Homemade Laundry Detergent Recipe

As my family has moved toward more natural living and chemical free products, I have looked into so many products. We have used at least unscented/free and clear type laundry detergents since my oldest was a baby because she had such sensitive skin, but even those have stuff I don't want on my family's clothes now that I've gained more knowledge about chemical exposure. I toyed with the idea of making my own, but some of the recipes I found were so complicated, and a lot of them still had ingredients I didn't really like!  I finally decided to just go for it. I had seen this recipe on Bren Did, but thought I would simplify it a little here for those who are interested in making their own! I first made this recipe in December of 2015 and JUST used up the last of my batch this week! How crazy is that?! For a family of 6 who does around 5-7 loads of laundry per week and used cloth diapers for part of that time, I cannot believe it lasted us so long!

 

On the flip side I was nervous I wouldn't like it and be stuck with a huge batch. No worries though. This detergent is awesome! It packs tons of power in a small scoop and is so gentle on our clothes and skin! Here is the recipe if you are interested in making a batch for your family! 

1 box super washing soda (3 lbs. 7 oz.) 4 lbs. baking soda 4 bars fragrance free castile soap 3 lbs oxiclean FREE or BABY (regular oxiclean does not rate well on the EWG scale!) 

To make:  Grab a large container and start mixing everything together. I like to put a little of each ingredient in, then stir it up, then repeat until I've used it all up. For the castile soap bars, I use a hand cheese grater and grate into small shreds, then mix in with the rest of the ingredients! Overall, it takes less than an hour to make-a small price to pay for laundry detergent that will last for over a year! 

Our Favorite Chemical Free Products For Kids

Switching to chemical free products/a chemical free home can be quite the process. It can take quite awhile to get where you are aiming to be. There is a lot to learn, a lot to research, new products to buy and try, or even to make yourself, and lots of trial and error. It takes time, but it is so worth doing.  When my oldest was a baby, she had a battle with eczema early on that led us to a dermatologist and quickly led to us eliminating pretty much all fragrance from our products. At first it was just her things. We started using the "natural" soaps and shampoos the dermatologist gave us (which I laugh at now, because they were still completely filled with chemicals, just more expensive and fragrance free...) on her, but noticed she would still have breakouts from being snuggled up to an adult whose clothes had been washed in regular detergent. Crazy. So we quickly eliminated all of that from our home and never looked back. 

Several years later is when I really started looking into chemical exposure, carcinogens in the home, and what we are putting on our bodies. It is absolutely insane. It makes me sad how it is just completely normal for us to use products filled with literal garbage, and no one bats an eye because we don't know better! Well, now I know, and am so glad we've made the effort to switch out all of our products for the last 2 years or so. It has taken some time to find what works for each person in our family, and to test out products, but we have found some natural products that we really love! These are all products that our family actually uses, that I have found to be affordable (remember, what is considered affordable for a more natural product is usually still going to be quite a bit more than you'd pay for a conventional product, but I feel that the products we have found and use don't break the bank), and that we truly love! (One more quick note: I love using the EWG skin deep website and app to check products. Not all products are on there, so when I really want to know about something, I create my own report. I typically aim to have a score of 2 or under for the products we use.)

Body Wash: Alaffia EveryDay Shea Moisturizing Body Wash in vanilla mint (I bought at a local store for around $10.)  This stuff smells sooooo insanely good! It kind of smells like a junior mint. It is really creamy and the bottle that we got is enormous. We have been using it for probably 6+ months for 6 people and have hardly made a dent in it. One pump on a loofah goes a LONG way. I really like having a lather when I use body wash, so that is an important factor for me and the kids to consider when testing out natural body washes (some hardly lather at all). For $10 I would say that this product is a great value! I love that I only need one bottle of body wash in the shower for our entire family as opposed to buying kids/baby/adult products because of
"natural" factor. 

Shampoo: Fresh Monster Kids 2-in-1 Shampoo and Conditioner in coconut This stuff also smells really good, has a great lather, and is a 2 on the SkinDeep site. I love that I can buy it at Target online (free shipping with a redcard= effortless shopping!) and again, it is a more affordable natural option. My 2 daughters have been using this for 8 months and we still have about 1/4 of the bottle left. So, under $7 for 2 kids (one with hair almost to her waist) to use for about a year is really not too bad at all!

 I also love that they have different scents to choose from. I will say that we also have their detangler and haven't liked it much. It is ok when I use it on their wet hair, but it makes me sneeze, which is weird. I feel like the scent makes my sinuses ache when I spray it, which is strange for a natural product. And when I spray it on their dry hair, it leaves a greasy residue which I can't stand. But, that brings me to the detangler that we DO love... Detangler: Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Extra Moisturizing Detangler  I have had this for over a year for one of my littles who has kinky hair, and use it daily. One day when I got fed up with the other detangler I sprayed this on the girls as well, and it was AMAZING! I can honestly say it works well for ALL hair types. I've used it on 3 of my kids and myself....all different kinds of hair (kinky super tight curls, loose ringlet curls, wavy hair, and stick straight). It smells incredible, is affordable (again, I've had this bottle over a year and have been using it daily on 1 and on all 3 kids for about half that time), and is a 2 on the EWG scale. I use all Shea Moisture products on my Little with the tight curls and they all work amazingly well on that type of hair. 

Toothpaste: Jack n Jill Natural Toothpaste This one is a bit more expensive, but I have had a really hard time finding a good kids toothpaste without some ingredient I don't like. It seems everything we've tried so far has been pretty close, but would still have 1 or 2 things I didn't love. This meets my ingredient standards (scores a 1 on the EWG scale). We haven't had it for long so I can't say how long it'll last, but from the Amazon reviews it looks like it should last us quite awhile. I am a little over the top about oral health, so I'm willing to pay the price. 

Lotion: Alaffia Everyday Coconut Hair & Body Lotion in coconut strawberry (I bought at a local store, so I'm not 100% sure what I paid for it.) I actually have several Alaffia brand products for myself, too, and I don't know what it is about these products but it seems like they will just last forever! We hardly make a dent in them no matter how often we use them, so I love that! This lotion is really creamy and smells fruity which the kids love. It just feels really gentle and glides on their skin so nicely, leaves no residue and makes their skin super soft. 

So that's what we've been loving for our kiddo essentials! It truly has been trial and error, finding that some things I throw away most of a bottle because we don't like it/it doesn't work, but we have found some great gems here that we love! If you have made your way into chemical free products, what are some of your favorites for your kids? I love hearing recommendations from real people to see what actually works and is worth the price! 

Chemical Free Diaper Rash Cream {With Essential Oils}

My oldest daughter has really sensitive skin and lots of allergies, so ever since she was a baby, we have had to be careful about what we put on her skin. After talking with the dermatologist we switched to all fragrance free and really gentle cleansers, soaps, lotions, detergents...everything. But the more I've educated myself on chemicals, the more I have realized that those "gentle" products still have harmful and harsh chemicals in them! She is long since potty trained, but my youngest daughter came down with a bad diaper rash a couple of weeks ago out of the blue. This was the perfect opportunity for me to whip up some all natural diaper rash cream and try it out! I had these little jars from the Target dollar spot waiting in my bathroom closet and wasn't sure what to do with them, and when this happened, I knew exactly how to use one! 

What you'll need: Glass container of some sort Coconut oil Essential oils (I used Young Living brand for this cream)    *Lavender    *Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea tree oil) Spoon for scooping and mixing  First, take about 1/2 cup of organic, unrefined coconut oil and scoop it into your glass container.  Microwave the oil for about 30 seconds-1 minute until it is a liquid. Add 10 drops of lavender essential oil, and 5-7 drops of melaleuca essential oil and stir to combine with coconut oil.  Pop in the freezer for about 10 minutes to solidify the cream again. That's it! It took me 2 minutes and I had everything I needed on hand. 

So, the biggest question is does it work? I waited to write this blog post until I knew for sure. The answer is yes!  This was the kind of rash that was angry red (no bumps or anything) and my daughter was crying out in pain with real tears when I would change her diaper. Saddest thing ever. I made up this cream and put it on her before bed that night (just a small scoop on my fingers-probably about a quarter sized amount). The next morning when she woke up, she still had some redness, but she didn't complain or cry out AT ALL when I changed her. I continued to use it each time I changed her diaper that day and by the end of the day it was completely gone and back to normal! I'll never use desitin again!  Why does it work?!  Lavender essential oil is anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial. It is also very soothing and gentle on the skin. (Smells great, too!)  Melaleuca is also anti-microbial, anti-viral and anti-septic and has potent healing properties.  Coconut oil is a natural moisturizer that is also an antimicrobial agent. Put all 3 together and you have yourself a powerful, all natural healing cream!  Luckily for me, my daughter has been potty training for the last few weeks and so we are out of diapers for now! I guess I will save the rest for when the new baby comes!  Cost for making this yourself:  $1.43 for 1/2 cup of coconut oil (I use Aldi brand)  .90 for lavender oil (Young Living)  .50 for melaleuca oil (Young Living )

----- $2.83 for 4 oz. of homemade, all natural diaper cream  (This is a 48% savings from Desitin and would be even more for "all natural" ointments!)  A little bit goes a long way so I expect this ONE batch would probably last throughout the diaper era for a kiddo!  Have you tried a DIY diaper cream before? 

All Natural Face Washing Routine {With Coconut Oil + Honey}

Several years ago, a few friends and I were discussing some more natural approaches to things and talking about chemicals and other things. I mentioned something about us being "crunchy" and one of my friends had never heard that term used before (Hi Megan!!). (If you haven't either, it is used to describe people who are really into natural things or kind of "hippie" if you will). Once we explained it, she laughed and said "well, I guess we are kind of chewy then!" Not quite crunchy, but still more than most people. So for years I've always thought of myself as a little bit "chewy". Maybe crispy is more accurate. This post is about to go full on crunchy though, guys. Don't say I didn't warn you. 

I honestly don't have any idea how I first heard about this, but I have been keeping my eyes open to more natural products and am always looking for affordable options! When I first read about washing your face with honey, I thought it was a little bizarre but I figured I would give it a try. Without researching it at all, I did it that night and let me tell you...my face was the SOFTEST it had ever been. Smelled so good, too!  Time went on and I researched it a little bit more to find out if it is actually good for your skin and here are a few main points I thought I'd pass on to you before talking about the actual process:

• You need to use RAW honey. Not just the plain ole stuff from the grocery store-needs to be raw and local if possible. 
• Honey has antibacterial properties in it when it is raw and not processed, which obviously makes it great for cleansing your skin.
• It balances your skin because it doesn't strip it of its natural oils. It cleans but still leaves the natural oils your skin needs, which is ideal. 
• It won't remove your makeup, which is where the coconut oil comes in. 

So here is what you do. 

1. Get a small scoop of coconut oil (I use unrefined, organic) and rub it all over your face to remove your makeup. Swab it over your (closed) eyes if you have eye makeup on. Personally, I take a cotton ball to wipe the eye makeup off before rinsing.

2. Rinse your coconut oiled face off under warm water or with a wash cloth. 

3. Squeeze about a nickle sized amount of raw honey into your wet hands and rub all over your face like you would with regular face wash.

4. Rinse! Make sure you get it all off or your face will be sticky later. 

5. Apply a small amount of coconut oil on your dried face for moisturizer. I really just use a tiny amount...

When I first posted about doing this on Facebook, the most common thing I had people saying was how sticky it must be. If you get your hands and face wet first, it isn't sticky at all. It glides right over your skin! I can honestly say my skin has never been so soft or looked so healthy since I have stared this regimen. I had been using coconut oil as a moisturizer for a little while and it was always really soft doing that, but the honey has taken it to a whole new level! 

So what do you think? Are you chewy/crispy/crunchy enough to switch to honey and coconut oil?! It's so affordable, too!