June 24, 2009
By Carol Ives
Annie is MFC’s expert on ways to save money with natural and safe homemade products, and has taught us that making our own laundry soap is very easy. We no longer have to worry about toxic ingredients or the high cost of natural store bought detergent.
Try your hand at making your own, it’s simple and fun.
- 3 pint water
- ½ bar of grated Kirks Castile Soap
- 1 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (NOT baking soda)
- 1 cup Borax
- 2-3 Gallon Bucket to mix in
Instructions
- Mix Kirks castile soap in a saucepan with 3 pints of hot water and heat on low until dissolved
- Stir in Washing Soda and Borax. Stir until thickened, and remove from heat.
- Add 1 quart of Hot water to the 2 gallon bucket.
- Add soap mixture and mix well.
- Fill bucket completely with additional hot water and mix well.
- Set aside for 24 hours or until mixture thickens. You may add additional hot water if the mixture becomes too thick.
Mix well before each use. Use ½ cup per load. You may add ¼ cup of Borax to heavily soiled loads. For a fabric softener use distilled white vinegar.
Did You Know…
1 cup Borax and 1 cup Washing Soda makes great inexpensive automatic dishwasher soap. Use distilled white Vinegar in your rinse compartment.
Related posts:
Thanks to Jamie Fry (an attendee at Annie’s class during SOP), I’m on my second week using it and absolutely LOVE this laundry soap! Clothes feel really clean – no residue, no scent, just clean. And it’s so great to know that not only does the clothing touching our skin almost 24/7 have no toxins added through the process, but the greywater from the laundry can go out to the garden without concern.
We’re using plastic 2 quart beverage pitchers as containers for it but would love to hear other suggestions. Thank you Annie and MFC! (And Jamie)
Reply
Carol Ives Reply:
September 7th, 2009 at 9:35 pm
We’re glad you like the laundry soap!
Annie uses a plastic 64 oz paint bucket with a pour spout and removable top for easy cleaning. This can be purchased at a home improvement store and works great.
You can also use any plastic container with a wide mouth and top like a cat food container – Deli-Cat has a good one. A juice container (up to 1 gal) also works well.
Reply
Comment by Paula Richard — September 2, 2009 @ 2:16 am
Hi Carol,
Jamie and Paula have been talking about the laundry soap. I am very interested in trying it but am concerned at how it would work in a HE (high effient) washer.
Reply
Comment by Brenda Clawson — October 5, 2009 @ 3:30 am
Hi Brenda! I talked with Annie today about your question and she confirmed that yes, this laundry soap works great in HE machines. In fact, she and I both have HE washers and are very pleased with the results.
Reply
Comment by Carol Ives — October 7, 2009 @ 11:00 pm