Homemade Laundry Soap

In a time that we all want to save money there are TONS of ideas and ways out there.  My friend, Courtney shared her awesome idea... making laundry soap with all of us!  THANKS Courtney!!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Ingredients:

Main Ingredients:

Large Box of 20 Mule Team Borax
1-4 Bars of Fels Naptha Laundry Soap

Large Box of Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda

Add Ins:

4 lb Box of Baking Soda

2 Downy Unstoppables Laundry Crystals

Oxy Clean

So I have tried a few recipes for homemade laundry detergent. 

Basic Liquid Recipe:

The most basic (and cheapest) recipe consists of ½ cup Borax, 1/3 bar of Fels Naptha soap, and ½ cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Powder.  I normally mix mine in a 5 gallon bucket.  It will make about 2.5 gallons but the extra space makes it easier to mix and pour. 

-First, grate the 1/3 bar of soap with a cheese grater (or cut it into cubes and stick it in your food processor to cut time!) and put in a large saucepan.

-Next, add 6 cups of water and heat on medium heat until the soap is melted.

-Add ½ cup washing soda and borax.  Stir until dissolved.

-Pour 4 cups of hot water into the 5 gallon bucket and add your soap mixture and stir.

-Add 1 gallon plus six cups of water and stir.

-Cover tightly and let sit for 24 hours.  Shake/stir before each use.  For ease, I normally pour the mixture into one of my old laundry detergent containers.  Use ½ to ¾ cup per load.

*Note here that some recipes call for Ivory or Zote bar soaps and that you can increase the amount of soap.

This is definitely the cheapest recipe to use and my clothes were clean but did not SMELL…at all.  Now if one of my job requirements as a homemaker is going to be to put up the mountains of laundry that my 2 year old, husband, and I somehow manage to create every week, I want to at least look forward to bringing those warm clothes up to my nose and inhaling the sweet, clean fragrance that millions of candle makers have tried to duplicate in their “Clean Linens” and “100% Cottons!” 

I decided that my search for the perfect homemade laundry detergent was not over and I pulled up my favorite search engine to start looking for more ideas.  After trying a few of them and tweaking many of the recipes and amounts, I finally found the combination of ingredients that makes me feel like my clothes are clean.  This is what I came up with…this recipe is more expensive to begin with but makes approximately 265 loads (using 2 tbsp per load…and yes, you only need TWO tablespoons!)

Advanced (Powder) Recipe:

-I started with my trusty 5 gallon bucket and lined it with a clean trash bag.

-I grated 4 bars of Fels Naptha soap (found in the laundry aid aisle)

Put the following into your trash bag lined bucket:

Grated Fels Naptha Soap

Large Box of 20 Mule Team Borax

Large Box of Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda

Large Box of Arm and Hammer Baking Soda

 4 lb container of Oxy Clean

2 containers of Downy Unstoppables

Now these ingredients are not all necessary to clean laundry and the amounts are up to you…this is the amounts that I have used and that I was happiest with.  Play with it!  You may cut out the baking soda or one of the Downy Unstoppables or you may change brands on things.  Try the Ivory Soap or Purex Laundry Crystals instead of Downy Unstoppables.  I liked the scent of the Downy that was available at our store and did not like the particular scent of the Purex.  Totally up to you!  I like to make a large amount at one time (even though it is a larger initial investment) so that I do not have to make it every month.  You can use smaller amounts and make smaller batches.

Mix all ingredients by either stirring or tossing the trash bag around a little.  Whatever works for you!  And I finished by pouring mine into a 32 cup clear heavy duty plastic container that I bought at Walmart.  I added a measuring spoon (1 TBSP) that only stays with the laundry detergent so that I don’ t have to go looking for one every time I do a load of laundry.  Add 1 – 2 tablespoons per load.  I like to fill my washer halfway with water before adding powder.  It works with cold water and with HE machines…make sure your soap is grated finely for HE machines. 

Now, if only I could find a cheap way of hiring someone to put these wonderful smelling clothes up…  =)

HOW AWESOME IS THAT??  Thanks SO much for sharing this Courtney!  Can't wait to try it!!!

Vertical Garden

Y'all... if you're anything like me, surfing Pinterest and finding fun ideas is SO MUCH FUN.  However, if you're even MORE like me, you've pinned a gah-zillion (yeah, I know it's not a real number... but you get the point) things and actually made, eh 10?!  It's a super fun dream world to live in.  I'm NOT knocking it.  In fact, I'll continue on my merry way pinning every NEAT thing I see.

I wanted to share with you a vertical garden that a friend of mine pinned, and... ACTUALLY made!  I saw her pictures on Facebook and immediately asked if I could post her pictures.  She graciously gave me permission.  Now, I bring you... THE vertical garden from Our Washington Life...

"We decided to hang our garden on the brick wall at the back of our patio. We used clay pots we bought last year, some pine boards we picked up from Home Depot, "L" brackets to hold it all together, a little paint to make it pretty, and some thick rope to hang over the ledge of the brick wall, and voila!

 

As you can guess, this project was really pretty simple, especially since it was completely customizable. My husband, being the "builder" of our relationship, drew out the plans, gathered the materials, and put it all together based on what we thought would work best for our yard (aka, cover up the brick wall). All he had to do was cut the pine board into the right lengths and screw it all together. He used the "L" brackets to reinforce the shelves to the back so that it could support the clay pots and plants. The shelves may not be that pretty from the inside, because of all of the brackets and whatnot, but the paint and plants cover them up just fine and at least it won't fall apart!

He also used some thick rope to hang it over the top of the brick wall. We figured this way it'd be easier to take down to store next fall.

If you want to build a vertical garden just like ours, Hubby gave me some pretty detailed notes to share:Vertical Garden Assembly Instructions. The notes might be too detailed... if that's possible  ; ) Oh, and if you are curious about what I did to contribute to this project, besides being inspired by Pinterest, I painted the darn thing! Behr's California Poppy to be exact. It's not the best paint job in the world, but I only used half the quart I bought for it so at least I can touch it up year to year.And, you might think that I created the cute little plant labels on the shelves, but I didn't, Hubby totally did. It was his "idea," so I gave him the supplies (white spray paint and a blue acrylic paint pen) and he went to town with some scrap wood. He even made little label stakes for our herbs in the ground.

Our back "yard" patio definitely looks complete now that we have something fun hanging up on that brick wall. And, in case you are in awe of our awesome Adirondack chairs, Hubby definitely built those, from scratch! 

So, that's our vertical garden. Super simple, but perfect for a second try at our herb garden, even if we don't have a "yard" to plant anything in!"

THANKS SO MUCH CHRIS AND KRISTIN FOR SHARING WITH US!!!

Updating Outlets

I have decided to take 'spring cleaning' to a WHOLE NEW LEVEL.  I have decided to do some painting and some small updating as well as the usual organizing and deep cleaning.  It's a task, but man do I feel GREAT afterwards.  

So, this is a small task that I've taken on and I LOVE what it's done for the house.  Just so you know, I've updated the light switches too.  I'll post those pics soon!  Our house was built in the 80s and I'm pretty POSITIVE that the outlets that I took out have been there since day 1!  They were old and crumbly, probably not too safe either, so I feel like I did a really great thing... more than just making it look pretty.

So, here's a step by step, on what I (not an electrician) did to change the outlets.  BIG thanks to my friend, Mary for helping me get started!!

Here's what they looked like in the beginning... YUCK!

Chair Planters

Well, I hope that you and your family enjoyed the Easter weekend and celebrated the REAL reason that we have Easter.

While surfing through Facebook this weekend, I spotted this SUPER cute, inexpensive, and easy springtime project!  Thanks Katie for sharing it with us!!

Fireplace Facelift

So, apparently the folks that built this house were LOVERS of the shiny gold finishes... BLEH.  I, on the other hand, am NOT a fan!  So, my mission was to... GET RID OF IT.

Christmas Card Display Holder

OK...I have to be honest... I'm SUPER proud of this one and LOVE how it turned out.  I had seen on Pinterest how to put ink on wood, and I KNEW I wanted to try that.  *Then* I had this great idea.  To make a Christmas Card Display Holder...

Honestly, I am a little disappointed in my camera here (I mean, it couldn't be that the photographer HAS no idea what she's doing with the fancy camera, could it??  LOL).  But, I HAVE to tell you... I LOVE the way that it turned out!!!

Circle Chalkboards

Here's another FUN idea from my sister, Jenn!  THANKS GIRL!  Love you!

So, there was a blank space in their house that she turned into a fun way to display info between roommates.  They share info like when they're having people over, etc... GREAT idea!  In my house, I might use this as a great way to post the menu or things that the kids have going on that week/appointments.  Really, the possibilities are endless.

FUN Jewelry Display

So being creative is something that my mother has really instilled into each one of her children.  We've all taken what we've learned from her and really turned into people that love taking risks and trying to create things.  It's pretty fun.  So, I KNOW that my little sister (not so little anymore, perhaps YOUNGER would be a better description... for now anyway...LOL), Jenn, is a VERY creative person.  She's SUPER artistic and creates some AWESOME things.  I knew that she had just moved to Colorado (from our hometown in FL) and that she was decorating/organizing the mess out of her new home.  So I asked her to send me some of the neat things that she has been up to... she sent me a TON!  

Here's one of them...  A super cute way to display your jewelry.  Now, I've seen lots of different examples of this on Pinterest I guess it's just one of those preference type things.  Anyhow, here's hers and how she did it!

DIY Headboard... AWESOME!

Thanks SO much for HH reader, Jenny for sharing her mad DIY skills with us.  You might remember Jenny, she also shared her precious bumblebee cake pops with us!  She is clearly a crafty gal!  Thanks again Jenny!!

DIY Pendant Light Fixture

Thanks to HH reader Jill for sharing this AWESOME DIY project with us!!

"I couldn't find exactly the pendant light that I wanted and if I saw one close to my idea, it was crazy expensive.  So, after a couple of weeks of just the fixture hanging with bulbs, it hit me, I would HAVE to build my own" This is what lead HH reader Jill to take on this well worth it DIY project!!

Mod Podge Letter

So while pinning... I got this idea.

(You can see my DIY board here to check it out for yourself... the page no longer exists though.)

Here's what I did...

I bought 2 pieces of styrofoam from a craft store.  My sister, who works at a furniture store informed me that some places will just GIVE AWAY pieces of styrofoam that they have from shipping.  Once the products come in and are unpacked, that styrofoam is just thrown away.  So, THAT would be a GREAT place to start.  This project would have been SUPER cheap (nearly FREE) if I had gotten the styrofoam for FREE.

Anyhow, the pieces where long and skinny so, I put them together by hot gluing craft sticks to the back.

Then, I printed out some black and white pictures.

**IMPORTANT** Regular school glue discolored my pictures.  A glueSTICK worked best (I even used the purple one) to glue the pictures onto the styrofoam.  Then, I used Mod Podge to cover the pictures.  I did 2 coats of that.  To finish, I sprayed with a clear coat sealer.  That's it.  SO EASY!!!

Ruler Art Display

So, thanks to Pinterest (as usual... click here to follow me), I found a GREAT idea for displaying artwork in the playroom.  I got the idea from Ana White (stay tuned for WAY more stuff from this site... I...LOVE...IT!!!)

So here's what I did (slightly different than Ana White)...

I bought clothes pins.

I disassembled them (WAY easier than reassembling).

I spray painted them.

I reassembled them and glued them onto yard sticks (screws will split regular clothes pins).  The yardsticks were like $0.61... LOVE THAT!

Oh, and... the 'glue' isn't just glue.  It's called GOOP and well, it's one of my new favorite things.  I'm not too sure how it works, but it does!

SO simple, SO cute, SO fun!!!

Door Knobs MAKEOVER... EASY :-)

So, last week I told you about my knobs and pulls in the kitchen and how I made them b-e-a-U-tiful.  Well, I got the original idea from The Penny Parlor (via Pinterest, of course), to do my door knobs.  Which leaked into the kitchen and who knows what other surfaces will be painted in Rust-Oleum when I'm 'done'...

Makin' Kitchen Knobs and Pulls Purty!!

 Ok... so, if you're like me, there's always something in your house that you'd like to change.  It may be something small or may be something huge... or both. :-)  If you're even more like me, you do NOT have a money tree growing in your backyard... that would be SO NICE!  Ok... back on task... I have generated a list of things that I would like to change in my home.  I didn't set a timeline, just a list.  And when I can tackle things on the list, I will. One of the things on my list was to replace the knobs and pulls in our kitchen.  Since they are STRAIGHT out of the 90s, with they're shiny gold handles... BLECH!  They drive me NUTS!

Baby Wash Cloth Display **SO CUTE**

I was at a friend's house this week and I noticed something that I've noticed before... but this time... I thought, "DUH!  This would be GREAT to share with HH readers!!" 

So, I VIVIDLY remember getting 2374839254370213 baby wash cloths when I was pregnant the first time.  They sell those things in packs of 6 (at least).  So, if someone got me a hoodie towel, they usually threw in 6 wash cloths... leading to my plethora.  I actually remember telling my husband that I was going to use them as bows on baby gifts (not a terrible idea, right?).  I mean, I wasn't using them ALL, right?

Bow Holder *CUTE*

Thanks to reader Kristin for sharing this ADORABLE idea!!  It's DEFINITELY useful (especially if you have a little girl who wears bows) and a cute decoration in a bedroom or bathroom.

Place a styrofoam ball in a plastic cup/pot <--- this one is white, you can paint or decorate it however you'd like (plastic is key... ceramic would be cute... BUT, would probably NOT last long- in my house, at least).

Trim floral stakes (found in most craft stores) and place them in the styrofoam ball.

Decorate with beads, ribbons, paint, etc... **don't forget the bows** (the flower bows look SUPER cute... but regular bow are SUPER cute too)

Finished product....ADORABLE!!!

Floating Patio

Right so... we finished the sandbox JUST IN TIME for our kiddos birthday shindig and we got the truckload of sand... and we had QUITE A BIT left over.  We tossed around SEVERAL ideas... putting sand under the big toys we have in the yard, just filling in the gap underneath our back porch, I suggested using it in some of the beds in the front yard... and then Handy hubby came up with a GRRRREAT idea!  We can lay pavers and make a floating patio extending off of the one we have already. 

It is FINISHED (with a GREAT sandbox tip)!!

The sandbox making has been a journey.  And is a pretty simple project.  You could DEFINITELY build this in a weekend (or less) if you have some undivided time ;-) (not much of an option for ME).

Be sure to read all the way to the bottom... there's a GREAT sandbox tip!!!

ok... so in case you haven't heard about this project... here's a recap...

THIS was Addison's 'sandbox'... so sad.  She LOVED digging in this nasty DIRT!  She'd come inside COVERED in it... BLEH...

*Peeps Idea* Place Card Setting

Ok... so I know that Easter is over... HOWEVER here's a SUPER cute idea that you can do with Peeps next year.  I mean, you could probably still do this if you have a spring party coming up... Peeps ARE very springy :-)

Thanks to reader Jenn for sharing it with us!!

What you'll need:

Sandbox update

IT'S ALMOST DONE!  In fact... it just needs sand :-)

Ok... so first of all, some of the plans have changed.  We decided to leave the wood natural (NOT painted).  Second of all, I used some help from my "Handy Hubby" :-)... Honestly, all except for the circular saw, I felt 100% confident doing everything else.  But, it is so much easier if you have a helper :-)

When you last saw it... I had put the walls together...