Cleaner, Cheaper...

For over a year now, I have been making my own laundry detergent. I started doing it out of curiosity, and have continued because I am truly impressed with how well it cleans and cares for my family's clothing. And the cost simply can't be beat! If you're interested, here's my recipe. I know there are a lot of similar ones out there on the internet.

• 1/2 bar Fels Naptha Soap
• 1/2 cup washing soda 
• 1/2 cup borax powder (I use 20 Mule Team)
• Essential Oils (I prefer orange oil and lavendar oil, and sometimes use eucalyptus oil)
• Water

This is the oil I am using presently.

Grate the soap and put it in a large pot.  Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax. Stir it up until it dissolves. Remove from heat. Now add 1 gallon + 10 additional cups of water and stir. Shake a few drops of essential oils in until you are satisfied.

Decant the laundry detergent into smaller, easier to handle containers and allow it to gel. I add 1/2 cup of the mixture to my front load washer.

The large opening funnel came from the Automotive Department at WalMart.

This detergent works very well, and is extremely low-sudsing, so it doesn't mess up my front loader. The only additives I use, and only occasionally at that, is powdered OxyClean for organic stains and whites and Purex crystals if I have really stinky laundry. One batch fills five Simply Orange containers and lasts our family quite some time. It is also very quick to make.

Voila!