DIY Thursday!

So I'm stuck at home from work today because I have strep throat.  I seriously pick this illness up at least three times a year.  Since I'm stuck inside, I thought I would mix it up a little and give you guys a DIY post.  I actually did not pick this one up on Pinterest, but had heard about it from a friend at church and decided to look into it. So hold onto your seats, because this awesomely cheap DIY will save you tons of money each year, and it's relatively simple to put together. 

DIY laundry detergent:

I got the "recipe" for this detergent from DIY natural on here.  Everything costs under $20!  Here's what you need (all parts can be found at your local grocery store-I shop at Kroger so that's where I picked up everything and the pricing listed was the price I paid.)

Arm and Hammer Super Washing Powder-3lb box- $3.29
Arm and Hammer baking soda-2 lb box (on the baking isle)-$1.89
Borax-4 lb box-$4.49
Fels-Naptha laundry soap bars-3 bars at $1.19 each
Oxy Clean powder-(I used the 1 lb. smaller container to save money)-$4.09
15L storage container-(I got mine from Target)-$2.00

First, you have to grate the Fels-Naptha laundry bars.  I used a simple hand held cheese grater to do this step.  This is the longest step and takes about 20 minutes to complete. Here's what it will looks like: (kind of looks like cheese-haha!)

  After shaving the laundry bars, you simply mix all other ingredients togther.  Make sure to stir everything up well so that the laundry soap shavings are well and evenly mixed in.  Also if you prefer, I've heard of people adding Purex crystals into this detergent to add more fragrance.  For me, I use downy liquid fabric softener for every load of laundry, so it wasn't worth the extra money.  Hint: do this outside because the powdery substance will go into the air while mixing everything together and can get on your furniture and cause breathing problems-esp. if you have asthma.

I didn't take an after picture of everything mixed together, but it looks like a white powdery mixture.  This is supposed to work on regular and HE washers.  I have an older model top loader.  You only need to add 1-2 tablespoons of this per load (2 tablespoons for more heavily soiled clothing)  Tip: add a little water to the washing machine first, then add the detergent.   I tested the laundry detergent on some older clothes first to make sure it wouldn't fade or leave spots on the clothing.  I am so pleased with the results.  After I did the first load, I decided to wash my scrubs for work and I am pleased to say they didn't fade at all.  My clothes also smelled so clean. 

Side note: Don't expect the water to bubble up like it would with other detergent.  Even though it doesn't bubble up, it still works!

I know that I usually spend $10 every other month or so on liquid detergent and this is supposed to last a year for a family of 5 and cost me $17.33 to make! Talk about an easy way to save $$$$$.  Let me know if you have any questions!