Homemade Laundry Detergent

Well, now that we're down to one income I gotta get serious about saving money. I got this recipe for laundry detergent from my friend Nicole and made it for the first time today. It was really easy! I did not do the math on my purchases, but Nicole says it costs her about $0.37 for 12 large loads of laundry....not bad!!

This recipe makes 96 oz (12 loads; 1 cup of laundry detergent per load). If you have a bigger storage container, you can double/ tripple/ etc. the recipe.

Here's the recipe:
1/4 bar of soap (I used Irish Spring because it was on sale making it the cheapest; not to mention that it smells good)
cheese grater or knife
1 cup boiling water
12 cups hot water
4 Tablespoons of Washing Soda (I got it at Kroger; near laundry supplies)
2 Tablespoons of Borax (got it at Kroger as well)

STEP ONE: Put one cup of water in small pot on stove. Heat it on high, just under boiling. Using a cheese grater or knife, shave the bar soap into the water. Keep the heat below a boil. Stir until the soap dissovles.

STEP TWO: Put 12 cups of hot water into a large bucket. Add the 1 cup of soapy water from step one. Stir for a few minutes. Add 4 Tablespoons of washing soda; stir another minute or two. Add 2 Tablespoons of Borax; stir another couple of minutes. Let cool over night. (Will be slimy and a few shades lighter in color than the soap you used come morning.)

STEP THREE: You can either store your laundry soap in a bucket or transfer it into an empty laundry soap container.