Homemade Laundry Soap - What "they" don't tell you...

UPDATE: March 3, 2015

I must be really sensitive to this homemade laundry detergent 'cause I used it tonight and I can feel it in my nose and the back of my throat, plus I'm getting a headache.  Ugh...I did like the results though for my sheets, white socks, and bath towels.  It really seemed to get them clean esp. the white socks. I used 2 T in my brand new, top loading washer (A bit hard to get used to the new computer ones) at extra load, but extra load in this washer equals large in my old large capacity Maytag.  I did also dissolve the powder in a bit of water before adding which I may not have had to do.  I don't, however, think I'll use this homemade soap for our good clothes for fear of fading.  Or, maybe I just need to get the measurement down for lightly soiled clothes - a whole lot less soap added.  I think I might look for a more "natural" homemade formula since I'm so sensitive to this one.  If anyone has a good one, please leave it in the comment section for me.

What "they" don't tell you about making powdered laundry detergent.

If you are sensitive to smells like I am, don't get the pink Zote bar or be prepared for a headache.  It's not exactly warm here in the Midwest right now, but I had to go outside for a bit to just stand and clear my head.

I understand there is a white Zote bar ? out there with no scent ? or you might want to use one of the other bars that some laundry soap makers use. I read one used Irish Spring.  Now that would smell really good, but it's not a laundry soap like Zote is.  Quite a few use Fels-Naptha Laundry Bar Soap. Just note that all the bars are different sizes.

I used the pink Zote 'cause I heard it smelled good.  That is up for debate.  To me the smell is really strong and not pleasant.  And, mixed with all the other ingredients it only smelled like something you don't want to inhale.  But, it sure is pretty.

Since the pink Zote bar was somewhat soft and most of all to save time, I used my large B&D food processor's shredding blade and did it in batches.  I cut the bar in half longways, cut each half in half, and then again each piece in half to easily fit it into the chute to use the chute pusher.  Don't push the soap, let the machine do the work.  The chute pusher is for safety.

I tried mixing it then with all the powder additives and I wasn't happy with the consistency so I coated the Zote shavings or mixed it all up as good as I could and ran it in batches again in the food processor using the regular metal blade.  Now, it looks more like I want it to look and this way the pink Zote is more evenly distributed with the other products in my opinion.

At first I thought mine was pinker than the finished product of others, but maybe not.  Anyway, you would want it more pink than white since the Zote is a laundry soap and the other additives are boosters.  Some don't use baking soda, but I did since I read it was good to use if you have very hard water which we do.

I made 1/2 of a recipe I found on-line that I decided to use.  I just hope this stuff works for me...

ECONOMICAL POWDER LAUNDRY DETERGENT WITH EXTRA STAIN REMOVER

1 Pink Zote bar - 14.1 oz
2 cups of Borox
2 cups of Washing Soda
2 cups of Baking Soda
1 cup of Oxy-Clean or a similar product

You can save to your computer and print out my hang tag if you like...

This filled about 1/2 of the glass barrel jar with a metal lid I found it at Walmart.  Actually, I found all the ingredients at Walmart.  In fact, the Walmart I went to stocked all the products in a line on the shelf.  :o)

For whimsy I'm going to use as my measuring spoon one of my ceramic Avon measuring spoons (Tablespoon).  And, I decided to make a tag to go around the jar to both decorate it and for me to remember how much I used to make it as this will last me a LONG time with only 2 people in the house.

1 Tablespoon per load and 1-1/2 to 2 Tablespoons for an extra large or heavily soiled load.

Store in an air tight container.