Friday, June 17, 2011

How to Make Simple and Cheap Detergents

Sisters we learned something similar to this a little while ago in a SRS meeting last year. Sister Johnston foward this great email and I thought it would be awesome to post .

Ever wonder why there are so many dish soap commercials? Maybe the companies who make this stuff are trying to hide the fact it's really simple -- and cheap -- to make your own.

According to the latest government data, Americans spend an average of $659 a year on housekeeping supplies. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which provides that figure, also says the average American earns about $787/week -- which means many people are spending most of (if not more than) a week's pay every year on dish soap, laundry detergent, and other cleaning products.
If that sounds crazy, here's a better idea: Make your own.

Recipes for cleaning products are as numerous as recipes for dinner. Here are just a few to help with dishes, clothes and more.

Dishwasher Detergent
Here's a simple recipe for dishwasher soap:
• 1 cup of borax
• 1 cup of baking soda
• ¼ cup of table salt
• 2 packets (half an ounce) of unsweetened lemon Kool-Aid
You can try to save even more by buying ingredients in bulk, but another idea is to find smaller and much cheaper boxes at your local dollar store: a good idea to since you'll want to try a small amount at first to see if you like the results. The amounts listed above are good for 16 loads -- one tablespoon each -- so even small batches will last a while.
Other recipes online vary: For example, we found one that suggested combining only borax and baking soda, 1 tablespoon each per load. Another suggested adding a little citrus essential oil to make it smell nice: We didn't try that one, however, because we had difficulty finding inexpensive citrus oil online. Then there's this recipe, which goes in a different direction altogether:

• 2 bars of shredded Octagon soap
• 1 cup of baking soda
• ¼ cup of washing soda
• ¼ cup of lemon juice
This one calls for melting the shredded soap in five quarts of water and then mixing in the other ingredients. If that sounds a little like the recipe for laundry detergent we wrote about last year, that's because it is.


Laundry Detergent
Speaking of laundry detergent, that's easy, too. You'll need:

• 4 cups of water
• ⅓ bar of cheap soap, grated
• ½ cup washing soda (not baking soda)
• ½ cup of Borax (20 Mule Team)
• 5-gallon bucket for mixing
• 3 gallons of water
First, mix the grated soap in a saucepan with 4 cups of water, and heat on low until the soap is completely dissolved. Add hot water/soap mixture to 3 gallons of water in the 5-gallon bucket, stir in the washing soda and Borax, and continue stirring until thickened. Let the mix sit for 24 hours, and voila! Homemade laundry detergent.
Other Cleaning Products
If you like the results of your homemade concoctions on clothes and dishes, why stop there? The next time you're at the store, instead of picking up a bottle of some expensive cleanser, grab these six items and make your own cleaning supplies:
Vinegar. It may smell a little weird, but vinegar can handle everything from dishes to laundry and even weeds. We've written about the wonders of vinegar before.
Baking soda. Eliminates odors and helps with stains, and also works as a natural method of pest control -- ants hate it.
Borax. This mineral salt beats bleach as a toilet cleaner and is also useful for scrubbing walls. And as you see in the recipes above, works with laundry, too.
Fels-Naptha soap. This one's actually made by one of those big cleaning companies: Dial. They recommend it for "pre-treating" stains. In other words, "use this in addition to a bunch of our other expensive products, like Purex!" But you can turn the tables by using it as part of a recipe for your own laundry detergent, and they can keep the Purex.
Rubbing alcohol. Works as a disinfectant and is also a great glass cleaner. It also gets grime off plastic and metal surfaces like patio furniture or bathroom fixtures.
Lemon juice. This cuts through dish grease and is an ingredient for homemade furniture polish -- but it's not the easiest thing to preserve long-term.
If making your own cleaning products sounds a little extreme, there are still simple ways to save. The best? Buying generics. And if you insist on using name brands, at least clip those coupons -- but only the ones worth your time.

Playgroup

We have a play group for the summer! Every TUESDAY at 10am

This week, Sister Clawson will be hosting it at her home. If you need her address I will be happy to send it to you.
Bring your kids/grankids to come and play. This way they can run around and interact with other kids during summer.

If you want to host a play date this summer please contact me and let me know. It'll be way fun!! We can get creative if you want. But its not necessary. As long as you wish to open your home and let kids play and have a good time.

Some ideas:

* Play with water sprinkles
*Go and meet at a park
*Water balloons
*popping bubbles
*crafts
*make cookies
*playdough
*play soccer
*bring your own kite and fly it
*zoo
*black bayou
*allow them to play at your house and play with toys
*bike/skate day
*picnic
*ECT.....
 
Hope to see you there ;)
 

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Helen had her baby and.....

IT'S A BOY

Welcome baby Cyrus Shumway Tuft to the world!  June 16, 2011

As you can see, one of our amazing sister, Helen Tuft, had her baby #3!!! I heard he was almost 10 pounds! Way to go Helen!! We're so glad everything went well. Baby and mama are doing great!

CONGRATS Tuft and Abell family for your new arrival!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

We have an amazing group of awesome sisters in our ward! I love you all!! And we are so happy to see it grow with more amazing families moving in!!

 Relief Society is awesome!

SRS Meeting-Gardening

For our SRS meeting, Brother Carter taught us some really good things about gardening. They have the most beautiful garden I've ever seen. We had a very good meeting, a lot of sisters showed up. Thanks for your support sisters and Thanks Sister Carter and Brother Carter for letting us come to your home and teach us some very good tips about gardening.
 By the way, I do need to say that Brother Carter knows how to make some really good SALSA! Fresh from their garden.....yyuuummmyyy!!













Recipes for laundry detergent and dish soap

Friday, June 10, 2011

Welcome Angela Orange!

We are so excited for our new sister Angela. She just recently got baptized a few weeks ago. The baptism was very special. Joey gave an amazing talk. Angela is an amazing person, smart and a super fabulous person. Angela met the church through her friend Joey Bass. Who is another wonderful and amazing being ever! We love you both and we are so happy to have you with us!