I have five or six projects picked out for the summer. I finished my first and second projects today! I'm very excited about them because they're quick, easy, and will save our family some money. So what did I make in about 30 minutes? Laundry soap and fabric softener! Thanks to Pinterest, I found several recipes for each. D and I like powdered soap better than liquid, which is actually even easier to make.
Here's the recipe:
1 Cup of Borax
1 Cup of Washing Soda
1 Bar of Fels Naptha
Grate the bar of Fels Naptha. Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
Place mixture into a container.
You use about 1 teaspoon for each load. The hardest part is grating the bar of soap, but it's pretty easy. I got a little gung ho at the beginning and grated more than the soap.
After the soap was so easy, I decided to move on to the fabric softener at the same time.
2 Cups of Hair Conditioner (I used Suave Ocean Breeze)
3 Cups of Distilled White Vinegar
6 Cups of Hot Water
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
Stir until the conditioner is well mixed. Use a funnel to pour mixture into a container. I used an empty Gain container and a tupperware container because I ran out of room in the Gain container. Use about 1/4 cup in each load.
I immediately started a load of laundry to try out my projects. Stay tuned for the results!
I made both products in about 30 minutes and they will last a long time. The best part is how inexpensive they are. Derek recently bought Tide laundry soap (40 loads) for $12. The Borax was $5, Washing Soda was $5, and the Fels Naptha bar was $1. So that's only $1 less than the Tide, BUT next time I make the soap I only need to get the bar of soap. The Borax and Washing Soda will last me a LONG time! The laundry soap I made should last much longer than 40 loads, too. My only hesitation on this project was knowing where to buy the ingredients. You can find all of them at your local grocery store right next to the expensive laundry soap;)
Recently, I've been having a hard time finding a scent of fabric softener that I like. We don't have a specific brand that we always buy, but last time I bought Gain. It costs $8 at Walmart, but it probably cost me more at Kroger. Compare that to $2 for the Suave conditioner. I already had the vinegar and hot water (of course!) The homemade fabric softener completely filled a Gain container and would have filled at least half of another if I had one. It's empowering to create your own products because you know exactly what is in them and you're saving money.
I've found some great websites for making your own cleaning products. Again, they are MUCH cheaper, but the main draw for me is fewer toxic chemicals in our house. I guess this girly-girl is turning a little bit crunchy;)
