DIY laundry and dish washing soap!

No shopping for me today. At home with a daughter with a tummy ache :( Good time to catch up on things that we are running low on.

With four of us at home doing work and school, we go through a lot of dishes quickly! I simply do not have the time (or want) to stand in the kitchen all day to keep up with the dishes we go through. I LOVE my dishwasher! No it is nothing fancy, but it does work for me, freeing up some of my time to do other things, like clean other parts of the house, clip coupons, and most importantly, spend time with my family. :)

Of course dish washing soap is not the thing that goes quickly in my home. Any one with kids knows that they go through a lot of clothes and they are usually pretty rough on them. This house is no exception. My son who I believe tries to find every bit of dirt in the neighborhood and magnetize himself to it, then my daughter who simply can not wear an outfit for more than an hour keep my pretty busy washing clothes.

Yes I coupon, and yes I get coupons on laundry soaps and dish washer soap but not all the time. Basically now if it is not free or right next to free I don't worry about getting it because I can make it for much cheaper and it does just as good of a job, maybe even better.

So I am sure now you are asking yourself, "How does she do it?"
Well it is not as hard as it sounds. And it is even a little fun. At least I think it is. You can have what ever scent you like, and it does not have all the harsh chemicals as the normal cleansers do. There are a lot of different ways to make your own dish and laundry soap, I have tried several different ways. The way that I like the best is a liquid laundry and a powder dish washer soap. And now I can just hear you, you want the recipes don't you? Well of course! If you are awesome enough to be reading this then you are awesome enough to know my (not so) super secret recipes.

Liquid Laundry Soap

• 1 Cup Borax
• 1 Cup Washing Soda
• 1/2 Cup Dawn (Or any) liquid dish washing soap
• 1/2 Cup any scent shampoo OR body wash

Mix all ingredients in a pitcher, pour in 4 Cups of hot water, stir till dissolved.  Once it is dissolved pour the mixture into a larger jug, I use an old laundry soap jug that is 175 OZ. Then fill that with water. Let set over night. It may gel a bit but that is normal. Just give it a shake or two and use like normal laundry soap. Much more cost effective! And since I get shampoo, body wash, and dish washing soap for extremely cheap, (THANK YOU COUPONS!) this makes for a great value and a great soap! It holds up to my kids! 

Powder Dishwasher Soap

• 1/2 Cup Borax
• 1/2 Cup Washing Soda
• 1/2 Cup Kosher Salt
• 1/2 Cup Citric Acid  ~OR~ 5 of the small packets of sugar free lemonade. (I use the packets and it works great!)   

Mix all in a small air tight jar. I use an old pickle jar! Don't you love recycling? By the way, the pickles were free with coupons! Just saying :) Use about a tsp. I have heard others use a few drops of dish soap on top as well, I do not do that but if you want to it would not hurt anything. I do use vinegar in the rinse cycle to keep a film from forming.

But that is it. Sounds easy huh? Now go make your own! Set yourself free from those high priced brands. Make your own brand :) Have fun with it. Remember where ever you can save money without compromising quality it is a good thing! 

If you make your own I would love to hear about it! Or if you have any questions feel free to ask.. :)