The Laundry Soap

Laundry Soap

My mom has done it.

My sister Lori has done it.

My sister Greta has done it.

I've read multiple links from Pintrest on it.

Then I decided I would try it.

Let's take a step back first.  I'm a highly sensitive person in many ways.  Smells, sounds, sights, often offend my sensory system.  Feelings of disgust rise from bad odors (body odor, garlic, bad breath, candy aisles), feelings of unwanted anger rise from repetitive sounds I can't control or move away from (pen clicking in meetings, chewing of finger nails), and dizziness often follows when I look at outrageous black and white patterns often found on others' shirts.  So, point being, the smell of opening the washer after washing clothes is often offensive to me.  I've tried putting the wash machine (which is a nearly brand new high efficiency washer) on the "tub cleaning" cycle, I've tried washing a non-load with only hot water and vinegar, but alas the smell that emits when you first open the washer is just awful. (I do realize that perhaps no one else even is aware of the smell- although I bet you'll remember to smell the next time you open the washing machine after a load just to see what you think ;) )

Well, one unintended positive of said laundry soap I'll talk about in a minute is washing machine smells that no longer offends my senses!!  YAY!  

Now, let's talk laundry soap.  A large bottle from Target, WalMart, or where ever you choose to purchase you soap from is on average $10 per 100 fluid ounces, and about $15 or more for 150 fluid ounces.  I have found that often it feels like there is a buildup of something on my clothes, maybe it is the water where we live, I don't know.  Regardless, after hearing my mom and sisters talk about making their own laundry soap at a huge cost savings, and after reading multiple posts from pinterst, I decided to give it a try. 

Here is what you need:

1) Container to hold the laundry soap. 

2) One container of Borax

3) One container of Washing Soda

4) One bottle of Dawn dish soap

5) Water

The steps:

1) Put one gallon of water into the container that will hold the laundry soap.

2) Add 1/4 cup of Borax

3) Add 1/4 cup Washing Soda

4) Add 1/4 cup Dawn dish soap

5) Mix

When I mixed mine I ended up with a lot of bubbles, they settled on their own throughout the day and really soap is supposed to bubble.  It has a little bluish tint to it- don't be alarmed by this it is supposed to be this way.  I've been using 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of detergent per load depending on the size.  Here is what I notice:
1) The clothes feel clean
2) There is no smell (other than smelling fresh) left on the clothes as they come out of the drier.
3) The smell that I always notice from opening the washing machine is NO LONGER there - I wonder if it is from chemicals from store bought detergents?? Hmm. What's your thought?

The final product

4) Huge price savings!!  I haven't calculated it out yet but for just under the cost of one bottle of detergent the ingredients will results in approximately 8 to 10 bottles of homemade detergent.  This is an estimated cost savings of $90!




While making your own homemade laundry soap isn't for everyone, it certainly has proved to have more pros than cons for me.  No more smelly washing machine and brighter cleaner feeling clothes for me!