How to Make Homemade Laundry Soap or Detergent
DIY LAUNDRY SOAP WITH ESSENTIAL OILS INGREDIENTS
* Any plain bar soap such as Ivory or Fels Napa. My personal favorite is Dr Bronner’s Castile soap. (WHERE TO BUY DR BRONNERS CASTILE SOAP)
* Washing soda (WHERE TO BUY WASHING SODA)
* Borax (WHERE TO BUY BORAX)
* 30-50 drops of essential oils of choice (I list my favorites below)
PIN THIS FOR LATER!
DIY LAUNDRY SOAP WITH ESSENTIAL OILS INSTRUCTIONS
- Grate the bar soap or mix in food processor until finely ground.
- In a large bowl, mix 2 parts washing soda, 2 parts Borax and 1 part grated soap. (I typically use 1 bar of grated soap and 1 cup each of washing soda and borax.)
- Store the laundry soap in a closed container. I like to keep mine in quart or half gallon mason jars. (If you are using a big enough container, you can skip step 2 and just put all ingredients in the jar and shake it up good.)
- Use 2 Tbl. up to 1/4 cup per load of laundry.
BEST ESSENTIAL OILS FOR DIY LAUNDRY SOAP
These are some of my favorite essential oils to use for laundry soap. If you’re wanting to learn about using essential oils as part of a toxin free home, you can watch my online essential oil class.
- LAVENDER– Lavender is a very calming, relaxing essential oil, with a lovely floral smell. This is a standard go to for laundry soap.
2. WILD ORANGE– Invigorating, uplifting, and cleansing; wild orange will put a spring in your step and make your clothes extra fresh!
3. MELALEUCA– Melaleuca purifies and cleanses. If you forget to put wet laundry in the dryer when it is done (guilty) add a few drops of this essential Oil to the wet clothes before tossing them in.
4. PEPPERMINT– Sooo refreshing! This is my favorite scent in my homemade laundry soap for the summer as it’s cooling and refreshing.
5. EUCALYPTUS– Eucalyptus oil will freshen clothes and kill germs and is great to use during the back to school season.
6. LEMONGRASS– Refreshing and earthy, this is a great scent for men.
7. ROMAN CHAMOMILE– A very calming essential oil that is great for kids. Has a nice floral scent.
8. CEDARWOOD– Cedarwood is a woodsy scent that is great for men. It also has cleansing properites that great for use in your soap.
9. PATCHOULI– This is a personal preference. I’ve noticed people either love or hate the smell of patchouli!
10. GERANIUM– One of my favorites! It reminds me of my great-grandma’s flower shop. Geranium is calming and helpful with stress and anxiety. If you want to smell like a bed of flowers all day then add geranium to your laundry soap.
BLENDS OF ESSENTIAL OILS FOR DIY LAUNDRY SOAP
CITRUS BLISS
- 20 drops wild orange
- 15 drops lemon
- 10 drops lime
- 5 drops grapefruit
* SUMMER FLOWERS
- 20 drops lavender
- 15 drops jasmine
- 10 drops pachouli
- 5 drops clary sage
SOFT AS A BABY BOTTOM
- 25 drops lavender
- 10 drops roman chamomile
NO MORE ODOR
- 20 drops eucalyptus
- 15 drops melaleuca
- 10 drops lemon
- 5 drops peppermint
Well, that’s it! I hope this helps you and gives you some good ideas! I’d love to hear what your favorite essential oil combo is for your laundry! Drop a comment and tell me!
XOXO Gessell
