Sometimes It's The Little Things....

I was so proud of myself the other night.  For over 1/2 a year (or longer) I have been telling myself that I was going to start making my own laundry detergent.  I have heard several of my friends talking about how much they are saving each month/year by making their own detergent.  At first I just told myself I was way too busy to bother with making my own detergent.  Of course I was also very sceptical about whether or not it would truly clean my clothes.  I mean, seeing all of my friends & their families in sparkling white clothes was not proof enough for me. 

And then it happened....a great friend of mine who is going through so much more than I am has been able to keep up with her homemade laundry detergent.   And it hit me, why in the world am I NOT doing this.

On Monday evening, as my daughter was at the ice rink practicing for her up coming competition.  I ran to the store and purchased the following ingredients:



Ivory Soap



Borax



Arm & Hammer Washing Soda



I came home and was ready to go!  You will also need to have the following supplies (I happened to have them on hand at home)

• 5 gallon bucket (with lid)
• A grater
• funnel (If you are going to store the detergent in a container other than the 5 gallon bucket.)

In 10 minutes I had 2 batches of laundry soap made.  10 MINUTES!!!!  It is the easiest thing I have done in a long time & I am thrilled at the amount that it made.

Here are the directions for any of you interested:

In a large pan, add 6 cups of water & 1/2 bar of grated ivory soap.  Heat until the soap is melted.  Then add 1/2 C borax, and 1/2 C washing soda.  Heat until dissolved.  In a 5 gallon bucket, add 4 C water (room temperature.)  Stir in the hot mix from the stove.  Add 1 Gallon of water + 6 Cups and Stir.  Let stand for 24 hours.  Stir & store in containers.

You will only need to use 1/2 cup of detergent per load. 

That's it!  I am thrilled because it is so easy & makes a TON!  (I doubled my batch just because I wanted to use the entire bar of soap.)  And the 5 gallon bucket is almost full.

What do you do to save money?  Do you have a favorite laundry soap recipe you use?  I will tell you about my homemade fabric softener next week!  :)