Happy Tuesday sisters! ♥
I've been thinking about makin' my own laundry detergent for a little while now...just thinkin' if it's cheaper, has less chemically-ish stuff in it, and is not on the "potentially leads to cancer" list... then why not? I found a couple recipes through Pinterest which got me all excited! (about saving some money on our grocery bill or about how cute this detergent looks in a glass jar with an old measuring cup in it, i'm not sure)
I tried it last night and it worked great (I have a Kenmore HE front loading machine...something the chief mentioned I should take into consideration when I was reading through the recipes and comments)...(I use the right side of my brain people - not the left in any way - i don't think of logical stuff like soap suds pouring out of my washing machine...just stuff that's cute) the load came out clean and smelling really lemon-y...I have yet to try it on rough and tough manly clothes though (heehee) and I chose to make the powder recipe 'cause I'm a powder junkie...no liquid for me, but there are many recipes for both.
...the Fels Napthia is what smells so good, and it looks old fashioned too! caauute!
1 bar of the soap is a little over a cup...it can be grated with a cheese grater or processed in a food processor, the smaller you cube it the better if your processing it.
I have to tell you that my whole house smelled like lemon when i was doing this part...so fresh and clean!
These were 2 different combinations i came up with by mixing and matching other recipes and through reader comments on Tipnut...I used the first set of ingredients because it seems like the Fels Napthia is concentrated and the idea of using 2 cups of it with 1 cup of each the washing soda and borax would have been to strong. Also, the second calls for 2 Tbsp. per load, which hardly seems like enough but maybe is because of the higher soap concentration? After you process your soap, it's just equal parts of each ingredient...then 1/4 c. per load...for waaaaay more information...go HERE, HERE and HERE.
After 2 loads of laundry I might be in love ♥
...and somewhere in those 4 million comments I read that Tide Powder Detergent, on average, costs .25 cents per load...homemade lemon-y goodness is 1 or 2 cents per load! wow :)
Scalloped Face Scrubbie Pattern
(aunt crochet strikes again!)
with some cotton yarn and a G hook....
♥ch 4, form ring
ch 3 (counts as 1st dc)
11 dc in ring (12 dc total)
11 dc in ring (12 dc total)
♥ch 3 (counts as 1st dc)
dc in same stitch
2 dc in each stitch around
join with slip stitch (24 dc)
♥ch 3
2 dc in next stitch
1 dc in next stitch - around
join with slip stitch to top of 1st dc (36 dc)
♥ch 3 (counts as 1st dc)
4 dc in same stitch
skip next stitch
decrease over next 2 stitches
5 dc in next stitch around
Happy crocheting and laundry detergent making!
Linking to these great parties ♥
I make liquid laundry detergent, same recipe but melt the fels naptha in boiling water first. I want to try your powdered detergent recipe now! :)
ReplyDeleteyou will love it- I have been making my own (liquid) detergent for over a year, I'll never go back! ~*S*~
ReplyDeleteJaime..is there any recipe's without borax??? Cuz you can't use borax on cloth diapers... :( ~Mar
ReplyDeleteI use soapnuts for those, they work great! As long as you put them (the diapers) in the "bulky items" setting, once on cold, once on hot. They are great! You don't really even have to do a rinse cycle, although I usually take the nuts out and do one rinse cycle to remove any lingering detergent. No leaks no stains. Hang dried of course....
DeleteI have been using this recipe for laundry soap for years. I love the money I save and the way that it cleans. Smiles, Paula
ReplyDeleteI have been using the liquid version for at least five years now. It saves a ton of money and gets everything clean! It is a total budget saver and so, so simple! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteI really want to start making my own detergent...for the sake of chemicals AND money. Thank you SO much for posting!!
ReplyDeleteColey @
www.whatyoumakeit-coley.blogspot.com
Saving @ $.23 per load might just be worth every penny! Let us know how it works on the dirty manly clothes b/c I certainly have lots of that. And I can't tell you how cute it is the glass jar...that I plan to attach a vinyl sign to with my silhouette! Great post!
ReplyDeleteOh, I really like the idea of making your own soap! I would love to try this! Great blog you have here, by the way!
ReplyDeleteI would love to have you share this at my link party, Show & Share!
http://southernlovely.blogspot.com/2011/08/show-share-2.html
Thanks so much for this! I posted a lavender-scented powder laundry detergent recipe on my site some time ago, but had a few people ask if it worked in front loader machines. Now you've helped me answer a question! And I've got a lemony variation to try! Thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteK I have always used liquid store bought laundry detergent. I have a front loader and would love to try this, much easier to store than the liquid version of the same recipe, do you put it in the dispenser cup like you do the liquid? do you have to mix it with hot water first if you are doing a cold wash?
ReplyDeleteBorax is banned in the UK and Europe but I just use grated vegetable soap and washing soda,it works just fine without the borax.
ReplyDeleteOn the face scrubbie pattern, is **skip next stitch
ReplyDeletedecrease over next 2 stitches
5 dc in next stitch around** the repeat for the scrubbie?
.
ReplyDelete