Laundry Soap

I think one of the most overpriced items I buy is laundry detergent. Especially because about half or more is water (don't forget to mention all of the extra chemicals added)! I decided to go on a hunt for a more affordable option and maybe a more green option as well. I found a really simple recipe that incorporated some of the ingredients I keep on hand anyway. Deal!

What you'll need:

1 Bar of soap of your choosing
1 Cup of Borax
1 Cup of Washing Soda
Baking soda (optional but I always splash a little in there)
Cheese grater
Container of your choosing

Start by using the cheese grater to shred your bar of soap. This is the part that required some elbow grease. :) Once your bar of soap is completely shredded into your container add the rest of the ingredients and mix. That's it. Amazing right? I've been using this recipe for maybe 8 or more months now and I love it. It's easy to do and cheap to make. Each load of laundry requires about a tablespoon of the mixture added to the water before your clothes. You can add more for extra soiled clothes. I like to just eyeball it. :)

Carpet Powder

As a pet owner I tend to use a lot of carpet powder and floor cleaner to keep my carpets smelling as fresh as possible. I eventually grew tired of having to repeatedly buy the store bought carpet powder and went searching for a cheaper alternative. Turns out there is a very cheap alternative. All you need is two ingredients. One if you want to be really simplistic.

What you'll need:

Baking soda
Essential oil of your choice ( optional, i chose orange! yum!)
Container of your choice (i like to reuse containers and thought an old Parmesan cheese shaker would work perfectly!)

All you have to do is mix about a cup or two of  baking soda and the essential oil together and sprinkle it on your carpet. I usually put about 10-15 drops in my mixture and it smells great. Leave the mixture on your carpet for at least a half hour. I find it works the best when left on overnight. Easy!

DIY Dishwasher Soap

I have slowly but surely begun replacing my store bought products with homemade ones when they run out. I finally ran out of dishwasher detergent. After digging a little online I think I have found one that works pretty well. When using green products it tends to leave a white residue on your dishes. The recipe I found hasn't yet for me and I don't think it will. It's really simple to make and works great! (i also have a great recipe for laundry soap using some of the same ingredients)

What you'll need:

1 cup Borax
1 cup Washing Soda
Baking soda (optional. you can do a 50/50 mix of washing soda and baking soda or mix the two to your liking or leave it out all together.)
1/4 Coarse Kosher Salt (helps with hard water)
1/4 Citric Acid (cuts down on the residue left behind by green products) You can get citric acid in the canning isle in the grocery store. Lemi Shine is a good alternative to use as well.
White Vinegar

All you need to do is mix all the dry ingredients together and put it in a nice container and ta-da! it's ready to use. Using about a tablespoon each load should be enough.
Use the white vinegar in place of a rinsing agent such as jet dry, etc.

Hot Oil Hair Treatment

Hot oil treatments for your hair can get a little pricey. Especially if you need to do it regularly to keep the frizz at bay. This recipe is an easy to do at home hot oil hair treatment. A friend of mine has really curly hair and its pretty hard to manage. It gets tangled easily and if it doesn't have constant product on it it gets frizzy and out of control. So I talked my friend into letting me try this recipe on him and he liked it so much he has asked me to do again a couple times. He loves it.

What You'll Need:

Almond Oil
Honey
Bowl
Spoon

Directions:

Start by pouring about 1/2 cup of almond oil in a bowl. How much you need depends on how much hair you have. After the oil is in the bowl pour about 1 tbs. of honey in the same bowl. Microwave for about 30 seconds. This step also depends on how hot or warm you can stand. After it's done in the microwave stir the mixture as best as possible. Sometimes it has trouble mixing together but get it as good as you can.

The next step is to grab a towel that you don't mind getting the mixture on. Put the towel around your shoulders and get to work putting the oil on your hair. Make sure you get the hair covered evenly all over your hair.

Once hair is completely covered wrap your hair in the towel (or shower cap) and wait for about 20 minutes. After about 20 minutes shampoo your hair. (do not condition hair). Once done your hair should feel silky, healthy and definitely not frizzy!

Before hair treatment

After hair treatment

                                                                                                                                                                    

DIY- Sea Salt Body Scrub

It's getting to be that time of the year! The weather is starting to change and get colder and in my family that means dry skin. I found a very simple recipe that anyone can do for a nice salt body scrub. The oil used gives your skin a nice nourished feel and the sea salt gets rid of all the dry excess skin.

What you'll need:
 
1 Cup-Sea Salt
1 Cup-Almond Oil (I've heard olive oil works just as well. I prefer almond because it feel lighter)
2-3 drops Essential Oil (optional)
Measuring Cup
Mixing Bowl
Container with lid

Directions:

Start by adding your one cup of salt into the mixing bowl. Measure out your one cup of almond oil (or your choice) and slowly mix into the salt. I found that if I put exactly one cup of oil in the salt it was too runny for my taste. So, pour in slowly and stop when you reach your desired consistency. Should be like a paste. Now is the time to add a couple drops of your favorite essential oil. I decided to opt out of this step because none was available at the time. Get creative with it though. I've heard people who like to add citrus zest or even mint to theirs. Make it your own. When you're finished put your sea salt scrub into a container so you can use it over and over again! I like to use canning cans. They're inexpensive and seal well. Hope you enjoy this easy to do salt scrub as much as I do! Good luck.