Homemade Laundry Detergent

Thanks to Pinterest, it seems that everyone is making their own laundry detergent these days. And well they should! It's economical, easy, and makes me feel like a bad-ass domestic goddess when doing the thankless chore I loathe most: laundry. 

I first started making my own detergent just over a year ago, when I saw an article in lifehacker and then on Hipster Housewife detailing the process. It looked so easy and I had just begun to get inspired to switch out my cleaning products with homemade, natural solutions, inspired mainly by Bonzai Aphrodite and her household transformations.

I just ran out of detergent a few weeks ago (just! after almost a year and a quarter of my previous >$2 batch) so I thought I'd chronicle the process for the new blog. I followed Hipster Housewife's recipe to a T, only adding essential oil at the end (a generous dose of eucalyptus and lavender this time, last time was tea tree). Here's what it looks like:

cast of characters: washing soda, fels naptha soap, borax (not pictured: essential oils)

grate 1/3 of the fels naptha bar

melt your soap flakes with 6 cups hot water. when dissolved add 1/2 c. each borax and washing soda.

add mixture to 26 c. hot water in your 5 gallon bucket. add essential oils to smell (it will smell quite a bit more pungent  as you're mixing), stir.

Now you let this whole mix sit over night, covered and in the morning it will have gelled. Use your immersion blender or a whisk to incorporate all the elements and you are set! Lasts forever, doesn't leave a scent on your clothing and it's the first step towards a chemical-free home. Enjoy!