I'm a 1950's Wife!

Now that I have my toothpaste recipe conquered, I moved to the next thing on my list--homemade laundry soap.  It just happened that my sister in law, from Marigold Road, posted that she made laundry soap this week.  Good job M! Check out her post here, so I don't have to type the recipe because I am lazy like that!

I took her recipe, doubled it and added a bar of honey and oat soap I found at the local health food store. I went to four different stores in town on Saturday trying to find Washing Soda and Fels-Naptha Soap. I finally ended up at Dillon's and they had both of these products!!!  Since I wash all of our clothes on cold water, I will start the water on warm to get the soap dissolved (I have been using liquid soap so cold water wasn't a problem) and then switch it to cold water.


Since I made my own laundry soap I decided I would also make my own fabric softener, as that is another expensive item that can be home-made for much cheaper.  I am willing to do anything to help our budget, the environment, and our health!  The recipe I found is VERY economical! I actually found the start of my recipe on the Duggar family website. Check the recipe out here. It mentions that the vinegar helps remove residue and odors as well as keep your washing machine fresh!  I then googled home-made laundry softener and found several sites with tips and tricks for laundry soap, softener, and dryer sheets. Check them out here:

1. Some reasons why making our own is good for the environment and us!
2. Frugal Fabric Softener Recipes & Dryer Sheet Tips
3. Laundry Soap recipe and Fabric Softener Recipe. Details the savings from making you own. 

Here is the recipe I made:

Homemade Laundry Softener

1 Gallon Vinegar

25-30 drops of essential oils 

I chose to use Lemongrass and Lavender as my essential oils, but you can pick whatever you prefer. You do not have to use essential oils, this is definitely optional!  I used about 15 drops of each scent. I used my old fabric softener container (after rinsing it very well) so I would have an easy pour spout.  Use about 1/4 cup per load. I just use 1 cap full of it, which is about 1/4 cup.  I also add 1/2 cap of water with the softener.

I would love to hear if you have your own laundry recipes or what you think of mine if you try it.