DIY: Laundry Soap

I just made my first batch of liquid laundry soap. I have made powdered before which always worked great, but I decided to try liquid this time. It was SUPER easy and it washes the clothes just as well as my store bought stuff for a fraction of the cost!!

What you'll need:

Water (3 gallons + 4 cups)

Washing Soda (1 cup)

Soap (1 bar)

Borax (1/2 cup)

Optional: Essential oils

Step one: Grate your bar of soap into small peices. I went a head and used my food processor to save time and just washed it really well after.

Note on soap: it's really up to you what you use. You can use Fels-Naptha like I did since it was loacated right next to the other ingredients I bought or you can use pretty much any thing you can find. Next time I think I'll use an all natural soap, I've read great things about the results with Dr. Bronners Peppermint or Lavender soaps!

Add soap to 4 cups boiling water. Stir to dislove.

Mix 3 gallons warm-hot water with your washing soda and borax. Some people don't like borax in their soap as they think it's too harsh but I have used it in my homemade soaps and in my laundry and really like the boost it gives. Stir to disolve.

Add your soap mixture to your water mixture.

COVER - Store overnight. Stir the next day. It'll prob. be really thick and goupy and you'll have to stir it up good to get it thin and more liquid like.

Transfer to your storage container and it's ready to use!!!

If you don't want to wait over night and want instant satisfaction there's also the powdered version which is just as easy to make.

What you'll need: Washing Soda, Soap and Borax (optional: baking soda)

Grate your soap into small peices. (to get it small enough I graded it in the food processor, then I pulsed it. You want REALLY tiny peices) Add 3 cups washing soda and 1.5 cups borax. I also added 1 cup baking soda. Mix well. Store in a air tight containr and use approx. 1 TBSP for HE washers or 3TBSP for regular washing machines.! Easy peasy!

ETA: If you want to make your own cloth diaper safe soap you can use the same dry recipe here but do not use the soap. It is too harsh and will cause build up on your diapers. When I make it for diapers I use 2 Cups Baking Soda, 3 Cups Washing Soda, 1 Cup Borax and for some extra scent you can add essential oils. I actually use tea tree oil in every diaper load bc it helps kill any bacteria and makes them smell better. (Re: Borax ~ Some people don't like this, especially on diapers, as they think it's too harsh but I need my diapers really clean or I get stink issues. I like how it cleans and I also use bleach in every diaper load. I always have clean diapers that are stain free with no stink, it works for me!)