Homemade Laundry Detergent

So here's the recipe that I use to make my own Laundry Detergent. 

I've been meaning to post this for months now, but just found time this morning. 

I first was introduced to this idea by watching one of my favorite shows on TLC: 

The Duggar Family's 18 Kids and Counting. 

They have it posted here:  Duggar's Homemade Laundry Soap Recipe

Ingredients:

1 Fels Naptha soap bar, grated

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax

I use the old laudry detergent containers to put the mix in. 

I also wrote the recipe on the container so I wouldn't loose it.

I had to divide the recipe because the Duggars use so much,

and I didn't have enough storage in my home for a 5 gallon bucket!

Grate the soap bar into a small saucepan. Cover with hot water.

Cook over medium-low heat, stirring continually, until the soap completely dissolves.

Put washing soda and borax in a 5-gallon bucket. Pour in the hot, melted soap mixture. Stir well, until all the powder is dissolved. Fill the bucket to the top with more hot tap water. Stir, cover securely, and let set overnight. The next morning, stir the mixture. Mix equal amounts of soap concentrate and water in a smaller laundry-detergent dispenser or container. Shake before using.

For top-loading machines: Use 1 cup of the soap mixture per load.

For front-loading machines: Use 1/2 cup per load.

One Small Change

1 Corinthians 10:26

"for the earth is the Lord's, and everything in it."

I have become more aware in the past few years while I have been conciously working on being green, eco friendly and frugal that we are stewards of God's earth and should do our part to create less waste and be more aware of our actions on the environment.

So, having come accross Hip Mountain Mama and it's 'One Small Change' challenge, I thought it would be a perfect match for me and to add to my already growing list of things I am trying to do to be more aware and concious of my actions.

In their own words...



"Our vision with Hip Mountain Mama is much larger than selling environmentally friendly products. We are passionate about educating others about sustainability and passionate about building community. Our desire to create a community of individuals who want to make a positive change has led to the creation of our One Small Change project.


We want to challenge each of you to make 1 change each month leading up to Earth Day (April 22, 2010). It can be small or it can be huge, but all we ask is that you decide on something you will do to make a positive green impact and follow through with it. If everyone makes 4 changes between January and April, this can have a huge effect."



This month, although already half over, I have decided to still participate. I already think that I am somewhat green and eco friendly. But feel like I can continue working on this earth friendly path. As being green is often synonymous with being frugal, I feel like it is something that I need to do, to show my kids how to live responsibly.



This month I have decided to hang dry at least one load of laundry per day. Now, some of you who don't live in our area might think, "what's so difficult about that?" But those of you who do live here (or who have lived here before or visited) are asking, "are you crazy?"



We live in a 'Rain Forest' and here it seems like it rains just about every other day!



So, my only option that I have, unless I want to hang my laundry in the rain, is to hang it in my bathroom and above my washer and dryer! I have a closet rod above my washer and dryer in the hallway and an extra shower rod above the tub in the bathroom (See Photo of Diapers Below).

Cloth Diapers

Diapers, Diapers, Diapers...

As you can imagine, with three kids wearing them, we go thru a lot of diapers (about 30 per day). To avoid the high costs I use cloth as much as possible, which adds just one laundry load each day.

I highly recommend this brand, however, the only thing about these diapers is that the mid-section and bottom area are a bit padded, so if you kiddo wears pant size 24 months; 2t or 3T is needed to compensate for the extra padding.