Clothes Washing Old Fashioned

Make your own laundry soap -- it's inexpensive and easy to do

When I see washing hanging on a line, it reminds me of my mother. With a family of seven kids, my mom spent a good part of a day just doing the laundry. I don't remember too much about the wash-day goings-on or what kind of machine she used, but I have the image in my head of a bar of sunlight soap that sat on a shelf above the taps -and, I know it was always used for stains.

Years ago I made old fashioned castile soap -mice found it and chewed all around the edges -it then got used for making an insecticidal soap for plants. Of late I've had the urge to make my own laundry soap and got a recipe from a friend (thank you Mary Ann).

So, here's the laundry soap recipe I promised a few columns ago:

N.B. This is approximately half the original recipe as it makes more than twenty litres of concentrated soap -ten litres (or so) is ample for most households. The recipe calls for grated laundry soap -the ideal would be a bar of good old "Sunlight Soap", but what's now called that is much different. Someone else must have thought the same, as a product very similar to the former, called "Linda's Laundry Soap", is now available (locally too!).

Equipment required: measuring cups (1 litre/4c. is best), a pail or kettle that will hold 10 litres/approx. 40 cups, smaller cooking pot, long handled spoon (kind used for making preserves is good), grater, hand

beater/whisk, (optional -colander/ strainer or seive), a quantity of jars/bottles or plastic containers for storing concentrated soap.

Ingredients:

2 c. hot water

1/2 bar laundry soap (approx. 500ml./2c. grated) -Linda's Laundry Soap if you can find it

1/2 c./ 125 ml. Arm and Hammer Washing Soda

1/2 c./125 ml. Borax

Procedure: In a small cooking pot bring 500 ml/2 c. water to a boil, add grated soap -continue to "cook" on medium low, constantly stirring, until soap has dissolved. Add borax and washing soda -stir well after each addition until dissolved.

Put 5 litres/20 c. HOT tap water into the pail or kettle, add the soap, borax and washing soda mixture. Mix well. Add 5 litres/20 c. more HOT tap water - again mix well.

Leave overnight or for several hours -mixture will be very gelatinous. If by chance there is a hard layer on top (like when I made it!) -remove and put into the cooking pot with some of the gelatinous mixture from the bottom, whisk until thoroughly blended (can also use a colander etc. to strain/break up chunks). Return the mixture to the kettle/pail, stir well. Pour into your collection of bottles etc.

Frog's Lilypad: ~A Laundry Soap Update~

For about 6 months, I've noticed one or two pieces of clothing becoming gray and our clothes not keeping their colors (fading). I began searching for any information as to why and how to stop it. It wasn't until about 2 weeks ago when I googled homemade "laundry detergent graying clothes"  I came across this POST from a fellow blogger.  Before I continue, let me explain something... Our family is on a mission of becoming as self reliant as possible without becoming back woodsy, tree hugging hermits. I honestly believe that there is the possibility of facing a time in our future where people are going to need to know how to do "old fashioned" things. Making laundry detergent is one of those things and I enjoy it.Being able to make laundry detergent and keeping our clothes looking good for as long as possible is a big deal to me. Why save money on laundry detergent, but then have to buy new clothes every few months? I don't get that! After reading Hillary's POST , I began searching and reading what I could find regarding TriSodium Phosphate. It seems, that I'm not the only one looking for brighter, whiter clothes. There are tons of sites where people are looking for help in getting their clothes clean. The funny thing about this is,  people are not only using homemade detergent but many are using store bought. If you did not read the link that Hillary posted, you really need to read it. You can find it HERE . I talked with friends of ours that owns a feed store. This family run store is not like the big box stores. They run their business the old fashion/retro/vintage ~ whatever you would call it, way. The older men in the area stop by every morning to sit in the rocking chairs around the wood burning stove to enjoy a cup of coffee while catching up on all the news that comes from the farms around the area. The shelves are stocked with  a small amount of a product and the family knows everything about those products. While I was in there I asked about TSP and the response I got was enlightening. I was told that it use to be in our detergents, but the gov't stepped in and had it removed since it promotes the growth of algae in our streams. The gov't is more concerned about small aquatic animals than they are about the lives of innocent unborn babies, abused children and elderly people.

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