Lately, I have been trying to eliminate as much chemicals and waste from our daily lives (this is an interesting read) and today, I want to share with you one of the changes we’ve made in our home : making our own laundry powder. Why? Because regular laundry powder contains many unnecessary chemicals that are both harmful to health and to the environment (coloring, fragrance, bleach, and so on…), and it turns out the homemade alternative is just as efficient (yes, seriously), easy to make and inexpensive too.
What you’ll need (recipe from here)
- 6 cups of washing soda
- 150g of coconut oil soaps
- Optional: lemon essential oil
- Optional: White vinegar for softening
I buy those ingredients from Tokopedia (washing soda here, soaps here) and pay at the nearest Indomaret shop.
To make
- Cut soap in small chunks and throw together with the washing soda into a food processor.
- Blend until the mixture reduces to powder (make sure it is as fine as possible, it wil dissolve more easily).
- Pour into a container, your detergent is ready for use!
To use
- Add 2-3 tablespoons of laundry detergent per load (if you are washing in cold water, dissolve it in hot water before adding it in.)
- If desired, add about five drops of lemon essential oil as a degreaser (the smell doesn’t really remain).
- For bad stains, I apply dishwashing liquid directly onto the stain before throwing the clothes into the wash.
- Add 1/2 cup vinegar to the fabric softener compartment.