I've really enjoyed our homemade dryer sheets.

I discovered that I like the same recipe even better in the rinse cycle. 

2 cups water

1 cup vinegar

2/3 cup of any hair conditioner

Stir together.  (Don't shake.)

Add not even 1/4 cup (I don't know exactly cause I eyeball it) per load of laundry.  I calculated my cost at less than 1/2  cent per load!   

For more Frugal Friday, visit Life As Mom.

Laundry - my arch nemesis!  We do battle everyday. 

Early in my married life, laundry kicked my butt!  I had mountains of it.  I did it alone. 

What they say is true.  Many hands make light work. 

I quickly learned that little kids can fold towels.  Having the towels put away in the closet matters more than perfectly folded towels. 

The kids have fun playing our laundry games and even better I've found my bedroom floor. 

So, here's what works for me -

1.  Homemade Laundry Detergent (Phenomenal Savings!)

2.  Homemade Dryer Sheets

3.  Chore lists for the kids that include carrying dirty clothes, towels, and linens to the laundry room.

4.  Laundry bin with three compartments for the kids to sort the laundry into.

When I arrive to do battle with the laundry each morning (I do at least one load each day), it is sorted and ready to go into the washer.  I wash, fold and hang the laundry.  The kids carry it back to their rooms.  We hit the reset button and do it all again the next day.  It's become so normal to us, that we don't even think about it anymore. 

This totally works for me!  Now, I'm going over to Rocks In My Dryer to find out what works for you!

The ingredients are Fels Naptha laundry soap, borax and washing soda.  Prices vary according to store. The prices you see below are approximate.  

Fels Naptha soap at $0.99 per bar.  The recipe calls for 1/3 bar. 

Washing Soda at $2.99 for a 55 ounce box.  The recipe calls for 1/2 cup or 4.2 ounces.  

Borax at $3.99 for a 76 ounce box.  The recipe calls for 1/2 cup or 3.5 ounces. 

Divide, multiply, and add.  It all comes out to $0.74 for 2 gallons of detergent.  Using 1/2 cup per load, you should be able to do 64 loads. Bringing the cost to $0.01 per load.  That is a great deal!  Don't ya think? 

My container holds a little over two gallons.  As you can see, I'll have to make some more detergent soon. 

Want to try making your own?  Read here. 

I've been using the homemade laundry detergent for several months now and I'm still loving it.  I calculated that it costs $0.83 to make 2 gallons!  That is awesome savings, y'all.  So, when I saw a recipe for homemade dryer sheets, my curiosity was peaked.  I gave it a try and I am happy to report that I love it!  (Pictures below)

Here's the recipe:

2 cups water

1 cup vinegar

2/3 cup of any hair conditioner

Mix by stirring.  Don't shake.  Soak a cloth rag and ring it out until slightly damp.  Then throw it into the dryer with your load of clothes. 

I used an empty baby wipe container for my fabric softener.  I used socks that no longer have a match or have holes in them for rags.  I used conditioner from CVS.  It was FREE, of course!  So, the only thing I purchased was 1 gallon of distilled vinegar for $1.98.  The total cost comes to less than $0.13!  One recipe will do approximately 40 loads of laundry.  That is less than 1/2 cent per load!  It smells great and our clothes feel great!  Great smelling and feeling is real important to me.

I wrote on the box what it is just in case by some freak accident someone other than me puts clothes in the dryer.  I also wrote the recipe on the box, so, I don't have to worry about finding it when it is time to make more.

I started stirring it with a wooden spatula.  I changed to a wisk.  It worked a lot better.

Is that the sound of savings I hear?  Why yes, I believe it is! 

Hooray for Frugal Friday!  Go check out the other tips.

My name is Amanda and I make my own laundry detergent...

Before you go assuming that I also make my own bread and my own dresses – I don’t, at least not yet.  (Updated to add:  I have now made both bread and dresses.  But not to mislead, we still wear store bought dresses and buy loaves of bread in addtion to the ones we make. lol)  We are doing this debt free living thing.  So, every extra dollar we can scrape together makes our debt shrink a little more.  I’ve been doing the frugal thing and finding all kinds of ways to save. 

Laundry detergent is expensive.  Especially since we have a High Efficiency (HE) washer and have to buy HE detergent.   The recipes I found initially did not specify if they were safe for HE washers.  So, I did a little research to find out the difference between regular detergent and HE detergent.  I found out that the difference is suds.  HE detergent is non-sudsing.  I use Fels Naptha, a non-sudsing soap.  Ta-da!  HE detergent.

When I first made it, we were feeling a little weird about it.  Maybe we were pushing this frugal thing too far.   My husband and I just kind of eyed it with uncertainty.  I can honestly say now that we are devoted laundry detergent makers.  It isn’t hard to make.  It is very inexpensive.  My recipe makes 2 gallons.  The total cost comes to a penny per load! 

The appearance of homemade detergent is very “goopy”.  It took some getting use to.  Trust me I’m over it.  "I won’t judge you on your appearance, my sweet cheap detergent.  Your beauty is within my washing machine where you work your cleaning magic and within my pocket book where you don’t waste our debt paying dollars."  

Recipe:

Note for HE users:  Fels Naptha Soap (which by the way, is made by Dial) is non-sudsing. 

3 pints water

1/3 bar Fels Naptha Soap, grated (or whole bar of other soap)

½ cup Super Washing Soda (Arm & Hammer)

½ cup 20 Mule Team Borax

2 gallon bucket/container

1qt hot water

 Optional:  Essential Oils (My favorite is doTERRA's On Guard blend of oils.  I use 10 to 15 drops.)

Mix grated Fels Naptha Laundry Bar Soap in a large saucepan with 3 pints hot water and heat on the stove over low heat until dissolved.  Do not allow to boil.  Stir in Super Washing Soda and Borax.  Stir until thickened.  Remove from heat.  Add 1 quart hot water to 2 gallon bucket.  Add soap mixture and essential oils.  Mix well.  Fill up bucket with additional hot water, leaving a few inches at the top and mix well.  Set aside for 24 hrs or until mixture thickens.  Use ½ cup per load.

If you decide to try it, you might want to visit here  to see how she makes her laundry detergent. 

Now I know that y'all will very graciously look over the load of laundry in my dryer.  Cause y'all know that with four kids there is always laundry in my dryer.