Home-made Fabric Softener

Ok so we made our laundry soap so of course the next thing is fabric softener!  


The best part is that it is very easy to make!  All you need is conditioner, vinegar and hot water. 


This will make a gallon of fabric softener. This recipe was adapted from one I found on Discount Queens website. Although there are many sites that have a version of it! 


Things you need:

• Measuring cup
• Bucket
• long wooden spoon
• empty container to put end product in
• 3 cups vinegar
• 2 cups of any brand of conditioner, I have used Suave brands and a cheap brand I bought at the dollar store.
• 6 cups hot water

Pour the conditioner in the bucket followed by the vinegar then pour the hot water in and stir until mixed well. 

Then pour into your container.  (I actually used two containers I found at the dollar store that were for juice.)

Use it like you would the store bought kinds.  My washer actually has a place I can put it that has the measuring line for it.  Or you can put some on a wash cloth and throw it into the dryer with your load. 

Shown are two different scents of softener that I made. the white one is coconut with a small hint of strawberry ( mixed two conditioners together) and the yellowish one is actually a green apple scent.  I haven't used the white one yet but love the green apple.  The best thing about making your own fabric softener is you get to decide the scent and there are 

a lot of possibilities with all the different kinds of conditioners. 

Another great thing is that you are saving money and it works  good too! Makes the clothes soft and no static cling!

Let me know your results! I would love to hear from you!

Home-made Ice coffee

Ok I love Ice Coffee, but it get expensive to keep going to out for it. I work at McDonald's so I know how we make it there. That's when I thought hey I could do that at home!


So here we go:


brew a pot of coffee, let it cool
In a glass put some ice, I like to fill it half full of ice. pour approx. an inch and a half of coffee cream and as much sugar as you prefer.  Stir and enjoy!!


If you want some added flavour CoffeeMate has flavoured creams like Vanilla, Caramel, Mocha, Hazelnut, Cafe Latte and a few more.  MMM yummy!


My oldest son and I have even made ice mochas. Just add hot chocolate to the coffee before it cools. or add chocolate syrup to the mix.


Ok so I'm signing off as I sip an ice coffee! 

It's Laundry Time! The DiY way

Alright so now we have the Washing Soda we are ready to use it in some DiY Laundry Soap! 
The recipe that I based mine on is on David Suzuki's Site  here  
I will add pics when I make my next batch.


Here are the ingredients you will need:  Washing Soda, Borax, 1 bar of Ivory soap and Water and baking soda.  You can add some drops of essential oils if you want a nice scent.  There is also other things you can use instead of the Ivory soap: soap granules found in health food stores, Fels Naptha Bar, or really any laundry bar or soap bar. 


OK I kind of tweeked the recipe to what I liked. 


1 cup Borax 
1 cup Washing Soda
I bar of Ivory Soap flaked. Look here to see how I turned it into flakes. You can also grate the bar. 
1/2 cup baking soda
Water
First you need to heat the soap flakes in 1 litre (4 cups) of water, until it dissolves. Add the borax, washing soda and baking soda to the mixture.  Stirring till well mixed.Do not let it boil over.   Pour into bucket and 6 litres of hot tap water.  Leave for 24 hours covered. 


This mixture will gel up. Stir and add to whatever container you want to store it in. I'm using old detergent bottles I have around. 


I use a cap full with each laundry load.  Swish the bottle around before using each time. 


You could also add fragrance oils to the mix but I haven't tried that yet. 


I have found that our clothes come out softer and do have a clean smell to them.  Love it! 


Here is another recipe that uses Dawn dish soap  that I found on One Good Thing by Jillee's site


3 Tablespoons Borax
3 Tablespoons Washing Soda
2 Tablespoons Dawn Dish soap


Put these ingredients in a one gallon jug. Pour 4 cups boiling water into the jug. Swirl until ingredients are dissolved in the liquid. Let liquid cool. Then fill almost to the top with cold water. The bubbles will overflow out of the bottle.


I have tried this version and love it.  It is fast to make and works great. 


Have fun trying out your new laundry soaps!!  

Crock Pot Pork Roast Recipe

Here's an easy recipe I made tonight for supper.  There would have been pics but the family ate it too fast! lol


In a crock pot add 

• 1 pork roast
• as many baby carrots as you would like
• 1 large apple peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup of dried cranberries
• 1 tsp basil
• 2 cups of chicken broth
• roughly chop 1 onion
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook on low for 6 or 7 hours until meat is cooked and other ingredients are tender.

You can make the broth after into a gravy that has a nice taste to it from the apples and cranberries. 

You can also make the other ingredients into a chutney if you choose. 

We ate this with a garden salad and had no leftovers! :)

Enjoy! 

The Many uses of Dawn

As I have been doing research on different home-made cleaning products, I couldn't help but notice that the use of Dawn dish soap was used in a lot of things.  So I thought why not make a list of all the great other uses of the product! 


Usually it says to use the blue kind, but in my research I have used the green ultra apple blossom. So I in my opinion I don't think it matters what fragrance you use. 

• Eye glass defogger :  rub a very small amount on the glasses and wipe with the cloth you would usually use to clean them.  I have used this! works great! I work in a kitchen and we are constantly going to get stuff from the freezer and my glasses are no longer fogging up on those trips! woo hoo! lol
• Bathroom Mirror defogger :  Much in the same way for the glasses but you obviously use more of the soap. and then wipe clean with paper towel. 
• Hair Shampoo Treatment: Using Dawn once a month as a shampoo will strip any build up your hair has from different products and excess oils. 
• Glass Cleaner :  In a spray bottle mix a few drops of Dawn and fill with water. Also is a good eye glass cleaner. I have used this too for my glasses and works better than the commercial stuff.
• Flea bath : It works great on getting those pesky fleas off of your beloved pets.  check out this site for more info.  I have a dog and 3 cats and we have used this to get rid of fleas. works great. the only prob I had was getting the cats in the bath! lol 
• Laundry Stain remover : Put a few drops on a stubborn greasy stain and scrub for a min then pop it in the wash. Stain will disappear.
• Carpet Stain Remover :  I have used 1 cup of vinegar, 3 drops of Dawn and the rest water in a spray bottle. Works  great for those small stains that suddenly appear on the carpet. You know the ones that "nobody" makes ;) 
• Bubbles : Of course I had to include this in the list!  Put in a container 1/2 cup of Dawn, 1 tbsp of glycerin ( you can get it at the drug store) and 1/2 a gallon of water. Stir gently. remove any foam that is on top and you are ready to blow some bubbles!  

If you have any other uses let me know and I will add them! 

Our Ivory soap Experiment

So I didn't like the idea of grating the Ivory soap for my home-made laundry soap. That's when I remembered a little experiment I did when I was a Brownie Leader. Making Ivory clouds!  

Ok so first get your bar of Ivory soap  and put it on a microwave safe dish.

Put in the microwave for 90 seconds and this is what happens

You get a fluffy white Ivory cloud! It is just like cotton candy.  OK so you might notice in the pic that there is a small bit of the bar left. That's easy to fix. Just take the cloud away and put in another container to cool down. Then put the bar back in the microwave for an additional 30 seconds. 

I then put it all in a plastic tub to cool down. Once it is cool I let my kids play with it to break it down into flakes.  The more they play the more powdery it becomes.  Just make sure they keep it in the container :)   

Here is the finished product. 

Now you are ready to make whatever you want with your flakes. 

Have fun making your own clouds!  

Oh Where Oh Where is Washing Soda???

OK So I spent 2 hours looking at every store I could think of, trying to find  Super Washing Soda from Arm and Hammer. I came to the conclusion that there is none in my city!  (I live in Southwestern Ontario Canada.) As I was standing in Canadian Tire, I finally got out my phone and googled where to find it.  
Well the results also brought up how to make your own! As it turns out it is really easy to do!  So off I went home to make some of the stuff :)

Since this is the first thing I made it makes sense that it is the first product I blog about!

So if you have a stove and some baking soda and a cookie sheet then you have what you need to make Washing Soda.

Pour enough b. soda on the cookie sheet to cover it. I put a full box.  Heat the oven to 400 degrees and put it in for about an hour.  Stir occasionally so you can make sure all the soda has cooked.Let the soda sit to cool down then put in an air tight container.

A pic of the finished product. 

It can be used in quite a few different things. The most popular being Homemade Laundry Soap.
Other uses being: - An all purpose cleaner:  add 2 cups hot water and 1 TBSP washing soda in a spray bottle and use as you would any all purpose cleaner.
                          - A Heavy Duty Cleaner : Make a thick paste with the washing soda and water. Smear it on area leave for a bit then rinse and wipe it off.  Works best if let to dry overnight.
                          - It works great as a pan cleaner. 1 cup of washing soda in a sink full of water with the troubled pans overnight and you will be amazed how easy it is to get them clean in the morning!
                         - The same paste as the Heavy Duty Cleaner can also be a Paint Stripper.  So be careful where you use it!
 That's just a few uses. If ya know more let me know!


Here is a pic of  the actual Washing Soda I was looking for :

This is what the package looks like in Canada. Looks a little different in the States I believe. 

So If you can't find the actual stuff from Arm & Hammer you now know that you can make Washing Soda, for a minimal amount of money!  Not bad eh! 

Have fun getting to know the world of Washing Soda!  

Welcome to my Blog!

Ever want to try some of those DIY recipes for different kinds of cleaning products?  Not sure what to do?  Follow along with me as I try things out for myself and tell you about it.  I will also be talking about little things I may have discovered along the way in life ;)  lol

Hello All, I am excited to get started on this blog and most of all to try out some new things!  I have quite a few ideas in store.  I am currently starting to make my own laundry soap, fabric softener and a fabric refresher.  I have plans to try some crafty stuff too.