I learned to do the laundry at a very young age....of coarse I didn't do the laundry per say, but I knew how to do it. I'm sure we went through laundry detergent like it was water. There was always that mound of laundry waiting by the machine. I used to hear stories from my grandma about laundry day at her house growing up. This is when they did it all by hand on a rock in the river or something like that.

In Western Samoa they do their laundry in a 5 gallon bucket at the local village pool/"laundry mat." Once they get to Amerikan Samoa and find out about the washing machines it's bye bye bucket!

I find it's best to make a big batch of this. To take it to the laundromat we put it in gallon jugs but if you have a left over bucket, that will work great too.

Laundry Soap
2 bars ivory soap pulverized or 2 c soap flakes
2 cups baking soda
2 cups borax
6 cups hot water

In your bucket add the ivory, soda, and borax. Boil the water and pour over powder stirring well. Let sit till cooled. Use 1/2 cup of soap per load.

Many may disagree with me, but I think one of the worst movies ever made was "the christmas story"....of course, that's why I watch it every Christmas. My family really can't stand that show but yet we quote it all the time. One of the lines that comes up often is the one when he goes blind and the parents ask what it was..."soap poisoning" every kid hopes for that moment as their sitting there sucking on a bar of ivory. At our house we didn't use bars, we had liquid soap which sticks a lot longer! To this day when I get a whiff of lemon joy I start to wretch and eating a mango is a traumatic experience. Do mangoes taste like soap to anyone else?

This week I hope to put an end to the threat of "soap poisoning" to kids everywhere and to the nastiness that our parents put us through and that I'm sure my children will experience. This weeks recipes are only edible by naughty children. And since it's spring and time for a little spring cleaning, I thought this a perfect time to break out the homemade cleaning supplies recipes.

What does this have to do with being vegan. Well, my friend, being vegan isn't just about what you put in your mouth but whats in your life. A lot of cleaning products out there are not vegan, meaning they use animal fats or other ingredients that come from animals. All these recipes are vegan, effective, and best of all, cheep! You can make these for pennies with no worry of toxic yucky nastiness in your home. There is something comforting knowing that you can eat your cleaning supplies.

Week 12
Monday : Laundry Soap
Tuesday: Dish Soap
Wednesday: Bathroom Cleaner
Thursday : Carpet Cleaner
Friday: All Purpose Cleaner
Saturday: Dishwasher Detergent
Sunday: Homemade Fabreeze

Shopping List
baking soda - lots and lots of baking soda
peppermint essential oil (food grade)
lemon or orange essential oil
hydrogen peroxide
liquid castle soap
or
4 bars ivory soap
or
soap flakes
epson salts
borax