Thoughts on Homemade Laundry Soap - Part 3

Well another laundry soap post.....I like the dish soap one but hubby seems to be allergic to something in the mixture.   However when I was using just plain Zote and nothing else he seemed to be fine.  SO....Thought #3 back to just plain Zote Laundry bar.  This time instead of shaving it I am grating it.     The grater I have makes it into a powder.  I have done this a couple times and he seems to be itching less.  I think I am on to something.  One thing I do need to figure out though is smell. Not an after smell that smells good for the clothes, but something that helps remove the sometimes lingering smell in the clothes.  I may add some baking soda to my powder next time.  I'll let you know how it turns out.  I know Washing Soda, but it and borax are in the powder and liquid I have been using the past couple months. One of them may be causing the problem.  Baking soda is known for helping with odors.       I'm not sure how much this measurers out to be.....couple tablespoons probably.  This is the measurer from the oxy cleaner I bought. This amount seems to work well.           Here's my grated bar.  I grated just about enough for my last washing.  Looks like I will get several more washes out of this bar.         I'll keep you updated.......

My Thoughts on Homemade Laundry Soap -- Part 2

If you missed just scroll down to the previous post.  Now on to business......

I have never been a fan of the traditional homemade liquid laundry soap.  Having to grate the soap, cook it, and the slimy mixture.  I've done that once, and never again. Granted it was a long time ago, back when the boys were little, but I just didn't like it at all.  The only time I made it I didn't think it cleaned well at all.  Maybe it was just that recipe, or maybe the soap I used (I think I used dial or something like that because that's all I had at the time).  Not to mention now I really don't have the time or space to make it right now.

The beginning of this month, May, I decided to buy some store brand green apple scented dish soap and try it.  My thought was Cheap, Bubbles, and Good Smelling.  I washed a few loads with just the dish soap.  It had some bubbles, which I liked.  The clothes, especially the socks and underwear, had a hint of green apple smell after they were dry, which I liked.  I also added a mixture of borax, washing soda, and store brand oxy-clean to the load separately.  All the clothes had the same clean smell and feel to them.

Surely I could mix the powder and the dish soap together and make it work, right?  I got on Pinterest I think it was and started looking.  I found this recipe for a no grate liquid laundry soap.  I couldn't remember where I had found the recipe and I totally forgot I sent the link to myself in e-mail, so I winged it.  I remembered the 1/2 cup portions but that was it.

I had an empty gallon vinegar jug so I started with it.  I added my powder......borax, washing soda, and oxy cleaner, that I already had mixed up.  I have no clue what the ratio on those were as I didn't measure them in the first place I just poured them in an empty oxy container that I had, until it was half full.  I added half cup of dish soap to my jug and then filled with water.  That was a mistake as it made bubbles.  Next time I think I will mix it up a little differently.

The first week It worked really well and I had some bubbles and most of the clothes had a slight green apple scent.  Every time I used it though I had to turn the jug upside down to mix the ingredients.

This week I finished using the dish soap in a jug with the squirt lid.  I opted to swap containers.  I do like the new jug much better,  I noticed my vinegar jug was a bit bloated.  Probably from the oxy cleaner.  Also the powder ingredients were now all dissolved.  It had more of a gel to it, but it was still very liquid.  Most of my clothes has a slight apple smell.  I had a few bubbles, and everything smelled clean.

I didn't actually measure how much I used per load, but it was a small squirt or two depending on what was in the wonder washer.  I still have a lot left after about 3 washes.  (I wash about every 3-4 days)

I do plan on making this again,  Unless it gets used between now and the time I need to make more, I have some green apple dish soap left.  I will also measure next time for a better "feel" on how this recipe works.  I can always modify it.   I do like the idea of choosing my scent.  If I feel like lemon next time I can buy the lemon scent dish soap.  If I want something more "traditional" smelling, I can go with a name brand.

Here is the actual recipe from the website I mentioned above:

1/2 cup each borax, washing soda, and dish soap.  4 cups HOT water.  Add your dry ingredients and dish soap to your jug.  Add the hot water and mix.  Finish filling your jug with cold water.

On the oxy cleaner....I'm thinking I will start with 1/4 cup.  This was just an additive I already had in my powder mix I had made up.  It's seen a lot in homemade powder laundry soap.  I don't know if it's necessary but it is working for me so far.  This is quick, easy and appears to be a cheap recipe.  After I actually measure making a new batch and have an idea about how long it will last me, I will have a better idea.

When I make another batch and actually MEASURE the dry, per the recipe I found, I will let you know what I think and how this first batch worked for me.

Thoughts on Homemade Laundry Soap -- Part 1

Hey everyone I hope you had an awesome Memorial Day Weekend! It was a fun one for me.  I have some pictures to share and can't wait to get a post written up.  Watch for it in a couple days!   I've been working on a reasonable laundry soap for small loads and I think I have found something I like.  Here's part 1.  I will share part 2 tomorrow.

Doing small loads of laundry in my wonder washer doesn't require a whole lot of laundry soap per load.  A "load" usually consists of a couple t-shirts, or one pair of jeans.  It would be major overkill using the regular amount of laundry soap you normally would use.  Even for a regular size washer some laundry soap amounts I think are overkill.  I have discovered over the past few months it takes at the most, for a "load", 2 teaspoons of homemade powder laundry soap.  The homemade liquid I am currently trying out I use a little more than that, but I will explain in another post.  I haven't bought store bought commercial laundry soap since sometime last fall.  I do still have some, and it was given to my son.  I do still use it when I wash his clothes, and on very rare occasions on mine.  When I go to the laundromat (in another town) to wash blankets and coats I will use it as well. Some things I think are necessary in laundry soap:

• I do like bubbles!  To me that proves things are getting clean.  I know bubbles aren't necessary, but it's a visual thing for me.
• Smell. I want a nice smell to my clothes.  "Clean" is a smell, but sometimes I need a little more.
• My smell preference changes from time to time.  What and how I make my laundry soap with also changes with what smell I want.
• Something to help with the sweaty smell.  It is summer time now.  Just using something to "make bubbles" doesn't always help remove that smell.
• I like my clothes to smell like something after they are dry.

I had started out using just a grated bar of Zote laundry soap. It was amazing and I loved the smell.  I added a bit if store brand oxy-clean to the zote for extra cleaning.  It worked very well for me.  That lasted me about 2 months.  This didn't really create any bubbles, but by the way the clothes smelled and felt I could tell it was doing it's job.  The socks and underwear had a slight citronella smell, but it wasn't very noticeable.  (I was ok with this since I like the smell anyway) This was the first thing I used after stopping going to the laundromat every week.  I do still have a bar of Zote in the cupboard.  I will keep it as a back-up.

My next batch I wanted to try fels naptha. I love the smell if it also.  I tried it alone, and wasn't satisfied with how it, by it's self, cleaned.  I bought and mixed in some washing soda and borax along with some of the store brand oxy-clean.  This mixture was OK, but I stillwasn't totally satisfied.  It smelled good, but I didn't feel it cleaned my clothes as well as the Zote did.  This lasted me about a month and a half.  Absolutely no smell after they were dry.  This also didn't create bubbles, but I still had the same clean smell and feel to my clothes.

I'm always looking on pinterest and google searches and blogs for new ideas and easier ways or cheaper ways to do things.  Sometimes you hit on something really good, sometimes it's not so good.  I was wanting something besides the bar laundry soap.  The shaving pieces don't always dissolve all the way for me.  Sometimes if they got caught in the fold of the fabric they would still be somewhat whole.  Wasn't a big deal, but it just bothered me.  Not to mention having to grate the bar of laundry soap was time consuming.  Being a 2 full time business owner, time is something I don't have a lot of outside working.

I am happy to say I think I have finally come up with the perfect solution for me and my laundry. Come back tomorrow for part 2, and my current solution.

Laundry Alternative Spin Dryer and Wonderwasher Washing Clothes by Hand

Watch my Laundry Alternative Spin Dryer and Wonderwasher Washing Clothes by Hand video on YouTube!

I so love this thing!  Makes washing clothes by hand so much easier to dry!

Homemade Laundry

I have been doing laundry by hand for almost 2 months now.  Why? Well Our local laundromat has a lot of broken down machines and the owners, being older, aren't wanting to put a lot of money into fixing things, or so I have been told.  It makes it hard to get a machine sometimes, especially when someone else is there and washing a month's worth for a family.  I just asked nicely on a local facebook group how the community could help spruce up the place.  It turned into a bashing session of different people saying things about me and on and on.  Well one guy said "why not get a washboard and go down to the river".  So I took his advice, sorta.  I DO have a wonderwasher that I love love love, so technically not washing everything by hand.

2 T-shirts is a load and it struggles with washing a pair of jeans.  Therefore there are a few things I DO have to wash by hand.  You cant believe how dirty the clean clothes were!  I spent nearly 2 weeks rewashing them and washing real dirty clothes to get them clean.  They smelled awful too.  They didn't smell clean.  It didn't matter how much laundry soap I put in the washer.   For the most part I used Zote laundry soap when I started washing by hand.  That stuff is AMAZING!  I used a lot of [off brand] oxy cleaner too.  Some items I had to wash multiple times to get them clean.

Now a month and a half later, doing laundry is a bit easier.  So far I have been able to keep up with it.  I just do a little each night as there is drying room available.  Smaller non bulky items I wring out by hand.  What do I use to wring out the bugger things?  The wringer on our mop bucket.  It does a pretty good job.  Some day I want a spin dryer.  Something similar to THIS ONE.  It would make getting the water out of the clothes much easier and drying time much quicker.

Now for the laundry soap?  Well I still have store bought liquid that I use occasionally.  It only takes at the most half a teaspoon for a load.  I have noticed though, which I find odd, is sometimes it makes our clothes smell like smoke.  We are non smokers and we aren't around any fireplaces, etc.  What I DO like to use though, like I mentioned above, is Zote laundry bar soap.  I bought several bars a few years back because I was wanting to make homemade laundry soap, but never did.  I also got them for $1 each!  SO what I have been doing is shaving a bar of the laundry soap and adding 2 scoops of the [off brand] oxy cleaner to it.  It's Amazing and takes about 1/2 teaspoon per load.  With all the extra washing I did on the first bar, it has lasted a month and a half.  I'm expecting this batch to last a bit longer.  But still it cost me so little to make, it's not that big of a deal.  LOL!

I know there is more I could put in there, if I followed the recipes found on the web, but why?  I have soap and the oxy cleaner stuff.  Together they do the job and it satisfies me and hubby.  Also if there is a smell that you can describe as "clean" it's our hand washed clothes.  I don't need any artificial smell ingredients added to my laundry, it would just add to the cost too.  :-)

Tell Me It's Not True

Oh but I'm sad to say it is. I really want to start uploading more YouTube videos but #1 I'm having a hard time being comfortable with putting my face out there for the whole world. #2 editing videos takes time and that I don't have a lot of extra of.  #3 Why? Well I have an already popular video that I put on like 6 years ago and every time I check my insights I see another cent or two added to my earnings. Might as well make videos right?  But what gets me is ad monetization information makes it sound like it will work with blogger, but it don't. It's just for YouTube.   *Sigh* and I've been doing so well with blogging hoping it would add cents to my earnings. Guess I'm going to have to get braver if I want to see if it will work to help earn a little bit more money. I have to admit I watch a LOT of YouTube myself.  If I do make videos I will always leave a link here. 

Now on to other things.......

Woke up to this this morning. It was raining when I looked out. (yes that's my view)

I knew there had to be a rainbow.  I was completely soaked by the time I walked half a block to the shop. This was about 8:45am.

This was looking out the front door of the shop about 9:00 when I unlocked it. Lots and lots or rain.  Water in the street and alley was over my shoes. Glad I wore my sandals😉.

This was a second rainbow about 9:00 am. The first one went away because the sun was hidden by clouds.  Pretty spectacular seeing 2 rainbows, in the western sky, this morning. 🌈🌈

I found and printed off a crochet pattern for a twiddle muff.  Searched more and found some really cool pictures of a Tunisian crochet twiddle muff.  Guess what I'm making?  Yep the Tunisian style one. I love Tunisian crochet. I wish there were more patterns in English.

Wasn't much of an exciting day. This evening however I had to play Beat the Clock. I fixed supper then I had to go to the grocery store before they close at 8:00.  I left the house about 6:30.  I also had to make it to the laundromat before last wash started at 8:00. I got to the laundromat at 7:55. Thankfully it was empty. Guess what I forgot though? My quarters. Thankfully I had my purse with me since I had just been to the grocery store. There was just enough quarters to do laundry. After I washed dried and folded the laundry I went to the other grocery store that closes at 10 to get cereal.

Well it's been a day. I'm going to post this and get ready to hit the hay.