Homemade Laundry Soap

 

I've always wanted to make homemade laundry soap, so when my friend Tracy posted a recipe on her blog, I was inspired to try it. I've only been using it for a couple of days, but am surprised how well it works. It has gotten all the stains out of the kids clothes, and believe me...their clothes were DIRTY. They had a great time playing outside in the dirt yesterday, and were making mud pies and all sorts of fun concoctions. So, I thought I would put this new soap to it's test, and am impressed how clean their clothes are. 

I was a little worried at first when I was grating the fels-naptha soap, because it had a very strong smell to it. I am super sensitive to fragrances, but I stuck with it, and when I used the homemade laundry soap in the wash, the clothes didn't have a strong smell to them, so I was relieved. If you want, you can also add a couple drops of essential oils like lemon or orange to give your clothes a citrus boost. 

I will definitely be using this laundry soap from now on because it is SOOO much cheaper than buying regular detergent from the store. My friend Tracy calculated it to be $1.15 for 2 cups of laundry soap (which is how much the recipe yields). You are only using 1 TB per batch of clothes so you can get 32 loads of clothes for $1.15! Per load you are only spending 3.5 cents. Not bad! 

I found all of these items at my local grocery store, so next time you go shopping check them out! This laundry soap is great for HE Washers, because it is low sudsing. 

 

 Laundry Soap Recipe

 

1 cup Fels-Naptha Soap, grated, use the smallest holes on your grater or my friend Tracy suggested using a microplane

1/2 cup washing soda (not baking soda)
1/2 cup Borox

1.Mix everything up in an old container...I used an old washed out yogurt container.
When doing laundry, use 1 TB per batch.

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Helpful Tips: Using Distilled Vinegar for Household Cleaning

 

 When Andrew started crawling, I was a little concerned with the cleaning products I was using for our floors. I was using a Wet Swiffer at the time, and my feet would get this weird tingling feeling if the floors where still wet and I would feel this heaviness in my chest whenever I used it. Not good signs! 

So I searched for alternatives and found that using white distilled vinegar works just as good if not better than the cleaning products you buy in the store. It will kill most mold, bacteria and germs because of the level of acidity. Also, it's environmentally friendly and cost effective.

For a gallon of white distilled vinegar I pay around $2-3. It lasts me about 2-3 months for ALL my cleaning needs. When I first started using vinegar, I was having a hard time with the smell. That stuff is powerful! But then I discovered Citrus Essential Oils like Orange or Lemon Oils. I just add a couple drops of each to my all-purpose spray and it takes the smell away. Now I don't even notice it anymore. Also, lemon has anti-bacterial properties.

Note: Vinegar is not recommended for real hardwood floors. Apparently it takes the luster out of them. But all other floors, go at it with the vinegar! :)

 How much to use?

I use 1 part water to 1 part vinegar for my all-purpose cleaner. In my spray bottle, I fill it up halfway with water, the other half with white vinegar, and then I add a couple drops of Orange and Lemon Oil each. That's what I use to clean counter tops, bathrooms, bath tubs, etc. For washing the kitchen floors, I use 1 cup of vinegar per 1 gallon of water. Again, I add a couple drops of Orange and Lemon Oil each.

Check out the video I posted about what you can use vinegar for around your house. Also, check out this article that talks a little bit more about uses of vinegar, lemon and baking soda.

Alternative Cleaning Article

 You can usually find these essential oils at a natural food store or GNC. If you can't find them, you can order them on amazon here.