Homemade Laundry Soap (Powder)

~Homemade Laundry Powder~ 

Ok guys, this stuff is amazing, super easy to make and will save you money!!!! What else could we want? I made powder because it is easier and smaller to store and quicker to make. This stuff is safe for septic tanks and HE washers. I use a recipe from DIYnatural.com. They have detailed info on costs, savings, Borax toxicity etc (it is very safe FYI) so if you want more info, check them out! I am simply going to give you recipe with a few photos and hope to inspire some people in my life to try it.

~Ingredients ~

First you need three things that you can find in most grocery stores, in the laundry aisle.
1. Bar of soap (I use Ivory and zote, and for the most "natural" ingredients use handmade soap)
2. Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (I had to go to Walmart to find this)
3. 20 Mule Team Borax

Step One- Gather ingredients and a few tools. 1 cup measuring cup, wooden spoon, glass bowl, and grater

Step Two- grate the bar of soap (about 4.5 oz) Mine looked like this

Step Three- pour in 1 cup of washing soda and stir a bit

Step Four- pour in 1 cup of Borax and stir a bit more thoroughly, about 5 minutes

Step Five- Use 1 Tablespoon (Tblsp) per load, or 2 Tblsp for heavily soiled stuff.
**SHAKE WELL before you scoop =)

Depending on the soap it may crumble and turn mostly uniform in consistency, or the soap may stay in the form of shavings. Both are fine. You can use food processor to break up soap, or dissolve the powder in a pint of warm water before adding to washer if you wish. Store in airtight container and start saving!
I also use regular White Vinegar in the "bleach" and/or "softener" section of my Samsung Washer. It removes any hard water deposits and soap film and makes the washer and clothes super fresh! I mean fresh; I have cats that spray, kids that have potty accidents and a manly man who goes hiking and camping and mountain-bike riding and so I have plenty of dirty laundry to test this on =)

Enjoy! Please let me know if you like this, or if you have any questions! Ciao friends!

Shabby Chic Dresser

I bought this beautiful dresser from my dear friend before she moved out of state. It is solid oak made in the early 30's, heavy, and it was love at first sight. I used Miss Mustard Seed Milk paint in Ironstone and achieved this

I moved furniture out of the way in my living room, laid down plastic, and painted this late one night, much to my husband's dismay. The milk paint is pretty fast and easy, and has almost no smell. And don't forget about that amazing chippy effect!

 I left the top of the dresser wood because I like that look. I have to admit I am super excited about turning all my dark wood furniture into whiter and lighter surroundings for the home I want!

 Close up of the cool toggle knobs and neat middle drawers. The hardware is original (or at least what has been on it for a long time).

Here are a few more "before" photos:

I love beautiful wood, but it makes my small house feel so crowded and dark. I LOVE what a little white paint did to this piece =) Hope you like it too! For more info on Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint, click here. 

For our wedding anniversary my husband and I are buying a super awesome china hutch from a local shabby chic boutique. We pick it up tomorrow!!!!! YAY! I'll share before and after photos of how much that will change our dinning room!

Ciao!

What I have been up to!!!! (other than going crazy!) ;)

 Wow! Life has been crazy busy! Now that the husband is on summer vacation and I have room to take a breath, I will be happy to bring you some more photos, personal DIY projects, and recipes on a more regular basis! First, a hello from Argos our puppy!

Two weeks ago I ~finally~ finished two out of three raised cedar beds for my own garden:

 



 What is blooming in my garden now:

 

 

 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

My new sewing machine has so many beautiful stitches and many, many other AWESOME features. I spent hours researching and decided the Singer Quantum Stylus 9960 (from SewingMachinesPlus.com- super deal, excellent customer service!!!!) Here are the first things I have sewn, samples of stitches:

 ^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^-^
Coming up next, I will show you the after photos for two fabulous dressers, although I only have before shots of this one. =)

 

Ciao for now friends!

Raised Cedar Beds

Expanding my skills for Grandma!

Thank you to Ana White, for posting free woodworking plans! If you haven't checked out her site, you should! I'm addicted. I planned to make raised garden beds from Ana's website for my front yard, and so naturally when my grandma mentioned she would like to have a veggie garden I offered to build her some first. Here is a cool photo from Ana's website for these Raised Cedar Beds:

Here are the sides and ends I made before assembly

Here is a close up of the ends

Drum roll please.... the finished beds for Grandma!

I bought some new tools for this job (and all the jobs I have on my to do list), the Ryobi One Plus drill and driver set, and the corner cat sander.

All three use the same batteries, so I simply switch them around. I have to say, I love them!
Should I be promoting all this stuff for free? ;)







 On an end note, because it makes me happy, let's look at

What's Blooming Now!

 Iceland poppy

 Ranunculus

 Nasturtium

 Did you know you can eat Nasturtium flowers? Throw some in a salad, they are peppery

 Japanese maple, foliage is as beautiful as blooms =)

 These remind me of my childhood and Alice in Wonderland

Foxglove, I associate these with fairies. If you were tiny, wouldn't you want to snuggle into one of those bells for a nap?

I've had a request for a post on making preserves* and canning, so I will work on that!

*My grandma said I need to call my jam "preserves" because it is so full of yummy pieces of fruit and is better than regular old jam. I am not one to disobey my Grandma, so we're calling it preserves people!
I hope everyone has a great Easter weekend! Thanks for stopping by =)
*Connie*