What?!? More laundry?

So in my last post I talked about the homemade liquid laundry detergent I made. It's fab! But then I would slap in a chemical, scent laden non-biodegradable sheet in the dryer. This went against what I'm trying to achieve! So I made my own.

This concoction consisted of: 6 cups of water, 3 cups of vinegar and 2 cups of hair conditioner. To keep everything as eco friendly as possible, I used a natural conditioner from Whole Foods. I had my kids smell different bottles and the berry and mint scents definitely got the thumbs down. We found an herbal smelling one that we all agreed was going to be the best.

I blended it all up and soaked every crocheted dishcloth I had. I chose them for a couple of reasons: 1) my family would recognize that they were dryer cloths and not put them away with the rest of the dry load, and 2) they are an open weave that would accept the concoction well.

 I soaked 17 cloths in total. They hung above the bathtub for THREE DAYS! It took that long for them all to dry. They felt a bit stiff once they were dry and they softened considerably once they've gone through the dryer the first time.

Now, one recipe I found for homemade dryer sheets included only rags and store bought liquid fabric softener. Once you soaked rags in the softener and let them dry, each rag would last 12 loads! 12! I'm not sure if mine will last that long, but it has certainly been fun trying it out. This could be great in the Winter when line-drying isn't an option. In the Summer, a Downey ball with vinegar would another idea, although, I would love to find an alternative to a plastic ball in my washer.

Hair conditioner is partially designed to stop static in the hair, so it should in the dryer, too. If you find that static is still an issue, I've read that a ball of aluminum foil will fix that. I'm going to keep one handy just in case...if nothing else, to allow our kitties to be petted without fear of static shock.

Happy (safe) experimenting!

Ugh...laundry...

Laundry detergent has to be one of the most costly items that we have to purchase. I normally try to buy the most environmentally friendly product I can at the lowest price point possible. I am on a serious budget, after all. When I discovered the four main ingredients: baking soda, washing soda, borax and soap flakes, I started making my own.

The first recipe I used was a simple powder, mostly consisting of washing soda, soap flakes and borax. With this formula, you needed a full CUP of it per load of laundry! While very environmentally friendly, it was also very expensive! I abandoned that one almost immediately.

Then a friend sent me a YouTube link to a video on how to make your own liquid laundry detergent. I watched it, thinking it must be pretty tricky to require visual instruction, but it wasn't. It was very easy and very cost effective!

So here it is:

First, boil 4 cups of water in a saucepan. Slowly add 1/2 cup of soap flakes. Turn the heat right down. You only need to dissolve the soap flakes, not cook them, and as soon as you start to add the soap flakes, the water will froth like crazy and if your water is still at a rolling boil, it will make a mess! Trust me, I now have a burner that smells weird when I turn it on.

In a large bucket, add 12 pints of warm water. Now add the hot soap water. Break up any soap clumps as you see them.

Add 1 cup of washing soda.

Add 1/2 cup of borax.

Mix it all up really well and let it sit for 24 hours with the lid on loosely.

This is what the finished product will look like. 

Keep in mind that there are no stabilizers or other chemicals that make commercial detergents rich and creamy. This will have a slightly gelatinous texture and will have white 'floaties' in it. That's okay. It's supposed to look that way.

 To save me from searching for the recipe when it runs out, I wrote it on the side of the bucket. And the question you all want answered:

Yes, it works very well.

I've had some messy loads to do and it got the job done! Which is great because this recipe is for a LARGE bucketful. So, I started using this detergent and as I threw my clean load into the dryer (it's winter, I don't like frozen clothes) and realized in order to combat the static (which tortures our kitties every time we pet them) is with dryer sheets! I was aghast that I had missed that detail! So next adventure: fabric softener and static cling destroyer! 

Onward!

2012- the year of change

I've been aching for change for some time-I just wasn't sure how to go about it. Our recycled jewelry business is great, but there's more to us than that. We grow herbs, study rocks and crystals, are flexitrian and we surround ourselves with people who share their wisdom. We also mediate, belly dance and CREATE!!!

My goal is to learn and share. I will be making alternatives for the chemical laden products we often bring into our homes. Then I will test them on my family and post the whining here. Change is hard, especially when you're used to the way commercial products work. We've grown accustomed to the way they smell and their consistency. Mass produced isn't better! Besides, learning how to make your own cleaners is so satisfying!

Can't wait to get at it!