Laundry Detergent

I was running low on laundry detergent so I figured I would take pictures while I made it so I could do a quick post.  Making my own laundry detergent was something I've wanted to do for a while but I had a huge bottle of detergent I wanted to use up first.  This was my second time making it, it takes about 5 minutes to make and I have absolutely no complaints about it.  I will admit that at first I missed that "clean laundry smell," because it leaves my clothes with virtually no smell at all.  You can add essential oils if you want, but there is no need, my clothes are clean and odor free.  I'm actually quite impressed with it, when it comes to washing strong odors (like if Alex wets the bed or Aaron throws up) everything still comes out clean on the first wash.

Ingredients:

• 1 bar of Ivory Soap
• 1 cup of Borax
• 1 cup of Washing Soda

 Directions:

Put  your bar of soap into a large microwave safe bowl (I prefer glass) and microwave for about 2 minutes (it has to be ivory for this to work, if you choose to use fels naptha you will have to grate it by hand).  I like to flip it after a minute just to make sure all of it fluffs up.  It will look like this.

 After it has cooled crumble it with your hands.  I just break it up enough so that it will fit in my Blendtec and then pulse it til it is smooth.  Pour your Borax and Washing into your bowl and add your soap.  Mix it up good (I use a wisk) then transfer it to a container.  Use 1tbsp per load.  I wash between 6-9 loads of laundry a week and this batch will last me about 2-2.5 months.

Storing Berries

Since moving to Utah we had terrible luck with berries.  My boys love them, but no matter how quickly we tried to eat them, I was always throwing away at least a few each week.  About a year ago I started experimenting with different methods that were supposed to extend the life of berries, including storing them in open containers, wrapping them in damp paper towels, washing them in a vinegar/water rinse and letting them dry before storing them in open bowls.  None of these methods seemed to do a darn thing when it came to keeping my berries fresh.

I'm not even sure where I found this idea, but I haven't thrown out a berry since I did.  All I do is go thru my fresh berries and pick out any that are soft, overly juicy/ripe or moldy.  I toss any that aren't usable and then either freeze or make a smoothie out of the others.  Once I'm left with only good berries I transfer them to mason jars, I love quart sized jars for raspberries, blackberries and blueberries, but since I typically buy strawberries in 2lb containers I store them in glass canisters that I found at target for a couple bucks.  I love these canisters by the way and have begun storing almost all of my baking supplies in them as well as my laundry detergent and dish washing detergent.

Anyways, store them loosely, no need to squish them in, and when done pop them in the fridge.  That's it!  When you are ready to use just rinse as you normally would and you are good to go.  I love that I can buy my berries in bulk and not worry about wasting them, over the summer I had strawberries last 2 weeks!  The key to keeping them fresh is to keep them dry and limit their exposure to air, so as I get down to the last few strawberries and the jar begins to fill with condensation I transfer them over to a smaller jar.  It always makes me happy when I open my fridge and see my jars of berries, hope this helps you save a little money on produce!

I might be crunchy

For whatever reason I have it set in my brain that I don't want to be classified as crunchy.  I have nothing against people who choose a more holistic approach to life, in fact I am constantly trying to find ways to eliminate chemicals, prepared foods/mixes, and the need to purchase products that I can make myself.  No one has even referred to me as "crunchy" but I think the fact that lots of the blogs I use for ideas are written by women who classify themselves as such makes me feel like I might be.  As I go thru the list of things that I believe qualify someone as meeting this stereotype I have become painfully aware of the fact that I just might be a little crunchy.


Over the last year or so I have eliminated the need of almost all of our commercially produced cleaning products.  I make my own bathroom cleaner, kitchen cleaner, glass cleaner, stain remover, dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent, and use white vinegar instead of fabric softener and jet dry.  I make my own lotion, toothpaste, elderberry syrup and hand soap.  I make almost all of our own baking mixes including shake and bake and bisquick.  I not only participate in a joy school (in home preschool trade off with other moms) but recently started home schooling my first grader as well.  I am very much a supporter of natural childbirth, breastfeeding, baby led weaning, and baby wearing and will be cloth diapering our new baby A. 


As I look at this list I have to admit that I just might be a little crunchy. and maybe it isn't a bad thing to be classified as such.  Since switching over our cleaning products our house has looked and felt cleaner and we have had much less illness and speedier recoveries (elderberry syrup has helped us with this as well).  I have been able to stop using my very expensive prescription cream for my keratosis pilaris (red bumps that used to cover my arms) by switching to a coconut oil based lotion (which when mixed with some peppermint oil makes an amazing pain reliever).  And for the first time in 5 pregnancies I haven't developed any new cavities (I've averaged 2 new cavities per pregnancy, most of my molars have been filled twice).  In fact prior to switching to a homemade toothpaste I had never had a dental cleaning under an hour and most required a second visit.  I have extremely good oral hygiene, I floss multiple times a day and brush at least twice a day, but I am a plaque producer and a sugar lover.  Needless to say, just 4 weeks after switching toothpastes (and already suffering from severe sensitivity) my teeth were miraculously in perfect condition, and so clean that it took mere minutes for the hygienist to scrape and polish my teeth (oh and I haven't had any tooth sensitivity since about 2 weeks in).


I decided to write this blog post as a way to encourage/motivate myself to post about some of the recipes I'm using.  I realize that there are a thousand other blog posts about homemade laundry detergent, but sometimes trying a new recipe can be intimidating.  What if it doesn't work right?  What if you don't like it?  I thought it might be nice to have all my recipes in one easy to find place and maybe someone will try and like them too.  I am needing to make more laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent in the next week or two so I will post recipes when I make them.