Making your own natural, homemade laundry detergent is one of the easiest parts of a transition to natural living. This natural laundry soap recipe is a great way to save money on laundry detergent and is incredibly easy to make. Cheap and easy? Yes please!

 

Why switch to natural laundry soap?

Conventional laundry detergent is loaded with chemicals like sulfates, fragrances, phenols and much more. Many brands contain things like petroleum distillates, which are linked to cancer and lung disease. Fragrances in these detergents are made of a mix of harmful chemicals. Many people also can receive bad allergic reactions to such chemicals. So after it being cheap and effective, it’s also a lot better for your health. How could you say no to going green now?

 

Luckily, making your own laundry soap is an easy and fast process! You only need three basic ingredients to make either a powdered or liquid laundry soap:

  • Washing Soda (Washing / Stain Removal)
  • Detergent Booster (Stain Removal Aid)
  • Bar Soap (Recommended: Unscented. Or even make your own!)

 

Washing Soda and Detergent Booster should be available at your local supermarket in the laundry aisle. Natural bar soaps are in the health & beauty sections of most supermarkets. You can also add a couple tablespoons of baking soda to help freshen clothes if you wish.

 

Wonder what’s in these ingredients?

Detergent Booster is made up of sodium, boron, oxygen, and water. It is also very inexpensive to make yourself. Washing Soda, sometimes called sodium carbonate, is made from common salt and limestone or found as natural deposits. If you can’t find this locally, you can make your own from plain baking soda also. Here are some other great household uses for washing soda.

 

Natural Laundry Soap Recipe:

  1. Grate the bar soap into your food processor until finely ground. Use the soap of your choice (natural or homemade – I personally use homemade soap).
  2. In a large bowl, mix 2 parts washing soda, 2 parts detergent booster and 1 part grated soap. (Add a few teaspoons of baking soda if you wish).
  3. Store in closed container. If you are using a big enough container, you can skip step 2 and just put all ingredients into said storage container and shake.
  4. Use 1/8 to 1/4 cup per load of laundry.

 

To make Liquid Laundry Soap (Optional):

  1. Grate one bar of soap with your cheese grater or food processor.
  2. Put grated soap in pan with 2 quarts water and gradually heat, stirring constantly until soap is completely dissolved.
  3. Put 4.5 gallons of really hot tap water in a 5-gallon bucket and stir in 2 cups of detergent booster and 2 cups of Washing Soda until completely dissolved.
  4. Pour soap mixture from pan into 5-gallon bucket. Stir well.
  5. Cover and leave overnight.
  6. Shake or stir until smooth and pour into containers.
  7. Use 1/2 to 1 cup per load.

 

These recipes are such a great way to save money on laundry (Roughly 1/3 the price – Natural Ingredients versus ready-made store bought).

 

Recipe by WellnessMama.