Foaming Handsoap for 5 CENTS a bottle

I really like foaming handsoap.  My girls use 2 squirts of whatever kind of soap I put at the sink, so if I use regular liquid soap, we go through A LOT of soap.  I have tried to get the perfect foaming soap recipe and FINALLY found it, so here it is...

1 Tbl. Dawn Ultra-Concentrated dish soap
Water
An empty foaming handsoap bottle (I used an old Bath & BodyWorks one that I received as a gift.)

Add a little warm water in the botom of the dispenser, add the dish soap, fill to ALMOST the top, leaving a little room to gently combine after putting the lid back on.
THAT'S it; the perfect foaming handsoap. WOW!

So, because I am a little bit nerdy (maybe a lot frugal), I wanted to do the math and see how much this was going to save me.  I bought the dish soap at WalMart's regular price- no coupons.  (I KNOW, all you couponers, this is something I should be getting for free, but I just don't get the whole couponing thing yet- Never say Never, but right now, it's not worth it for me!)  I paid just over $2.00 for the bottle.
This ONE bottle will refill my soap dispenser about 47 times, making each time I refill it a whole whopping 5 CENTS (on the high side) to refill!!!!  The Aldi brand of foaming soap I normally use is $1.57 a bottle!!!!  I just made $70.  Now, just think if I actually bought the B&BW soaps normally- WOAH!  Major Savings! 

Try it out.  Tell us what you think!

Homemade Fabric Softener

I originally found a recipe online and began to use it, but I still found that my clothes were full of static.  The adjustments I made have helped (more vinegar.)  And NOOOOO my clothes do NOT smell like vinegar. They don't really smell like anything.  I love how much money I am saving by making my own cleaning products.

3 simple ingredients

One of the secrets to less static is not overdrying your clothes- sometimes tough to do.

I love to add baking soda to my towels (I just dump about 1/4 cup on top of my towels as I put them in the wash.)  My towels are incredibly SOFT when I do this!

Here's what you need:
6 cups water
6 cups white vinegar
2 cups hair conditioner (I like fresh breeze, rainfall, etc...scents,  but you can use whatever you like)

Mix all together with a whisk and pour into a large container.


Use in your Downy ball and put in the washer. 


Some people wet an old rag with it, squeezing out the excess, and put it in the dryer with their wet laundry.  (I haven't tried it this way, yet.)

Costs around $2 to make almost a gallon of fabric softener. You use it just like regular fabric softener!) 

Tub and Shower Cleaner that AMAZES

These 2 ingredients will clean your shower like never before- it really is AMAZING!

ONLY 2 Ingredients Needed!!!!!

What you need:
1/2 cup Dawn Dish soap
1/2 cup Vinegar

Yes!!! REALLY!!! That's all you need.

You need equal parts of each ingredient. (I made 8 ounces, because that worked best in the bottle I reused.)  Warm the vinegar in the microwave being VERY CAREFUL not to inhale the vinegar when you bring it out of the microwave.  If you do this, be warned....I TOLD YOU SO! 
The solution is a milky blue color.

Pour the Dawn Dish soap into the vinegar and gently mix together. Pour into spray bottle.

Now, if you are like me, you will head straight to the shower and try it out. You won't need as much as your old shower cleaner. It is soapy, obviously, so you have to rinse it.  Really stubborn soap scum build up?  Let is soak for awhile or overnight.

I clean my shower every day- really, it's true- but since finding this, I sometimes skip a day (gasp!) and there's no build up of nasty!  YAY!

Now that my shower has NO BUILDUP at all; I cut the Dawn Dish soap in half, so this is how I make it now for the size bottle I have...
1 cup Vinegar
1/2 cup Dawn Dish Soap

Let me know what you think!

Homemade Laundry Detergent CLEANS UP!

Right before our youngest was born (three years ago), I started hearing talk about making my own laundry detergent.  I didn't think much of it really. It wasn't until about a year ago, I began to give it considerable thought. I was paying $17 a MONTH for detergent for our family of 5...eeek...I wanted to change that, but I really liked the eco-friendly version I was using.  A good friend of mine started making hers; I decided to give it a go.  All of the ingredients needed cost me around $10.  I figured I wasn't out much if I hated it.

We have been using it for about 6 months and I just bought the ingredients for only the second time- WOW!  That is great savings.

It takes me MAYBE 15 minutes to make.

Recipes abound all over the Internet. I adapted mine from one I found on Pinterest.

So, now for the recipe...complete with pictures for you.

Homemade Laundry Detergent Ingredients:
1/2 cup borax
1/2 cup washing soda
1/3 bar Fels Naphta soap- finely grated
Water

Heat 6 cups water on the stove as you grate the bar soap.  Heat to boiling, add the soap and reduce heat to medium.  Stir until all the soap is melted.  Don't let the soap boil.

Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until completely dissolved.  Stir for a few minutes longer until it thickens slightly (kind of like cooked pudding before it is cooked.)  Remove from heat.

Add 4 cups hot water to the soap mixture and stir.  (You can add essential oil here if you like- sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.)  Add 6 more cups water. Allow to cool.

Most recipes, tell you to let it sit overnight; I do not let mine sit...I am a get-it-done-check-it-off-the-list kind of girl...so I let it cool enough to pour it into my old detergent containers.  Leave room at the top to give it a good shake when you use it.  (Someday, I might get pretty containers, but for now...these are FREE!)

Use 1/4 cup detergent per load.  The detergent I make is more concentrated than a lot of the other recipes you will find- why store water?  It is necessary to shake this up before using as it will settle into "layers."  A good shake and you are all set, though!

DONE. I can NOT imagine buying detergent now.  Let me know what you think after you try it.