KittyMommy

If anyone would like to try it out, I could do up some nice little samples for you all......but then again, you'd have to meet the elusive Kitty Mommy....bahahah!

You know, our life expectancies, may be longer, but thinking back, to eras long past, I don't recall hearing about so many different maladies. Everyone worked hard, so most everyone was in good shape....now we are spoiled, by technology, and Americans are the fattest cats on the planet, literally.

Last time I got Fels it was either at Walmart or Martins.....tonight I noticed WM did not have it anymore... Don't use soaps like Dove, or Caress, and stuff like that...stick with Ivory or Fels. The others don't do a good job, and may make the soap recipe not function well.

Kerbear, I think if you do a little googling on 'skin safe essential oils for scenting soaps and detergents' you might find something you like! I do have a link for Island Gain scent, its rated for soap.....so if you make the liquid detergent...... http://www.naturesgardencandles.com/candlemaking-soap-supplies/item/df-55660/-NG-Island-Fresh-(Gain)-Type-Fragrance-Oil-(ZB,-ZS,-ZG).html

Well the overall consensus is, that if the scented oil you want to use is skin safe, then try it. I also surfed a bit, and one site recommended pure essential oils, as long as they are skin friendly. Doesn't sound like its been tried much, so I'm not real sure I'd try it... Besides, the fresh smell of this stuff is really quite nice....

Hmmmm let me get back to you on that one...I'll have to ask the one who gave me the recipe to begin with....

I think its the sudsing issue. I have a Whirlpool Duet HE front loader, and have no problems with the home brew, because it hardly sudses at all. And the suds do not get the clothes clean anyhow.

So do I. I don't have problems with the home brew.

Yes, I find them at WalMart and most grocery stores in the laundry products. The Fels Naptha can be hard to spot, since its a bar of soap amongst all those bottles and boxes...but I have found it locally.

Well, my hubby works on water lines, and usually comes home with: a. mud b. more mud c. head to foot mud....ah, you get the picture. I have good results with the home brew on his work clothes. Its been my experience that NOTHING does a serious good job on hydraulic fluid, that stuff is just horrendous, it gets MOST of it out, but the marks usually stay. Sometimes when he comes home head to foot mud, (when he is NOT allowed IN the house until he strips down in the mud room!) I do have to launder them twice, but only because they are just saturated with mud.... I hate water line breaks....and right now he's working a major water line project in Sykesville, so its mud every day! Whites, well I use it with a touch of clorox. I refuse to wash my whites without bleach. I've never had much of an issue with armpit staining...so I can't really answer that one! Now my late mother would tell you, to put lemon juice on the stains, then sprinkle them with salt, and put them out in the sun to make them go away...never tried it, but hey you never know..... On clothing that's already been stained, washed, and all that, it won't get out the old stains, but I can say I've been very happy with how it handles His Lordship's clothing. The nice fresh scent is a real bonus too. I use unscented drier sheets, and when I use the home brew, the clothes come out of the drier smelling like they've been dried outside....serious bonus.

The powder version I would say is VERY easy, the liquid version takes a little more doing.....tell you what...I'll post both... The Liquid version will do about 80 loads. You need: 1 bar of Fels Naptha Soap grated. 1 cup A&H Washing Soda 1/2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax. Place grated soap in a pot. Cover with water and simmer over medium heat until all soap is melted, stirring occasionally. Pour into 5 gallon bucket. Add washing soda and borax. Add enough hot water to fill the bucket. Stir (I use a long measuring stick, but any long stick will work) Let sit overnight to gel. Use 1 cup per load. You can pour this into old detergent containers or leave in the bucket. Cover with a lid if leaving in the bucket to protect children and pets. The powder version: 2/3 bar of Fels Naptha grated fine. ( I use the whole bar though) 1 cup of A&H washing soda 1 cup of 20 Mule Team Borax Put in a container that will hold 2 cups of laundry detergent. Shake, or stir well, and store in closed container. Now, the best part: use only 1 tablespoon per load. OR, use a scoop from an old box of powder, you won't get as many loads, no, but a lot of folks like those handy little scoops. These soaps are very low sudsing, so they are perfect for front loaders. I use them in my HE machine, but I put the soap directly into the washer drum before loading clothes. I don't like powder soap in the dispenser, its always leaves a little cakey mess! Cost: * 20 Mule Team Borax: $2.50 for 70 oz. - Cost per batch: .14 (4 oz needed for recipe) * Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda: $2.50 for 55 oz. Cost per batch .18.(4 oz needed for recipe) * Fels Naphtha: $1.24 per bar. Cost per batch: .83 (2/3 bar of soap needed for recipe) * One tablespoon of detergent is sufficient per load of wash. If you have a high-efficiency machine, you might want to experiment with using a little less detergent for normal loads. If your clothes come out feeling stiff, lower the amount of detergent. For clothes that are heavily soiled, add a teaspoon more of the detergent.. The powder version makes 2 cups. If you stick to the 1 tablespoon per load, you get 32 loads. I use this and love it, its very fresh smelling, and works great.

Sure. Want the liquid or powder recipe?

I make my own laundry soap. Its about 10 cents a load, does a great job, and its green friendly too.

Shao Mao Minh April 2002-April 2008 "What will the radiance which was once so bright, be now forever taken from my sight.........we will grieve not, rather find strength in what remains...in the simple thoughts that spring out of human suffering.....that having been....must ever be..." My beautiful boy, barely six years old, lost his brave fight to over come megacolon today. I will miss him every day of my life......