SOAPer grate Saturday!!!

O.K, so by the time I finish writing this, it will no longer be Saturday, but hey...this is the life I lead.  This post kicks off a week of my favorite and top DIY items, beginning with the Pinterest post that started it all for me....LAUNDRY DETERGENT!!!! YAY!!! ( I know, it's the little things, some people go out..I grate soap on a Saturday night...yup, I'm livin' La Vida Loca here, people.)

      I honestly cannot tell you exactly which person's "recipe" I followed, because frankly, they're all pretty much the same, with a small tweak here or there, but the recipe I'll share with you is the easiest, most convenient for me. 

                                                      Here's what you'll need:

                                        1 bar of Fels Naptha, Zote, Ivory or soap of your choice
                                        1 Cup of Borax
                                        1 Cup of Arm and Hammer WASHING soda NOT Baking Soda

                                         ( Optional) some type of Oxi-clean product in powder form, either the real deal or the dollar store brand, 1 Cup.

     Now the fun part, grate the bar of soap( you can do this by hand like I do, or run it through a food processor) I bought a good old fashioned four sided grater at the dollar store and use the second smallest size to grate.

USEFUL TIP: open your soap package and let it "dry out " for a week or so, this will enable the soap to be firmer when grating and not clog your grater...making the whole process easier.
                                                                                                                                                           Once you've zoned out, and hopefully still have all 10 fingertips, your soap will look like this:


                                                   

The hardest part is over!!! Now just measure out the Borax and Washing soda, mix it all together, put in a container and you've made your own Laundry soap for a few dollars, here's the kicker..you only need 1-2 TABLESPOONS per load of laundry!!!

Initial start up cost for ingredients is around $7.50, then you'll have enough Borax and soda for numerous loads, so just another dollar for soap will make subsequent batches!!!

 Here's my container( multiple loads in it) that I've labeled, LOVE MY DYMO label maker :)

One last thing, if you experience some clumping( which sometimes the Borax will do) just use some silica packets and have them float around in the container...I got mine form a pair of new shoes I bought...you know, the little packets like this( see below)

...and please....DO NOT eat it, OR wash it....keep it in the container....

Happy Homemade laundry soap day!!! Happy soap grating Saturday!!!!

Until next time, Lauri :)