About a year ago, thanks to my wonderful sister, I started making laundry detergent. She had been making it for a while and then did a post on her blog
with pictures (me LOVE pictures!) showing how to make it. Seeing the pictures made me want to try it.
It still amazes me how easy it is and how CHEAP it is! We've shared the recipe with many people & they've loved it, too.
While I was making a new batch recently and having fun squishing it while it was in the oobleck-goop stage, I couldn't help but think how cool a picture of it would be. And then I couldn't help but blog about it.
I've tweaked the original recipe just a little. Here's how I make it:
Ingredients:
1 bar Fels Naptha soap*
1 cup borax
1 1/2 cups washing soda*
1 cup liquid color safe bleach
hot water
2 five gallon buckets*
*The Fels Naptha soap can be hard to find. We've found it at the smaller, local hardware stores and have even ordered a case of it online. It usually runs about $1.20 a bar.
*Do not confuse washing soda with baking soda. The washing soda is found in most grocery stores on the laundry detergent aisle.
*We use icing buckets that we get free from grocery store bakeries. They aren't quite 5 gallons, but I figure that makes the detergent a little more concentrated & powerful.
Grate the Fels Naptha with a cheese grater. Combine it with 4 cups of hot water in a large pot & cook over medium heat (stirring frequently & watch out, or it may boil over!) until the soap is melted.
Fill one bucket half-way with very hot water. Stir in the borax, washing soda and color-safe bleach. Stir in the melted Fels Naptha & water. Fill the bucket the rest of the way with hot water & stir until everything is thoroughly combined. Let it sit overnight. In the morning, you will have a bucket full of fun-to-squish oobleck! Be forwarned, however, playing in it too long will make your skin shrivel up & feel like a crocodile.
Scoop half of the fun-to-squish goop into another bucket. Fill both buckets the rest of the way with hot water & stir until thoroughly combined. Now you're all done - go do some laundry. (Use a cupful per load.) If your laundry is extra soiled or stinky, let it presoak in the washer for at least an hour.
