillo steel pads, treated with oxyclean, regular dish soap, and just warm water.

Black tea worked better than a steel pad every time!

It even cleans floors safely!

And if you like to drink tea, too, try growing your own! Black and green tea come from a species of plant native to Asia, but which is readily available from several sources including Territorial Seed Company in Oregon (territorialseed.com).  Tea plants require warm temperatures, and do well in greenhouses or as house plants.  Besides tasting good, they also have pretty flowers!