Warshing Soap

Last year my Mom showed me and my friend Abbey how to make our own laundry detergent. Mom got it from her friend Claudia who got it from her daughter, my friend Ruth...so in my book, it's like the Amish Friendship Bread of laundry soap. Compared to the cost of regular detergent, it saves a boat load of money. It's also pretty simple to make, doesn't contain any weird chemicals, dyes, or fragrances that many of us are sensitive to. I'm especially glad to use this now that we have a little one with sensitive skin. There are numerous recipes on the internet, and it can be made many different ways, but below is the form that turns up in the Borne's washing machine.

Ingredients:
1 cup Borax powder
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1 bar of Ivory soap

Tools needed:
1 large mixing bowl
1 grater
1 cup dry measuring cup
1 whisking utensil or blender

Grate the Ivory soap into the large mixing bowl and pour in the cup of Borax and cup of Washing Soda. You can pour this mixture into a blender to chop into a fine powder, or use a whisk to break and blend together. I made up a quick double batch this afternoon and saved clean up time by pouring the powders & grating the soap straight into my soap container. It was start to finish within 10 minutes. Because it's an effective, concentrated kind of laundry powder, I only use about an eighth of a cup for a normal sized load of laundry. If there are clothes with some tougher stains coming down the line, I'll add a bit of oxy-clean, but otherwise this does a great job of cleaning.

*Note: This mix won't suds like a typical detergent, nor will it have an overpowering smell, so don't be tempted to keep pouring until you see sudsy bubbles or smell artificial flowers from the peaks of a thousand hill tops.