Laundry Soap

Today was the second time I've made my own laundry soap. The first time turned out really good so I thought I'd give it another shot. It is very economical and nice to know that I'm doing my part to help with the environment. I'm not usually this crunchy but I am always open to saving a buck or two. Some people were asking me for the recipe so here it is....(I can't take the credit for this though, my friend Meredith passed it along to me)

What you will need:
5 gallon bucket with a lid
Recycled and rinsed out laundry detergent jug
2 cups Washing Soda
1 cup Borax
1 bar of Castille Soap
Essential Oil of your choice

Fill saucepan with 4 cups of water and heat over medium. Grate bar soap and add to water slowly, stir occasionally until disolved. Fill 5 gallon bucket half way with hot water. Once soap is dissolved pour the mixture into the bucket along with the Washing Soda and Borax. Stir until all ingredients are dissolved. Fill the bucket the rest of the way full with hot water. If you wish to add essential oils, do so at this point by dropping 25-30 drops into the mixture(I just use Lavender scented Castille Soap and omit the oils). Cover bucket with lid and let sit overnight. (I do all of this in the tub and then move it to the laundry room the next day so that it doesn't get too messy.) The soap will gel overnight but will not be uniform and not as thick as the store bought stuff...at this point you can fill your recycled laundry jug half way with the soap and half with water. Shake the jug and it's ready to use. You will need to use about 1/2 cup of this mixture for a full load. All in all you will get about 10 gallons of detergent. This isn't as thick as commercial detergents and doesn't suds up because the commercial detergents add sudsing agents. It will get your clothes very clean. I still have to spray the kids stains but that is to be expected. I found all of the ingredients, besides the Castille soap, at Fry's on the laundry aisle.

It's pretty easy and doesn't take much time. Let me know if you try it...