Homemade Laundry Detergent

Lately the hubby and I have been all about saving money. He is getting me into couponing, if anyone has any tips on me let me know. Something that I did in December to start our frugality was make our own laundry detergent. It is one of the best things that I have done, for real.

Here is what you'll need:

-1 4 lb 12 oz box Borax found in the detergent isle

-1 4 lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda found in the cooking isle

-1 box Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda 55 oz found in the detergent isle

-3 bars of Fels-Naptha soap, found in the detergent isle

-2 small containers of Oxy Clean or store brand Oxy Clean

Start by grating up your fels-naptha soap. If you have one, use a food processor. The first time I made this I hand grated it and it took forever, plus I scraped some of my fingers. Next, add in all the other ingredients. You can mix this up in a garbage bag and enter add to your storage container, but that is not necessary.

This will make about 2 gallons of soap. You can find a large enough container at Walmart or Fred Meyers... Or basically any store.

This detergent is fairly mild, but works wonders. You will only need about 2 tablespoons per load because it does not have all the excess that store bought soap does. I even use this soap in my HE washer. Just put it straight into the barrel instead of into the dispenser.

That picture above was taken today. When I made my soap in December that container was full. Seven months later I am still using the same soap. It lasts forever.... Seriously, forever. I spent about $25 to make, so I would definitely say money-wise that this is worth it. The awesome part too, is it has no smell. If you want to add some, you can use the Purex crystals. Or do some homemade fabric softener, which I will do a post about later :)

 

Posted with Blogsy

DIY Home Cleaners

We have all been reading about natural cleaners and right now they are all over Pinterest. I found one that I figured I would try. Overall, any of these cleaners are really simple to make. Here is the link to the directions I used :)

For both cleaners:

12 oz spray bottles- I found some at Dollar Tree; the Container Store among others has them too.

Window Cleaner

– 3/4 cup vinegar
– 3/4 cup water
– 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol
– 1/2 tsp liquid dish detergent
– 3 drops of orange (or whatever you like) essential oil
– 3 drops of vanilla (or whatever you like) essential oil


Countertop Spray

– 3/4 cup vinegar
– 3/4 cup water
– 1/2 tsp liquid dish detergent
– 10 drops of orange (or whatever you like) essential oil
– 10 drops of vanilla (or whatever you like) essential oil

Once you mix all the ingredients together, pour them into the spray bottles. For best results, shake them before each use. When washing your windows, use a news paper. It works a million times better. I also recommend making some cute little labels... But, there are also free printables on the link if you want to use her scents. Oh, she also has instructions for a soy wax candle to go with the sprays!

I have been using these sprays for awhile now and I love them. They are so simple to make, you can make them smell however you like, plus it is REALLY cheap to make.

My first test with this was to clean my microwave out and let me tell you, it practically wiped all the mess right off. I would mark this Pinterest pin as a win.

 

Lovelovelove

 

Posted with Blogsy