Basic Laundry Powder

Many laundry detergents are loaded with questionable foaming agents and even migraine-inducing fragrance chemicals. Who would want to pay for a headache? Instead, save money and your health by making this laundry powder designed for warm-water loads. Make It! cup soap flakes or grated plain bar soap cup bora! cup washing soda "ombine ingredients well and store in a #ar with an airtight lid. $se to % tablespoon per load.

Multi-Surface Cleaner
If you need an all-purpose cleaner with a little more grit than our vinegar&water solution, try this natural cleaning concoction. '(lways spot-test before trying it on a new surface.) Make It! * teaspoons bora! % teaspoon washing soda 'not baking soda) +ot water , -ablespoons vinegar teaspoon natural liquid soap . teaspoon tea tree oil / drops rosemary oil / drops tangerine oil / drops lavender oil 0issolve bora! and washing soda 'find them in your store1s laundry aisle) into * cups of very hot water, strain the mi!ture through a very fine sieve, and funnel it into a %-quart spray bottle 'or forget the sieve and #ust pour it in slowly, leaving behind any undissolved powder). (dd the rest of the ingredients and shake to blend. -op off with more hot water and shake again.

All-Natural Air Freshener

It1s ironic, but most air fresheners, because they1re full of allergy- and asthma-inducing chemicals, actually worsen air quality. 2ure, setting out a bowl of white vinegar is a go-to method for natural odor removal, but here1s a recipe with a little added 3ip. Make It! 2everal orange peels * cinnamon sticks 2everal cloves 4ot of water

-o get rid of tough kitchen odors, bring the pot of water to a boil with the orange peels, cloves, and cinnamon sticks, and leave it simmering on the stove for a while.

Lemon

il !uster

5ecause household dust can be loaded with harmful substances like flame retardants, allergens, pesticides, and plastics chemicals, it1s important to keep your home as clean as possible. +owever, many dust cleaners contain air contaminants and hormone-disrupting chemicals. 6eep it safe by mi!ing up your own and using it to dust furniture and other surfaces where dust collects in your home. Make It! %7 drops pure lemon oil * -ablespoons lemon #uice ( few drops olive oil $se a clean recycled flannel cotton cloth to mop up dusty surfaces.

"indow Cleaner
Whip up a batch of natural window cleaner that won1t aggravate allergies or asthma the way many storebought formulations will. ( bottleful will only run you about ,7 cents. Make It! . cup vinegar teaspoon natural liquid soap 'optional8 we like 2eventh 9eneration dish liquid or 0r. 5ronner1s) * cups water 4ut all ingredients in a spray bottle and shake to blend. -o use the cleaner, spray onto the glass, covering as much as you can finish wiping in a few minutes at a time, scrub as needed with the rough side of a kitchen sponge, and squeegee off. $se a cotton cleaning cloth to dry off the blade of the squeegee between swipes, and to wipe up any liquid that puddles at the bottom edges of the windowpanes. -oss the cleaning cloths into the wash basket, and en#oy your sparkling windows.

#en Cleaner
(void polluting your indoor air with the harsh ingredients that are often found in store-bought oven cleaners by using this homemade cleaning mi!. Make It! * cups hot water % -ablespoon natural dish liquid % teaspoon bora! Mi! the ingredients, spray on a spill, let sit for *7 minutes, and wipe off with a clean cloth. :or handling

an e!tra-greasy mess, wipe off as much loose goop as possible with crumpled newspaper first, then use the spray.

$ile Cleaner
"ommon tile cleaners are laced with do3ens of contaminants, including chemicals linked to cancer, reproductive damage, and hormonal harm. ( *77; analysis even detected formaldehyde, toluene, and ben3ene<components of gasoline<in the popular cleaner "omet. -o clean greener, make your own scrubbing paste. Make It! cup baking soda =iquid soap 'we like 0r. 5ronner1s peppermint or detergent) > to %7 drops of pure essential oil of lavender or rosemary, or tea tree oil 'optional) 4lace baking soda in a bowl8 slowly pour in liquid soap, stirring until it looks like frosting. (dd optional essential oils. 2coop onto a sponge, scrub, and rinse. ?ou can also try cutting a lemon in half and using that as a scrubber.

All-Pur%ose Cleaner
@ever waste your money on AantibacterialA cleaners and soaps whose active ingredients have been linked to thyroid damage, water pollution, and the emergence of drug-resistant superbugs like MB2(. Instead, kill germs with this all-purpose vinegar solution. It1ll only cost you about *7 centsC Make It! ; parts water % part white vinegar Mi! ingredients in a spray bottle and clean awayC :or particularly nasty messes, such as a countertop after you1ve handled raw meat on it, squirt straight white vinegar on the surface, and follow with a squirt of hydrogen pero!ide to knock out virtually all germs. 'Bemember to do a spot test first to make certain the surface doesn1t discolor or otherwise react.)

Making your own laundry soap is one of the easiest parts of a transition to natural living. It is also a great way to save money on laundry detergent and is incredibly easy to make. Why switch to natural laundry soap, you ask? Conventional laundry detergent is loaded with chemicals like sulfates, fragrances, phenols and more. Many brands contain things like petroleum distillates, which are linked to cancer and lung disease. Fragrances in these detergents are made of a mi of harmful chemicals.

!uckily, making your own laundry soap is an easy and fast process" #ou only need three basic ingredients to make either a powdered or li$uid laundry soap%

Washing &oda '(rm and )ammer *rand available at most stores+

*ora ',- Mule .eam *ora available at most grocery stores+ *ar &oap '/r. *ronner0s, Ivory, or other natural, unscented bar soap+

Washing &oda and *ora should be available at your local grocery store on the laundry aisle. 1atural bar soaps are in the health, beauty, or organic sections of the store, or online. #ou can also add a couple tablespoons of baking soda to help freshen clothes. Wonder what0s in these ingredients? *ora is a naturally occurring mineral made up of sodium, boron, o ygen, and water. It is an ingredient in most of the natural soaps available now '&eventh 2eneration, etc.+ but it is much more ine pensive to make yourself.

Washing &oda, sometimes called sodium carbonate or

soda ash, is made from common salt and limestone or found as natural deposits. /r. *ronner0s soaps are fair trade and made with vegetable castille soap and pure organic oils.

$o Make %owdered laundry soa%&

2rate the bar soap or mi in food processor until finely ground. 3se the soap of your choice. I personally use /r. *ronner0s 4ure Castille *ar &oap because of its e ceptional $uality, and because it is available in several different natural scents like lavender, tea tree, peppermint, almond and others. 2. In a large bowl, mi , parts washing soda, , parts *ora and 5 part grated soap. '(dd a few teaspoons of baking soda if desired+. 6. &tore in closed container. I keep mine in $uart or half gallon mason 7ars. If you are using a big enough container, you can skip step , and 7ust put all ingredients in storage container or 7ar and shake. 8. 3se 59: to 598 cup per load of laundry.
1.

$o make li'uid Laundry Soa%&

1.

,.
3.

8. ;. =. >.

2rate one bar of soap with cheese grater or food processor. 4ut grated soap in pan with , $uarts water and gradually heat, stirring constantly until soap is completely dissolved. 4ut 8.; gallons of really hot tap water in a ;<gallon bucket 'available for free in bakeries at grocery stores, 7ust ask them+ and stir in 5 cup of bora and 5 cup ofWashing &oda until completely dissolved. 4our soap mi ture from pan into ;<gallon bucket. &tir well. Cover and leave overnight. &hake or stir until smooth and pour into gallon 7ugs or other containers. 3se 59, to 5 cup per load.

.hese recipes are also a great way to save money on laundry. *y my calculations, I am saving over half on my laundry bill by switching% ?n the powdered recipe, I spent 'at the time of writing the post+%

?ne ;; ounce bo Washing &oda< @6.8A '1ote% all of these are much more e pensive on (maBon"+ ?ne >= ounce bo of *ora C @8.AA ?ne *ar /r. *ronner0s 4ure Castille *ar &oap< @,.AA

With the amount this mi ture I use '598 cup+ per load of laundry, this recipe works out to @-.-A cents per load of laundry. .his saves me almost @-.5; per load over using (rm and )ammer or .ide. With the li$uid recipe, the saving

are even more. ( Five<2allon batch costs @8.6- and washes at least :loads, costing about @-.-; per load"