Wannabe Domestic Goddess

Lately I've been making my own laundry and dishwasher detergent.  Love the laundry detergent...the dishwasher detergent, not so much.  In the latter case I went back to the off brand detergent packs and started using vinegar as my rinse agent.  It's been the best combination I've found to work with our absolutely wonderful dishwasher (if you can't tell I'm being sarcastic).  But I absolutely love the homemade laundry detergent.  I worked out the math today and I got 165 loads from my last batch which turns out to be about 7 cents a load!  It cleans wonderfully and smells good too.  I've used it in top and front load washers with no problem.  So here's my recipe to share the wealth of my knowledge and so I can remember it for the next time I make a batch.  :)   

 2 Cups Washing Soda

2 Cups Borax

2 Bars Fels-Naptha grated

1 small container of Oxi Clean (optional)

1 container of beaded fabric softener (optional)  

I add the oxi clean to just give the detergent that much more cleaning power and the crystal fabric softener to eliminate one more step in the tedious task of laundry.  

Find a container to use to keep your detergent in.  I use an old ice melt container.  Grate the Fels-Naptha soap with a cheese grater on the smallest grate.  I then will chop up the grated soap to keep the pieces as small as possible.  I have heard of a lady who puts the bar soap in her food processor after it's grated, which I would definitely do if mine hadn't died long ago.  Dump in all your ingredients into container and shake until well mixed. 

 This is what mine looks like when finished.

You only need a small scoop for each load.  I use the scoop that comes in the oxi clean container.  1/2 to 3/4 of a scoop is enough for each load.

I hope you all enjoy my little moment of being a Wannabe Domestic Goddess.