DIY Laundry Soap

So I have found this recipe for homemade laundry soap on countless websites. In the future, I will give credit where credit is due, but this time there is to many to list.

This is a very simple DIY project, if you can boil water you can do this. Here is a list of ingredients that I used and how much they cost at Walmart.

2 gallons water $1.00 (I only got these because I needed the jugs they came in, you can certainly use tap water and re-use milk jugs)
1 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda $3.24 (for a 55 oz box) (enough for 6 more times)
1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax $2.98 (76 oz box) (enough for 9 more times)
1 bar of soap $0.97 (grated with cheese grater) (I used Yardley English Lavender, because I love the smell of lavender)

That is a total of $9.19, the washing soda and borax will last you MANY MORE times, the only thing you should have to buy in the future is the bar of soap.

TOOLS-
Cheese grater
Big pot (mine was 2 1/2 gallons)
Big wooden spoon
Funnel


STEPS-
In a large pot, mix about 1/2 gallon water with the grated soap. Stir often and bring to a boil. When the soap is mostly dissolved add the rest of that gallon of water and the Borax and Washing Soda. Turn heat down to medium, DON"T FREAK OUT! This is when it starts to gel. Keep stirring until all mixed. Turn off heat.  Add second gallon of water and continue stirring.

I let mine cool just a few minutes and then started adding it back into the gallon jugs. This is where I came into a little trouble. It seems that it is not that easy to add this gel like creature to the gallon jugs. So I used a plastic bowl (my daughter hates when I save butter bowls and what not) to transfer the gel into the funnel then into the jug.

Use about 1/4 cup for small loads and 1/2 cup for big loads. This is where I used another bowl that I saved from the trash. I even measured and  marked it with a sharpie for each load size.

I have a test load in the washer right now, so I will let you know how it goes!