Haiti's on my heart..steps toward sustainable living; make your own laundry detergent

Soule Mama pretty much summed it up....thinking about Haiti....Haiti's on my heart...sobering.

Well how CAN I follow that - everything seems frivolous...and yet we live...we keep on, keeping on...I did take Soule Mama's challenge to heart - asking myself, "what can we do?"  So I'm going to consider what we can give out of our home over the next little while. 

It does bring home for me the importance of integrating more sustainable living habits into our everyday lives.  Creating for our homes and families environments that are not completely dependent on industry and the market place.

Today I bring to you a few laundry soap recipes, you may or may not already be aware of.

Rabbit Trail:  SOAP NUTS!?  Have you ever tried these?  Can you tell me how to use these properly?  I did research soap nuts before I bought my first sack - I LOVE the idea - just hasn't 'washed out' the way I had hoped (pun intended).  Apparantly there is no soapy residue - so technically you could really be saving on water as well, because you do not need a rinse cycle.  But sadly, after MANY loads, I have not found that our clothes are getting clean - If YOU have some direction in this area, I am all ears. 

::Liquid Laundry Soap::

1 bar good quality real soap grated

1/2 cup borax

1/2 cup washing soda

6 cups hot water

6 liters (quarts) of hot water

Combine soap, washing soda, borax and first amount of water in a saucepan and stir over low heat until dissolved. Place into your container (I either use a 3 gal bucket or a 10L water jug) and slowly add second amount water. Stir or shake gently. Let set 24 hours, stirring or gently shake occasionally. Use about 1 cup per load.

:: Dry Laundry Soap :: 

12 cups Borax


8 cups Baking Soda

8 cups Washing Soda

8 cups bar of good quality soap (grated)

Mix all ingredients well and store in a sealed tub.

Use 1/8 cup of powder per full load
I use a variation of this; basically I fill a pail with 1 part borax, 1 part washing soda and 1 part grated bar soap, and perhaps some baking soda.

Nancy I hope this is useful???  I'd like to continue to find other options - so if you know of others, folks, feel free to drop a link or post YOUR advice!  I'd be happy to repost on our laundry recipe ventures. Yellow House had a great laundry tutorial a while back as well.

:: Blessings AND have a lovely weekend,  hug your loved ones close - read Soule Mama's post - and hold life dear!