My Interest with Pinterest

Pinterest was something that I hadn't even heard of one year ago, but now it's all the rage. I signed up for Pinterest last summer, but then I never really went back to learn how the website worked. Months later I decided to go back and take another look. I found it a little confusing at first, but after playing around for a few hours I was a pro. And I was hooked. Since then I've found so many great ideas. I can't personally carry any of the ideas out on my own, but fortunately my mom or sister Laura have been good about helping me experiment by trying new things (mostly desserts!).

I have to admit that Pinterest can be a little addicting since it's so fun to find new ideas, but I'm really good about only spending a few minutes on it here and there when I need a break from what I'm doing. If you want to follow my pins, click here.

I've found so many fun and useful things. One of the most useful things I've found is a recipe for homemade laundry detergent. My mom has been making a homemade liquid laundry soap for the past few years that she really likes, so when I found the recipe for this dry laundry detergent I decided to send it to my mom to see if she might like it even better. My mom whipped up a batch and has been using it for over a month. She likes it even better than the liquid laundry detergent she'd been using, so I was very pleased to find something that impressed my mom.  This laundry detergent is relatively easy to make and extremely cost-efficient. (Who knew that laundry soap/detergent is so expensive? Not me, since I've never bought any before. Actually, I think I've only done two or three loads of laundry my whole life since my mom always did my laundry prior to my accident. It wasn't that I wasn't capable of doing it, it's just that my mom always did it since she enjoys doing laundry so well. You heard it right, my mom LOVES doing laundry!)

Anyway, I can't remember the blog where I originally found this homemade detergent recipe (I should've pinned it to one of my Pinterest boards, but I didn't), but the woman writing the blog said that she made a batch of the detergent and it lasted about eight months (she did four loads of laundry a week). You only use 1 tablespoon of detergent per load (yes, only 1 tablespoon!). It only cost my mom $15 to get all of the supplies that she needed to make it. As I said, my mom loves it and she's going to keep making it.

Homemade Laundry Detergent:
1 4 lb 12 oz box Borax (2.15 kg were 76 oz) found in the detergent aisle

1 4 lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (1.81 kg) found in the cooking aisle
1 box Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda 55 oz (3 lb 7 oz) found in the detergent aisle
3 bars of Fels-naptha soap, found in the detergent aisle
2 small containers of oxyclean or store brand oxyclean (try to get about 3.5 lbs total (1.58 kg))
*You can also use pink Zote soap instead of Fels-naptha.

Start out by grating your Fels-naptha soap just like cheese. **Don't worry the Fels-naptha will dissolve in your washer even if you only use cold water.

Toss all ingredients in a 5 gallon bucket lined with a garbage bag. This part makes your whole house smell great. Once everything is thoroughly mixed store soap however you like. I chose a jar that I keep above my washing machine, I also got a little scoop to keep inside. Wasn't that easy? Sure was! Enjoy your soap. Use 1 tablespoon per load.

Anyway, I encourage everyone to try it since it's extremely inexpensive and takes minimal time/effort to make. Who knows, you might find that you really like it! (If you do try it, be sure to  leave me a comment and let me know how you like it.) If you have any questions, just e-mail me or leave a comment.