Homemade Lavender Laundry Soap

Ever since we made the kitchen spray, we’ve been talking about doing homemade laundry soap. I don’t know why we waited so long, it was actually a simple process. In my head it involved lye and all other sorts of dangerous elements, but I actually had all of the supplies in my cabinet. I won’t lie, I went out about a year ago and bought a  Zote laundry bar, but next time I make it I’m actually going to use Ivory soap, because the Zote smells pretty strong.

The other ingredient you might not have on hand is washing soda. Washing soda is actually soda carbonate which is just baking soda minus the bi. (I know that is not in any way accurate, but if my chemical engineer husband starts writing out the actual explanation you’ll still be reading this post next week!). If you put baking soda in a 200º oven for an hour, you’ve got yourself Washing Soda. You can also just buy it on Amazon … up to you!

My original source for this recipe is here, but I’ve tinkered around with it a little bit. The great thing about making your own soap is that you know exactly what you’re putting in it, and it’s extremely economical. You only need about 1 Tsbp for a regular load. Since it’s lavender week, we’ve opted to make the soap smell like fields in France, but this would also be amazing with a lime or grapefruit scent!

If you love the label, and who wouldn’t, you can download it! It matches the kitchen spray label perfectly!

Homemade Laundry Detergent:

Ingredients:

• 1 bar soap (I used Zote, but Ivory also works, and I think it smells better!)
• 1 c. Borax
• 1 c. Washing Soda
• 2 Tbsp. lavender leaves
• 20 drops lavender oil
• Optional add ins: baking soda (1/2 c., Oxi Clean 1/2 c.)

Instructions:

1. Grate the soap into flakes. You can use a cheese grater for this, but save yourself some time and use the grater blade on your food processor.
2. Add the other ingredients into the bowl of your processor and mix until you have a powder.
3. Put into an airtight container.
4. Use 1 Tbsp. for an average load of laundry.

 

*** Doug’s Disclaimer: My husband wants to make sure that you know that he thinks we’re better off leaving chemicals to the professionals! Also, if you do make the soap, make sure to keep it out of the reach of children.