Even More on Homemade Laundry Detergent

It is almost time for me to make my third batch of homemade laundry detergent, and we are still going strong with it! We are a household of two adults and each batch is lasting us about six months. You can read about my first batch here and my musings going into my second batch here.

Below are some pictures and tips from my second batch in April. See Tip Nut's Recipe 1 for the amounts. Update: I've added the amounts in bold below (scattered throughout). Visit Tip Nut for a cleaner looking view of the the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

**Grated Soap- 2 cups
I use Dr. Bronner's Unscented Baby bars as my soap. Many people like Fels Naptha, but it has artificial scent and color in it and has petroleum-based ingredients, plus is contains tallow so it is a no-go for vegetarians. It is a "better" product, but not a "best" product in terms of being EF.

To shred it, I use the grater attachment in my food processor (bought used from Craigslist). I've tried the standard blade with the whole bar, but it gets violent in the food processor and make me afraid the thing will bust apart. If you want a fine shred (dissolves more quickly), use the grater attachment first to get the soap to shredded-cheese consistency, then use the normal blade to turn it into a cornmeal consistency.

A canning funnel works well for moving the soap into a (recycled) storage container.

**Borax- 2 cups

I store my Borax in a repurposed plastic container to keep out moisture which causes clumping. Some people think Borax is not a good choice for an eco-friendly household because it should not be ingested. But remember that a big part of eco-friendly cleaning is what is produced in an eco-friendly manner and what it does (or rather, does not do) to our water supply after we're done with it. In my opinion, the benchmark should not be if a substance okay to ingest. Borax is eco-friendly in terms of production and being in the water supply, so it gets my seal of approval. After all—you shouldn't eat soap, yet it is a great, safe cleaner. Also, if you have kids, even if you are 100% green clean in your home you should treat cleaning supplies as though they are toxic because your kids will inevitably go somewhere where conventional cleaners are used and they need to have healthy respect for the dangers of those things.

**Washing soda- 2 cups

I store my washing soda in the same way. Be sure to label your containers clearly both on the lids and the containers. They look similar to each other and to baking soda. Not things you would want to mix up!

You'll also need
**4 cups of boiling water in saucepan
**two gallons of tap water
**a spoon
**a whisk (optional)
**a large storage container

MAKING THE DETERGENT

It just takes a saucepan to melt the soap. You don't need a special pot, after all you are making a detergent here—almost the exact same thing you can use to clean your dishes.

**On the stove top, boil 4 cups of water.
**Add the 2 cups of soap, stir until it melts

**Pour in the melted soap mixture from the saucepan into your storage container.

Down with the milk jug storage method I used for my first batch! My dear friend gave me a 40 pound kitty litter bucket to use. Perfect!

**Add in the 2 cups of borax and 2 cups of washing soda and stir (or whisk)

**Add in an additional 2 gallons of water and stir

We use a ladle (from a yard sale) to move the right amount of detergent from the bucket into the washer. It lives permanently in the bucket. So, when it is time to use the detergent, we just

**Stir it up before each use and ladle some out.

**For us, about 1/4 cup per load is the right amount.

“Sun-Dried” Tomatoes

I love free—not only free stuff but also free food. This summer, friends shared fresh grown herbs, blackberries, and cherry tomatoes with me. The herbs turned into wheat herb bread plus dried herbs to use later on. The berries were shared with our Bible study small group and gobbled up, and the tomatoes were dried and turned into mock "sun-dried" tomatoes—more accurately just called dehydrated tomatoes in my case. We bought the dehydrator for $5 at a church rummage sale several years ago, and have more than gotten our money out of it.

Cutting and placing the tomatoes.
I forgot to take a picture of the end product.

To dry the tomatoes, I removed the stems and washed them, and then I cut them into ¼ inch-ish slices. I decided to leave the skins on. The tomatoes were so small to begin with thta skinning them seemed like it would be a hassle and make my yield even smaller. I sprinkled half of the slices with the dried herbs (from aforementioned friend) and the other half I left plain. Then I turned on the dehydrator and let it run, and run, and run, and run. It took a long time. I didn't want the tomatoes to over-dry, so when we would be out of the house for hours we would turn off the dehydrator until we were home again to babysit them. I pulled the slices off individually as they got to the right texture—no more juiciness, but not crunchy, either. I used this recipe as my inspiration.

I packed half of the tomatoes in olive oil and put them in fridge. The other half I left without oil and popped them in the freezer to use later on. You could leave them at room temperature, but they will go rancid fairly quickly. To me, storing them at room temperature is not worth the risk of bacteria growing. The ones from the freezer (not in oil) are great for plucking out one at a time because they defrost at room temperature within minutes. So far, I have used them in stuffed chicken and as a salad topping and they are so yummy!

This is a great way to preserve tomatoes from the garden that will go bad before you can use them or to make sure you have seasonal, local tomatoes into the off-season. As for price, commercially sundried tomatoes are pricey! Homegrown dried tomatoes are infinitely cheaper than paying for them plus you eliminate the packaging and shipping environmental costs. I am so excited to grow tomatoes at the new house! I am not a raw tomato fan, but I look forward to making sauces and dried tomatoes.

Don't have a dehydrator? Here is info on literally sun-drying tomatoes plus a link to an oven-drying recipe. Obviously I disagree that only plum tomatoes should be used. I say, give it a try with whatever tomatoes you've got!

Used Items

Exciting news, in 17 days we will close on our first home! It is a small single family home (1054 sf + basement) on just under a ¼ acre. It is a foreclosure and is in need of major love. We've asked the bank to pay for the code & sanitation issues things like a major German cockroach infestation and dealing with all of the basement water going through the sump pump into the yard (this is not a thought-out grey water system, it is bad plumbing). After we take possession, we'll take care of the many cosmetic issues—incredible filth everywhere, writing on the walls, peeling paint, as well as practical things like bad gutters and broken stoves. Yes, stoves! One great thing about this house is a second kitchen in the basement, which we are calling the craft kitchen.

Our goal is to make the house totally "more green for less green". In other words, we want our house to be as sustainable as possible, but we definitely have a budget. So, we are already stalking the used-item circuit for house goodies. This weekend we loaded up on old, heinous sheets to use as drop cloths for painting (that can be composted later) and we are on the hunt for anything else that might be a fit—yard tools, fireplace tools, etc.

When buying for myself, I buy almost exclusively used items. It just is so fun, you can read about my fun finds here. So where do I shop used? Here is a breakdown:

Yard Sales

• We particularly love community yard sales so we can walk between the homes and hit up many sales at a time
  
• Anything and everything goes. Expect to find mismatched, broken, and trashed items along with super finds
  
• It is normally impossible to try on clothes, so I put a $2 cap on clothes since I don't know if they will fit
  
• Favorite find: Like-new sandals in my hard-to-find size (5) for $3, box of soap making supplies for $2
  
• Try your negotiating skills to get even lower (works especially well if you are buying multiple items)
  
  

  
  

Rummage Sales (my favorite!)

• We favor church and charity fundraising rummage sales where items have all been donated and the proceeds benefit the organization
  
• Anything and everything goes. Expect to find mismatched, broken, and trashed items along with super finds.
  
• It can be very difficult to get around the throngs of people to look at items. It is not a place for the claustrophobic.
  
• Usually items are organized at the beginning of the day and indentified by signs or in particular rooms, but the flip side is that sometimes volunteers are still sorting when the sale starts
  
• Look for "fill a bag" sales where you pay a flat fee to fill a whole brown paper bag (usually books or clothes)
  
• Clothes are usually just piled into mountains and there is no place to try them on. The good news is that they may be really cheap.
  
• The line to the register may be extremely long. Take a look before you start shopping and decide if it is worth it. Favorite finds: Antique cut green glass bowl for $1 that matches two we had at home. $0.50 like-new black heels in my size
  

Estate Sales

• Great chance to find complete sets of things (dishes, glasses, tools, bedroom sets, etc.)
  
• Good place to find high-end items: wood furniture, antiques, china
  
• It is just plain fun to check out the houses and see what people have collected over the years
  
• You might experience sticker shock—prices can be quite high. Go on the last day for discounts (but dramatically smaller selection)
  
• Favorite find: 8 hand embroidered vintage cloth napkins for $2 (we use these every day)
  

Thrift Stores

• Usually things are somewhat organized
  
• You can try on clothes, though it may be in a communal dressing room
  
• More expensive than yard sales, but still cheaper than new (generally; sometimes I think their prices are nutso)
  
• Ask for a store calendar and shop on sale days. My favorite store does 75% off clothes the first Monday of the month. I see no reason to shop for clothes there any other day!
  
• If you love it and can afford it, buy it. Stock rolls over quickly. It may not be there later that day.
  
• Favorite finds: Ski boots in my size for $3 (I bought used skis later that season), tags-on ball gown for a cruise, $4
  

Craigslist

• Easily searchable website, you can filter by location, price, pictures, etc.
  
• Peruse the free section, you never know what you will find
  
• Post your wants in the wanted section
  
• The downside can be unreliable communication from unreturned emails to no-shows at your meeting time
  
• When setting up a meeting, always ask for their cell phone number and give out your own. Call and confirm before you leave your house.
  
• Try your negotiating skills to get even lower on items that have been up for awhile (but agree on a price before you meet)
  
• Favorite finds: Cuisinart food processor for $40, end table coincidentally finished to match my coffee table $0 (free)
  

Freecycle

• Online groups to get or give only free things. Join the Yahoo group for your area and receive many emails throughout the day or a daily digest.
  
• My dear friend Jill suggests getting all of the emails, but setting up email filters to only allow keywords you want (e.g. tool, baby, boxes) and have the rest of the emails go to your spam folder. Because we are looking for so many things right now, that doesn't work for us, but if you have specific wants—give it a try!
  
• I am new to Freecycle and so far I prefer Craigslist's free section because I don't want 50 emails a day and by the time I get the digest, the item is often taken already. Plus I don't like going through the moderator to get approved, post, edit a post, etc. Currently I live on a borderline for a particular Freecycle region and the convenient group (i.e. the area that I drive through to get to work) rejected me. Do note that not all areas do the whole boundary map/moderator approval thing.
  
• Favorite find: I've only gotten on things so far: moving boxes & packing material. I posted by first thing to give away today.
  

Large Trash Day

• Large trash day is that day when garbage companies or community associations agree to take large items. The night before large trash day is a prime time to find some great stuff for free.
  
• You may want to knock on your neighbor's door and ask if you can have the item, just in case it is actually meant for charity, another person, has some really gross/dangerous feature that isn't obvious
  
• Favorite finds: coffee table in desperate need of refinishing (which my husband took on), several months later the matching end table (in good condition) was put out
  

Just Be Open

We have so many things simply because others know we are open to reusing items. I'm not saying you have to hoard or take everything offered to you, but just be open at let others in on your appreciation for used items and see what is offered

• An extended relative gave us their old washer the same month ours broke. Sadly, theirs broke as we were moving it up the stairs, but it turned out to be in the same model series as our 30 year old washer (we didn't know this beforehand). We were able to get out many useable parts and repair our machine. It is still going strong!
  
• In college, I made over $1,000 selling textbooks a roommate left behind (I confirmed with her first that she didn't want them)
  
• Most of my fabric stash was given to me by crafters paring down