Look at that. A wild mat hoarder in it's natural habitat. Aggressive when agitated. Do not engage.

Hey Guys! I know what you're thinking; and yes. I may have a problem, but these aren't all mine. It's a combined effort. @onetree( Yes, the sarcastic one with the blue hair, who happens to be my lovely mother) is mostly to blame. Yep. It feels so great to shift the blame.

Regardless of how it came to be, these mats of ours are filthy; and since I do my practice outdoors a lot, they're getting worse.

Since its Spring here in SA, I decided to give them a wash. I'm bringing you along on the journey because a lot have people have asked me how to keep a mat clean; and it really isn't that hard. The main problem comes in with the use of soap. It takes forever to get the soapy residue out of the mat, so it loses all grip and leaves you slipping and sliding for the next ten yoga classes.

I've found an easy DIY antibacterial spray, and I added my own spin to help it get rid of stains too. This spray will clean your mat, it will not be harmful to the material, and will not make your mat super slippery.

So without further adieu, let's get cleaning.

The Spray:

This is what I used

1. • Take a spray bottle and fill it a little less than half way with water. To this add about two table spoons of white vinegar.

• Next, add about a table spoon of tea tree or eucalyptus oil.
• To this add about a teaspoon of baking soda. It makes a bit of a volcano at first but it really helps with the cleaning process.
• Once it has calmed down, put the lid on and there you go! Just shake it a bit before use.

The Process:

1. Place your mat in a bath tub filled with a bit of warm water to dampen it. If you happen to be a hoarder like me and you have a few, lay them out on the grass and spray them with a bit of water.
   These are so dirty :'(
   
   Seriously @onetree what did you do to this thing?!
   
2. Spray them down with the cleaning spray.
3. Take a scrubbing brush and get rid of any pent up anger.
   Since I'm a yogi and I'm super calm and zen and sh*t, I have no anger.

What is anger?

Can I nom it?

Can I download it at Google Playstore?

Just Kidding.. I have lots of anger so I broke out the big guns and attacked the b*tch with a broom.

1. Leave it to soak while you regain your composure. I went to meditate or something.

2. Let the water out of the bath, wring out the mat, then refill the bath with clean water and rinse the mat. If you're doing this outside, use a hosepipe to spray off the dirty water and rinse the mat(s). Wring them out. Spray them once more.

3. Wring the mats out again, then hang them up somewhere to dry. This may take a few days so try to schedule this well in advance of any classes.

There you go! You may have to repeat the process for tough stains, but the solution is not harsh on the mat so it's okay.

You can also use the spray to sanitise your mat after classes, just roll the mat out, spray it lightly, wipe off excess liquid and leave it to dry before rolling it up. This will keep your mat sanitised and smelling fresh.

I hope you liked this and found it helpful.

Seriously guys. If I found the will power you can too.

The spray is also very versatile, and can be used for cleaning many different things, so play around with it.

Photo credits to the awesome @thatguyjono who takes all my pictures, and go check out @onetree if you'd like to see more sassy things.

Feel free to ask any questions and let me know what you think. I always appreciate comments. Follow me @yogidream.scapes for more yoga and fitness and stuff.

Byyyeee