Cucumber Soap June 24, 2009

“Slice of Summer” (Cucumber Soap)/©Camille Pratt

15 ounces Canola Oil
30 ounces Coconut Oil
27 ounces Olive Oil
21 ounces Palm Oil
5 ounces Shea Butter

13.75 ounces of lye
20 ounces of rain water

16 ounces of pureed cucumber (peels ‘n all!)

Mix lye and water. Cool to 90°.
Pureed cukes (this will be approx. 2-3 large cukes).
Heat oils to 90°.

Mix lye solution and oils, blend well, add pureed cukes.
Bring to light trace, add fragrance of your choice (I used Sweetcakes
Econocuke – at a 1% usage rate).
Bring to heavy trace.
Pour in mold.
Leave it alone.

Notes: Even in very hard water it has lots of lather, very creamy and is very
soothing to skin. Uncolored, it is a very lovely pale ivory, slightly
translucent. No GSE (Grapefruit Seed Extract) needed.  If you chose to modify
this recipe by subbing other oils or butters, it will not be remotely the same
unbelievably wonderful soap.

Furniture Polish June 23, 2009

Dust to Dust Furniture Polish

from Clean House, Clean Planet by Karen Logan

This is as effective as any store-bought spray and cost only 30 cents a bottle.

Ingredients:

A clean 16 ounce trigger spray bottle

2 teaspoon olive oil ( vegetable oil)

Essential oil of lemon, tea tree or lavender

1/4 cup white distilled vinegar

Hot water (enough to fill bottle)

Instructions:

Mix 20 drops of essential oil, olive oil, and vinegar with hot water in bottle. Gently shake mixture. Ready for use. You have to shake this occasionally as you are using it for the oil separates in the water.

**It’s a good idea to label your bottle as “cleaner”

Floor Cleaner June 23, 2009

Citrus Floor Cleaner

Ingredients:

1 gallon hot water

2 tablespoons liquid soap

15 drops orange essential oil

8 drops lemon essential oil or 1/4 cup lemon juice

Instructions:

Mix together and get to work!

Basic Sink Cleanser June 23, 2009

Basic Sink Cleanser

An all-natural scrubbing powder for your sink, tub, and shower.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup baking powder

1/2 cup vinegar

Instructions:

Mix together and use on sponge. Rinse well.

Alice’s Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner June 23, 2009

I’m too tired to do the math for all of these cleaners, but I assure you the costs are much less than their commercial counterparts. The natural products are just as good and just as powerful on your house, but save money in your pocketbook. Here are some other great recipes to try. These are all found here

Alice’s Wonder Spray – All Purpose Cleaner

Recommended by the Women’s Resource Cancer Center.

From Clean House, Clean Planet by Karen Logan.

Ingredients:

A clean 32 ounce trigger spray bottle

2 teaspoon borax

4 tablespoon vinegar

1/2 cup home soap or Dr. Bronners

Essential oil of lemon, tea tree or lavender

Hot water (enough to fill bottle)

Instructions:

Fill bottle 1/4 full with hot water then add borax. Shake to completely dissolve borax. Next add vinegar, home soap, and 20-25 drops essential oil. Fill the rest of the bottle with hot water. Gently shake mixture. Ready for use.

**It’s a good idea to clearly label your bottle as “cleaner”

Another Money-Saving Homemade Soap June 21, 2009

Another great way to save money is to make your own dishwashing powder. It uses supplies on the same list from my previous post “Soap & Frugality.”

Here is what you will need for dishwashing detergent:

-Washing Soda

-Borax

-Distilled Vinegar

This recipe is really simple.

Add 1 tablespoon of of washing soda to the dispenser.

Add 1 tablespoon of borax to the dispenser.
Now for the water spots: Pour distilled white vinegar in the dispenser for a clear rinse gel.

Want to know what the cost is?

About 4 cents per load.

Soap & Frugality June 20, 2009

An excellent way to save some green (cash) is to use natural cleaners. The average store cleaner costs around $5.00 and needs to be replenished often. Laundry detergent can cost up to $20 depending on the kind and size. The larger sizes might last a month for an average family of four.

SO lets say you buy just the basic cleaners. A multipurpose cleaner, a floor cleaner, and something for the sinks and tubs. Say you clean a few times a week and replenish your cleaners twice a month. Say the big box of laundry soap lasts you a month and costs you $10.00 Your cleaning supplies including the laundry soap (notice I didn’t add softener or dryer sheets) or any of the other large gamut of cleaning supplies available) is costing you $50.00 per month.

Now let’s compare that with natural cleaners. Say you go to the store and buy the following ingredients:

76 oz (4 lbs 12 oz) borax @ $4.69/ $0.06 per oz

32 oz (2 lbs) baking soda @ $1.49/ $0.04 per oz

1 gal vinegar @ $3.99

8.5 fl oz. olive oil @ $2.80

1 gal distilled water @ $1.05

——————————-

Total: $14.02 plus tax

SO you’ve already saved some money because you spent about $10.00 less than you normally would buying commercial cleaners from the store. But here is where the real savings come in….

Powdered Laundry Soap

Grate 1 bar plain white soap (76 cents if you’re using ivory)

2 cups (16 oz) baking soda or 1 cup super washing soda (both made by arm & hammer)

1 cup (8 oz) borax

Pour all ingredients into a container and put the lid on, shake very very well. Use immediately. 1 teaspoon per load for normal loads or 2 teaspoons per load for extra soiled loads. For a normal four person family, this will least approximately 4-6 months.

Cost:

Borax: $0.48

Soda: $0.64

Soap: $0.76

————

Total: $1.88 for 4-6 months of laundry soap

Comparison: $40.00 for 4 months of laundry soap.

SAVINGS: $38.12!!! per four months or $114.36 per year

My First Soap Batch June 19, 2009

The first time I made cold process soap, I looked for the simplest recipe available. I wanted something I knew I couldn’t mess up. Remember what I said earlier about being goof-proof? Well here it is. All the ingredients are poured. It’s not complex and the soap is good for your skin

Castile

40 oz olive oil

5 oz. lye

14  oz water.

Mix at 100 degrees

Hand stir for 15 minutes, then start using  your stick blender.

Be patient. This soap takes a long time to trace.

Once it traces, add any goodies (herbal additives). First soak them in a small amount of the olive oil.

Pour it into your desired mold, cover with cardboard and place a towel over top if you are not using a wooden mold.

Let the soap sit for 18-24 hours. Check temperature and hardness. It should be cool and leave a slight indentation of your finger if pressed. At this point it is time to cut your soap. With Castile, you must cut it now because when it hardens further, you will not be able to cut it.

Let the soap cure for about 8 weeks.

Afterwards, keep a couple for yourself. Wrap a few up nicely, and pass them on to your friends. You’ll be amazed at all the responses and requests for more 

Make Your Own Laundry SOap June 19, 2009

This is a great video I found online. I’ve used it to make my own laundry soap and I do save money this way. This is something I really should get back to doing. It’s a great soap (liquid) and cleans well. I prefer powered soap though, so I’m in the search for a good powered recipe. Post one if you have one

Make Your Own Laundry Soap! – More free videos are here

WikiHow to Make ‘Melt & Pour’ Soap June 17, 2009

How to Make ‘Melt and Pour’ Soap

from wikiHow – The How to Manual That You Can Edit
‘Melt and pour’ is the easiest method of making homemade soap. It requires no special tools except for a soap base and a mold, and is easy and fun for kids and adults alike – no handling dangerous lye mixtures!

Steps

1. Find a good melt and pour soap recipe. You can find these recipes in craft stores and in soap making books. Use the    recipe to make a list of ingredients that you will need.
2. Prepare your workspace. You need a clean stretch of countertop or table, as well as all of your necessary tools.
3. Cut the soap base into chunks and place it into a container. Weigh it until you think you’ve got the amount that your mold can hold – a few tenths of an ounce over or under won’t matter. Make sure that your knife, cutting board, and container are free of dirt – soap picks it up easily, and it’s difficult to get off.
4. Melt the soap base. Pour the chunks in a microwave-safe bowl and cover with Saran wrap. Heat for just one minute, and take out and stir. It will be thick and chunky. Repeat heating the soap base for a minute at a time, stirring afterward, until it is smooth and chunk-free. Warning: The soap base will be very hot when fully melted.
5. Add the fragrance or essential oil. (It is best to wait until the soap has cooled a bit before adding fragrance, this will ensure that your finished soap has a strong smell, or you use less fragrance – using a thermometer cool the soap to between 55 and 60 degrees C) A good amount is probably .25 ounces (about 7 grams). This step is optional – sometimes fragrance can irritate sensitive skin.
6. Add color to the soap base. This step is optional – some people prefer to have colored soap. Do not use food or candle specific coloring which might stain your skin. Use a soap safe dye, which can be purchased from your craft store. Remember that soap-safe dye is much weaker than candle dye, and you will need to put in more than you would in the same amount of candle wax.
7. Stir the melted soap – but don’t stir too hard, otherwise bubbles will form in the soap.
8. Pour the soap into the mold. Pour slowly as to not get bubbles in the soap. Once you do this, you can either cover with saran wrap and leave it on the counter or place it into the refrigerator. It will take approximately one hour in the refrigerator or several hours on the counter. Cooling in the refrigerator will reduce your finished soap fragrance Do not place in the freezer.
9. Release the soap from the mold. After it is hard, pop the soap out of the mold. Sometimes the soap will not come easily – try tapping the back with your hand or a large spoon if the soap is exceptionally stubborn.
10. Allow your soap to cure for three to four weeks. The curing process will allow the glycerin in your soap to mellow out and make the soap milder and gentler on your skin.

Video

Tips

• Experiment with different amounts of fragrance and color for different results.
• If you have sensitive skin, do not put fragrance or color in the soap. It will not irritate normal skin, but it will irritate sensitive skin.
• If you do not have a soap mold, try using a plastic cup. Pour the soap into a plastic cup until it is filled about one inch.
• If bubbles form in the soap while pouring it into the mold, lightly spray the tops with rubbing alcohol.
• Rub your mold with a little bit of Vaseline so the soap is easier to get out when it is hard
• You can also make molds out of pieces of foil
• If you use saran wrap or a plastic bag to line the mold, the plastic slide right out of the mold and then you peel the plastic off the soap

Warnings

• Remember that your soap is only as good as your soap base – buy a good quality soap base at your craft store!

Things You’ll Need

• Soap base
• Microwavable container
• Scale
• Cutting board
• Measuring spoons
• Fragrance or essential oil (optional)
• Soap-safe dye (optional)
• Large knife
• Soap mold or plastic knife

Related wikiHows

• How to Make Your Own Soap
• How to Make Soap Without Using Lye
• How to Make Oatmeal Soap
• How to Make Homemade Soap

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make ‘Melt and Pour’ Soap. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.