I'm laughing all the way to the bank... :-)
Over a year ago my family and I decided to make some cleaning products ourselves. We wanted to do this for a couple of reasons: 1) to save money, and 2) so we wouldn't have so many harsh, stinky chemicals to deal with. We found all kinds of things to clean with just vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice. :-) We LOVED it.
Then, I began looking for other ways we save $ and make things ourselves. Several months ago I read a blog that talked about making your own laundry detergent. I immediately thought, "not for me. It sounds like too much work." So, I dismissed it.
Then, I found Gayle's blog, and she told how to make several things like fabric softener, window cleaner, etc. So, I tried the fabric softener. I loved it. :-) You will also recall that I made my own "detangler" using hair conditioner. I was hooked on the "make your own" thing.
One day I was watching the show "17 Kids and Counting" with the Duggar family, and I was once again introduced with the idea to make my own laundry detergent. I watched them do it on the show, and I thought, "That wasn't nearly as hard as I thought." So, I went to the internet and found this recipe on their site.
I purchased the ingredients, with a little grumbling of doubt from my family, and made my first batch. That was 2 months ago. Today I, finally, ran out and had to make a second batch of laundry detergent. I am now ready to report to you my findings. :-)
OK, overall cost for 1 batch (10 gallons) of soap was $1.86
A&H laundry soap - 10 cents
Borax 1 cent
Fels Naptha soap $1.75 I did not include shipping and tax
Regular soap approximately $3 a bottle. I did not include tax
This soap lasted us approximately 2 months, which means we would have spent $33 on regular laundry soap, because we filled the bottle 11 times. If we did that every two months for 1 year we would spend $198 on regular soap, and $11.16 on homemade soap, for a savings of .....
$186.84 a year!!
And, we don't have 11 plastic bottles to throw into the landfill. :-) Can you just imagine putting an extra $33 into your savings account every 2 months? It adds up! The detergent works GREAT, and is VERY economical. Oh, and my family is no longer grumbling. :-)
Love,
Wendy Darling
3 comments:
Okay, you've convinced me to give the laundry detergent a try!
With my daycare kids, I do approx 4-6 loads of laundry a day, so any savings will make a huge difference!
That is that same recipe I use without the water. I just use it as a powder. We don't have a septic system or anything finicky like that. Glad to have you on the diy bandwagon!
Left you some blog love: what if this is as good as it gets?: sisters are doin it for themselves...
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