Homemade Laundry Soap

I decided after the last post, perhaps I should share my laundry soap recipe:

I found the basic recipe online somewhere, but found that it didn’t work as well as I wanted, so I adjusted to suit our needs! You can do the same!

2 bars Fels Naptha Soap (grated) –melt this slowly in about 1/2 gallon of water ( I use a double boiler to heat slowly..you don’t want to burn the soap)

You will also need about;

•  1/2 to 1 cup of Borax (21 Mule Team)
• 1 cup of Arm and Hammer Washing Soda
• 2 TBSP glycerin
• 1 cup of Baking Soda
• 4 gallons of HOT water (not boiling)..just as hot as the tap is usually works.
• 5 gallon plastic bucket with tight sealing lid

Once soap has melted, pour into the bucket, add the washing soda, baking soda, borax and glycerin and stir..then pour in the Hot water and stir.  This should set up into a thick gel fairly quickly.  It will be a watery gel and as you get to the bottom of the bucket, it does get a bit more watery, but still works fine. 

Once set use 1/2 cup to 1 cup per load of laundry, depending on how dirty the clothes are.  I’ve found that I have no static now..and don’t have to have any kind of dryer sheets or fabric softener.  It gets all our clothing clean and works really well with my oxyclean spray when we have stubborn stains!  🙂

Recipe can be adjusted based on what you like..just play with it a bit.  A bucket lasts about 3 weeks or so here…depending on how much grunge my hubby brings in and how many towels the kids go through with swimming.  This last time it lasted over a month…

Essential oils could be added as well…I may try adding a bit of Tea Tree oil at some point. 

Now, I have to go make me a batch..as I’m down to my last 2-3 loads!  🙂  And yes, I just add the new in on whatever little bit is left…it mixes in when stirred and there’s no waste.

Enjoy!

Summertime Musings…

Hi all! It’s me again! I have been a little lax in writing lately, but have been busy with all the summer activities that come with kids. We’ve had VBS, 4-H daycamps, trips to Grandma’s, cook outs, pool time, yard sales and am currently working on rearranging the house and parring down unneeded items..(let me tell you, that’s not really that much fun! )

Anyway, I recently moved from store bought laundry detergent to homemade…and in my search for variations on the recipe I currently use, I came across a great site! The Family Homestead  This site is run by a lady by the name of Crystal Miller.  She has some great recipes for laundry detergent, hand soap, body scrubs, household cleaning items and then she has her store, selling homemade soaps…where I’ll be visiting as soon as someone buys one of my hillbilly bags (another post)! 

So check it out!  She has some great tips and resources!  Any by the way, the homemade laundry detergent…it works really well..I make it by the 5 gallon bucket and it even gets my construction working hubbies dirty, sweaty clothes clean!