I thoroughly enjoy cleaning – except for putting away laundry.  I’d rather mop or clean the toilet. So sometimes, admittedly, a clean pile sits patiently and travels to the bed and then back in the basket, so I can sleep, and then back on the bed before it gets put away.  My cat has no complaints about ‘his’ fun and happy pile.  Guess that’s a perk.  While I don’t think I’ll ever enjoy putting away laundry, I’ve found it helpful to tackle a least exciting task first to get it out of the way before things get compounded or, in this case, more laundry accumulates.  

Despite my battle in the laundry world, there’s an enjoyable part to the process that lightens the load:  Making homemade laundry soap.

If you’re like me, you’re swamped with ideas and recipes.  Maybe you save loads of them and they pile up on your Pinterest board.  We have good intention, goals, and interests, but it’s so easy to get lost in information overload staying stuck in the mere thought of things.  We need each other’s layers to sometimes light the spark to move thoughts and words into action.  Someone I know who makes laundry soap for her family is what finally helped me start this cycle.  She makes a large batch and it lasts for many months for her family.

So here’s to sharing my blended recipe, why I enjoy making it, and some benefits to the ingredients.  I won’t go into great depth for various reasons.  It’s rewarding and empowering to learn and research things for yourself depending on what’s important to you.  Equally so, is acting upon it.  The process bestows a gift.  

This particular fine-tuned blend has worked out perfectly for well over a year with no machine, clothing, or skin issues.  Through this exploration, I’ve learned more about its ingredients, which are simple, inexpensive items I already have in my home that I use for many other things (to include cleaning the washing machine naturally). Win. Win. 

I let go of trying to find a perfect recipe.

There’s no perfect recipe, but I had to start somewhere.  There’s no perfect solution or way to avoid everything that’s not ideal, but doing my part through even small changes makes a difference and is something I can control. Depending on your needs or considerations, you can easily change up this recipe.  What I’ve gained is a cleaner and cheaper alternative than store alternatives, a fun and rewarding hobby, and working essentially with everyday items at home – essential oils, baking soda, washing soda, vinegar, and borax.  I didn’t want to overanalyze the ingredients.  I didn’t want one that took a lot of time to make.  I wanted to be content with the one that worked.  I wanted to implement essential oils.  Goals achieved.

My laundry is plenty clean and lovely scented.  The scent is not overly strong, contrasted to former store alternatives.  Strong smells don’t automatically imply that something is clean, healthy, or safe. There are liquid versions, but I’ve had success with this powder one.  I typically start all cycles hot to ensure the powder gets dissolved and then turn it to the appropriate temperature, allowing the water to fill up some before I add the laundry.

My own homemade laundry soap is probably one of my favorite simple creations. Exploring ideas and tweaking them to make them my own makes it extra special. 

Finding a creative outlet is huge.  I’ve never been big on sewing, so making this is one way to still embrace a creative craft.

Creating a cost-effective alternative is appealing.  Store laundry soap is pretty expensive and I felt like I was constantly needing to buy it.

Doing my part to make a non-toxic alternative is rewarding and a personal contribution to my home. 

Taking no more than 10-15 minutes to make even a large batch lasting for 4-6 months is efficient. It’s fun to not just buy-and-use but make-and-use. 

Having a clean and less toxic smell linger in my laundry room is bonus.

Seeing my effort sitting in my laundry room puts a smile on my face and makes me feel proud.

The Mix:

2 Cups Washing Soda

1 Cup Baking Soda

1 Cup Borax

1 Grated Bar of Castile Soap

10-20 Drops of Essential Oils 

The Extras:

The Container & Label = Walmart.  Scooper = Recycle former protein/collagen powder scoopers.

Brief Ingredient Low-Down:

Washing Soda – Affordable.  Fights stains and cuts through grease.  Multi-purpose.

Baking Soda – Affordable.  Remarkable and numerous health benefits.  Softens water.  Keeps whites and colors vibrant.  Multi-purpose.

Borax –  Affordable.  Breaks down stains.  Laundry booster.  Disinfects.  Removes soap residue, so keeps the mix evenly dispersed in the machine.  Neutralizes odors.  Multi-purpose.

Castile Bar Soap – Affordable.  Made of vegetable oils.  Minimal environmental impact.  Offers a clean lathering.  Multi-purpose.  There’s some dispute over Fels-Naptha soap and I’ve used it in the past with no problems.  Castile is a cleaner option.

100% Pure Essential Oils –  An added pure means for fragrance.  I change it up and use different oils, but my favorite is “Purification” since it not only smells amazing, but it deodorizes, too.

Want to know more about essential oils and how to start your own oily layer? Head over to my page about it. 

Perfect line-up for laundry washing, don’t you think?!?  Since the ingredients do so much, you need very little in a cycle.  Batch life span extended.  My scooper is about 1/4 cup.  One full scoop works fine for a large load and a half scoop for a small load.  I don’t overthink it and don’t always make the mix exact.  To make a large batch, simply double or triple the ingredients.  To grate the bar soap, a cheese grater is perfect giving you smaller or larger soap flakes.

Do you make your own laundry soap? Any laundry thoughts?