our homemade laundry detergent recipe
this weekend i hosted a baby shower for a sweet, natural mama & dear friend. she was registered at a few places, but those were all out of my budget considering i had around $5 to spend {no joke!}. after a bit of exploring on pinterest, i decided to sew up a little owl for baby & homemade, all-natural laundry detergent for mama.
when my embarrassingly cheap gift was opened, everyone asked for the recipe. it was a huge hit! apparently homemade laundry detergent is a struggle for some… they want to make their own detergent but haven’t found that really great recipe.
of course, i am no expert in the field of homemade cleaning products {still searching for a good liquid dish soap recipe…}, but i have used this laundry detergent recipe for over a year & really love it. i thought i’d share my go-to recipe with you today. happy cleaning!
natalie’s all-natural laundry detergent
2 cups borax
essential oils
chop bar of soap into small chunks. add chunks to food processor and blend until little beads of soap are made. add borax and blend well. add washing soda and blend for two minutes more. remove lid from food processor & add around 30 drops of essential oils {i like lemon & lavender}. mix with metal spoon until essential oils are evenly mixed. store in jar & use 1 tablespoon per load. wash food processor really well after use.
make a cute label, use scraps of fabric & tie with ribbon. gift to a friend!
do you have any homemade cleaning recipes you love? please share!
love,
natalie
p.s. happy SPRING!
Roller Mill Farms | 20th Mar 13
I'm amazed at your determination to stick to the budget. Very impressive, and exciting to see what you can come up with when employing some creativity! Being able to make things opens up worlds of opportunity. So glad to have found you, i always feel like your posts are so applicable and inspiring!
Brittany @ Kitchen::Candid | 20th Mar 13
I'm about to make some homemade laundry detergent as well! It's a different recipe, but next time I will try yours out!
As for household cleaners…Dr. Bronner's Soap has been lovely (just dilute) and I've taken to making my own vinegar cleansers using assorted herbs and fruit skins. I've posted a few mixes on my blog, but feel free to shoot me an email if you've got questions!! <3
Holly | 20th Mar 13
I really loved your owl too. The Chenille wings were my favorite part.
Maureen Harris | 20th Mar 13
I make mine pretty similar except I also add baking soda and the soap is usually felpnapsa soap, which helps fight stains. I made a batch for $30 and it's lasted the entire year–for a family of 5. 🙂
Yyuvone Heidelberger | 20th Mar 13
So proud of you! Homemade is always the best gifts! It takes your time, your talent, creativity and lots of love! Never be embarrassed about that! 🙂
Khrista | 20th Mar 13
Not a recipe per say, but I like to use a foam hand soap dispenser (buy at the dollar store and dump the icky soap out) filled with diluted Dr. Bronner's liquid castile soap. Lavender is my favorite.
I too, make our laundry soap. Much like your recipe. It's such a pain without a food processor, which died a few months ago and I haven't replaced it yet. 😉
Jess | 20th Mar 13
I, too, am impressed with how you stuck to your budget – good job! And the detergent sounds really nice.
I wonder, do you use a top loader or front loader? Does this recipe work for either?
As you know I used to make my own detergent, haven't in a long time, but wouldn't mind getting back to it. Especially because it would keep costs down.
Kaylan | 21st Mar 13
We use vinegar for almost every kind of cleaning. I always finish my floors with that and a drop of essential oil. Smells so good!
Johanna | 21st Mar 13
I love this idea! So creative yet practical.
Chloe's Mama | 27th Mar 13
I'm going to try this! Thank you!
How much do you put into a load of laundry?
Chloe's Mama | 27th Mar 13
1Tbsp per load, saw it:)
Unknown | 10th Oct 13
Natalie this is so cute n the recipe is nice as well. I really love the idea!
Laundry chemicals
Natanya | 16th Jul 14
I loved this idea so much I gave it a go and tried it myself. It was so easy to make, and worked really well, too. Here's a link to my post about it:
http://soultospeakblog.com/2014/07/16/homemade-laundry-detergent-with-recipe/
I linked to you for credit on the idea and recipe. xo
Unknown | 24th Sep 14
Curious… What is an example of the bar of soap??