I've ventured into a new era- making things I would normally buy! Now, I'm not very "green" (I'd like to be, I'm just not that motivated), but I'm finding that there are simple ways to be more earth-conscience and save some money.
Example A: Changing from Swiffer dusters to washable microfiber cloths.
This was so simple! Of course, the idea came from Young House Love and I scurried over to TJMaxx to pick up my handy pack of 8 (!) washcloth sized dusting helpers for a mere $4.99 (one refil pack of disposable dusters costs about $9!).
B. Laundry detergent.
Inspired by the Duggars but motivated by Lanie Beth.
I had read about this before, but I was leary about it's effectiveness. When Lanie Beth endorsed it, I thought I should give it a try! My only problem was that I couldn't find washing soda ANYWHERE! I checked Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, Dollar General (some store said they had it), Bi-Lo, Walgreens and Ace Hardware with no luck! I finally ended up ordering it from Ace Hardware online and they shipped it to the store, but now I can't even find it on their website. Amazingly enough, Amazon has it for sale. The box I bought at Ace was the same size and about the same price ($6.99 for 55oz.). In fact- Amazon has Borax, Fels-Naptha and washing soda together for "Frequently Bought Together" items for $18.27 total! That much stuff will make you laundry detergent for years. Seriously. Buy it.
C. Dish detergent.
YHL posted an awesome list of all-natural and homemade household cleaners. Since I already had the Borax from the detergent (I could only find a massive box of it at Walmart), it was pretty easy to throw together. However, after figuring it all up (I doubled the recipe: 8 packages off-brand KoolAid= $1.20, 4 cups baking soda= $1.90, 4 cups borax= about $2.64. TOTAL= approx. $5.74! I definitely don't usually spend that much on dish detergent. Sooo, this will probably be the last time I make this one.
We inagurated both detergents last night and everything seems to work just fine! Our clothes and dishes are nice and clean- and we were a little kinder to the environment than usual.
4 comments:
Wow-great ideas, Emily! I have to admit, my germ-a-phobe self is a bit nervous to try this, but I think I'll take the plunge! Thanks!
Why the kool aid?
I'm impressed. :) Fels Naptha works great as a stain remover, too...wet the item and just rub the bar of soap directly on it, then wash like normal.
Isn't the dish soap detergent for the dishwasher? How many loads do you think it will do? I think $5.74 sounds like a pretty good price. But I don't think I buy the most economical kind so my comparison isn't good.
Cathy- The only reason I can figure the kool aid is for the lemony scent... Our stuff doesn't smell too lemony though, so I'm not sure what it's purpose is.
Denise- Great to know about Fels Naptha! Yep, the dish soap is for the dishwasher. I don't know how many loads it will do, but the tub we have it stored in isn't even all the way full. We tend to buy the cheapest stuff we can find (always off brands), so we usually spend around $4 for dishwasher detergent. We'll see when I go grocery shopping on Saturday!
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