Like Martha Stewart, Minus The Jail Time

It's official.  I'm making my own laundry detergent.  I know some of you must think I've gone completely off the deep end now.  But hear me out. 

Quite awhile back we switched to Seventh Generation laundry detergent to try to avoid some of the harsh chemicals that are typically used in laundry detergents.  (Having a child that has gone through cancer makes you look at the world and the toxins within it a bit differently, I suppose.)  I have loved their detergent, but not so much their price.  And then my mom told me she was making her own. 

It took me by surprise because she isn't usually making homeade concoctions like this.  I remember her vividly saying that Martha Stewart had gone too far when she started making her own mayonnaise.  ;) Regardless, she found a "recipe" for some do-it-yourself, all natural laundry detergent and was trying it out.  She offered to give us a batch of it as well.  I tried it and quickly became a fan of it.  In fact, I just made my very own batch the other night. 

I joke with my mom about how much money she's going to save us.  It's wonderful!!!  I am just shocked that it takes very little time (and even less money) to make the stuff.  Everyone should be taught this before heading out into the real world.  Seriously.

I posted on Facebook while whipping up my first batch that I felt a bit like Martha Stewart, minus the jail time.  I received a number of comments asking for the recipe.  I said I would post it here and link up there.  Well, that was a couple of days ago and it looks like toes are tapping because I'm getting messages asking where the recipe is.  So, here it is, folks!  Hope you enjoy it and the money you're about to start saving.   Let me know what you think!

Ingredients for one batch:
1 cup Borax
1 cup Washing Soda (not Baking Soda)
1 bar Ivory Soap

(You can find the borax and washing soda in the laundry section of the store.)

1.  Grate the entire bar of Ivory soap with a cheese grater.  Don't worry, it's soft soap and grates with very little effort.  I think it took less than 5 minutes to grate it up.

2.  Mix the borax, washing soda and grated soap into a bowl. 

3.  Make the detergent super fine by mixing it in a food grinder.  I used a mini food grinder because it was what my mom had used and worked well.  I mixed 1/3 of the batch at a time.  I turned it on for a few seconds and then shook it around a bit and went some more until the powder looked pretty fine.  (I would guess it took less than a minute each time.) 

4.  Put the detergent into a storage container of your choice.

5.  Use 1-2 tablespoons per load of laundry.  Yes, just 1-2 tablespoons!!  I put mine in before the laundry goes in, right when I turn the water on.  It dissolves quite easily. 

We haven't used fabric softener in years, but Mom said she quit using fabric softener when she started using this detergent.  She says her clothes are softer than ever. 

Remember, I have two boys.  So we have our fair share of stains.  While I do pretreat stains, this detergent is removing stains just as well as my other detergent had been. 

There's another recipe for liquid detergent out there, but it sounds like more work for the same end result.  Since the powder dissolves so easily, I don't think the liquid version is worth it. 

All natural, cheap, easy-to-make detergent.  Jeff and I did the math and it came out to less than $2 per batch.  And at 1-2 tablespoons per load of landry, it lasts quite awhile. 

You can thank me later.  Merry Christmas, friends!

Much love,