DIY Laundry!

Okay, y'all, I think I'm getting addicted to the DIY Natural Homemade Things.  One day a while back, in the midst of perusing Pinterest boards, I found a recipe for homemade laundry detergent, and it didn't sound too terribly difficult.  I decided to give it a shot, and before I knew it, I was sitting on my living room floor making homemade dryer sheets, too!  Just the other day I bought supplies for reusable makeup remover wipes, and I think DIY liquid hand soap may be in my near future.

I'm telling you guys, this stuff is addicting!  It's exciting to make something myself, with simple, natural ingredients, so that I'M in control of what I'm putting on my (and my dear husband's) skin, and actually SAVE MONEY in the process.  And it's not hard!  I'm so stoked about this.  Can you tell?  ;-)

Alright, so on to the recipes.  Since the laundry detergent and dryer sheets are the ones I've actually made so far, those are the ones I'll share this time around.

Homemade Laundry Detergent
from diynatural.com

1 cup Borax

1 cup washing soda

1 bar of soap, grated*

Grate your soap into a bowl and mix with the other two ingredients. Store in an airtight container and use 2-3 tablespoons for a large load of laundry.  That's it! 

*The soap you use is totally up to you -- go super organic and natural, or go scented and colorful.  It all depends on what you want to put on your skin.  I used a bar of Dove Unscented, because my husband has very sensitive skin and this is the kind of soap he uses daily, so I knew it wouldn't cause him any trouble.  

Homemade Reusable Dryer Sheets
from ViewFromtheFridge.com

Several squares of fabric (I cut mine about 6"x6" from an old t-shirt, but you can use any fabric scrap)
1/2 cup vinegar
8-10 drops essential oil*

Mix vinegar and essential oil in an airtight container.  Fold up your fabric squares, place in the vinegar mixture, and replace the lid, letting them soak.  When you are ready to dry a load of clothes, take out a few of your dryer sheets (I use about 3-4 per load), squeeze out the extra liquid, and toss them in the dryer.  When it's done, just fold your little squares back up and put them right back into the vinegar mixture.  So easy!  My clothes were soft and static-free - and no, they don't smell like vinegar!

*Your choice of scent. I used lavender and tea tree, because that's what I had on hand!  You don't need the expensive essential oils for this project; something cheap will suffice because it's only for scent.