My first post and homemade laundry detergent.

              Hi!  This blog was a brainstorm in the middle of the night.  I get those quite frequently.  I can't be the only person who is struggling with ways to save money and yet doesn't have a clue how to do so. As a child growing up, home made meant we banged the biscuit  tube  on the counter before baking, as opposed to buying them at a local chicken restaurant.   I need to save money and yet I need to keep my family's standard of living where they are comfortable. I do not know how to make homemade bread or create a living room suite out of two Popsicle sticks and a dab of hot glue.  However, I am going to try.  I'm  not  really going to make the Popsicle stick furniture, but I am going to try  the other stuff  I see done.  Each day I will try something new.  Some things will fail, I am sure but somethings will succeed, I hope. 
                Today's adventure was with homemade laundry detergent.  I got the recipe online and went to the local mega-conglomerate store for the supplies. I figured I was spending about $18.00 a month on laundry detergent.   That averaged out to around $216.00 per year.  Yikes!  The homemade stuff cost me approximately  $2.00 for a month.  I'm not a math whiz but I think that's a pretty big savings, almost $192.00 a year.  The cost is perfect but cost is not the only factor.  Did it work?  Yes, it did .  We have an older dog that sometimes doesn't make it outside to do his business.  He had wet on a blanket that was left in the floor by my grandson.  I thought urine smells and stains would be a great test for this cleaner. I washed it with a 1/4 cup of the liquid and washed it just like I would any other time with store bought soap.  It smelled wonderful, had no stains, and no residue from the soap.  I am sold! I think today was a success.  Here is the recipe:

 1 QUART OF BOILING WATER
2 GALLONS OF HOT WATER
2 CUPS OF WASHING SODA (found on the detergent isle)
2 CUPS OF BORAX (again found on the detergent isle)
2 CUPS OF BAR SOAP (grated)
           You may use Fels-Naptha soap, Ivory soap, Sunlight soap,  or Kirk's Hardwater Castille
            (Do not use soap with heavy perfumes)
LARGE 5 GALLON BUCKET
FUNNEL
CONTAINER(S) WITH LID(S)

Add finely grated bar soap (I used Ivory) to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted.  You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.  I kept stirring because I didn't grate if fine enough and the soap clumped together.
Pour the soap into a large, clean pail and add the Borax and Washing Soda.  Stir well until all is dissolved.
Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.
You may use a container with a lid to store your soap.  I saved several empty detergent bottles.  Actually, I may thank my kids for not cleaning the laundry room very well and thus leaving several empty containers on the shelf, making me think I had more store bought detergent than I did but that's another blog.
I would use gloves it transferring the soap to smaller bottles.  Even with a funnel I spilled some on my hands and they dried them out. 
As the detergent ages it gels.  You need to keep it in an airtight container and then shake or stir before use.
                   That is my experiment for today and now that I have laundry detergent I must go wash some towels.  See you tomorrow where I make an alternative for sandwich bags, which not only waste those pennies but are horrible for our environment. 
 TOTAL SAVINGS FOR THIS MONTH- $17.50.  Not too bad. :)