wednesday morning scrubbing

it's weird how non napping children can throw off your whole week.  that might sound ridiculous, but it's true. 
i haven't done half of what i was planning to do this week, but i DID make a homemade body scrub.

random?  yes, but totally necessary.  i love this scrub.  1.  it leaves your skin really soft, infused with oil,  2.  it's not very $$, & 3.  how cool that what you're putting on your skin is so natural, you could eat it.  i mean, gross, but cool - you know?

not pictured:  salt (already in the scrub!)

all you need is a glass jar (i found this one @ the dollar store for, you guessed it - $1), some sea salt - i like the salt to be a little bit coarse, but not so much that it would irritate your skin, & sunflower oil.  on the salt & oil - you can probably find these @ your grocery store, or even places like marshall's.  it's going on your skin, so the higher quality product you can find, the better.  you can also use sugar & there are all kinds of oils that work - just google "homemade body scrub" & you'll find tons of ideas.  okay, & lastly, it's not necessary, but you can use an essential oil.  my favorite is rosemary oil.  it has a fresh, eucalyptus-y smell.  i got this @ our health food store.  using an essential oil makes the scrub smell amazing, which is a big plus for me, but again, it's not "essential" (hahaha!).

1.  throw in your salt.  you'll probably end up with equal parts oil & salt, but 2.  start with about half the amount of oil, stir with a spoon & add little by little, mixing up until you have the right consistency.  there's really no right way to do this, it's up to you.  i had to let my inner "first born child & i'll do everything EXACTLY right & by the book" self go on this one.   3.  last step is to add a few drops of your essential oil.  i add 2-3, mix & then add more if i want.

& voila!  you have a body scrub. 

you may now scrub all of your cares {crying baby} away :)

laundry soap

so in my 30s, i've discovered there's a crunchy, granola hippie living inside of me.  who knew?  she likes to whisper crazy things to me, like "let's grow a big veggie garden & get chickens!!".  she's crazy like that. 

clint has a crazy, hippie ray lamontagne type living in him too, so it works.

& until we can get a bigger yard, we have to settle with things like making our own laundry soap... 

did you know you could?
 i KNOW!  so cool.  we've used this recipe for more than 6 months now & it hasn't disappointed.  my favorite part, okay apart from it being cheap is the light, fresh smell.  now that use this stuff, all the store bought detergents areway too over powering & give me a headache.  when i used them all the time, i didn't really notice, but that smell can't be so good for you.

oh, & did i mention that making it is SO CHEAP??!  i used to dread having to buy that big box of tide because it was so freaking $$. 
crunchy granola girl likes saving money. 
you can find the borax & washing soap @ several grocery stores, but i did have to search a bit.  my HEB doesn't carry washing soap, but Kroger does.  anyway, just do a little investigating.

you only need one special item, which you might already have - a microplaner.

it's a grater, but makes tiny slivers & helps the soap to dissolve much better.  microplaners are great in the kitchen too for things like parmesan cheese, or lemon/orange zesting.  you're likely to get some good use out of the investment.

so here you go...

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP

6 cups arm & hammer WASHING soda (NOT baking soda) - this is about 1 box

6 cups mule team BORAX

4 bars of soap**

+  first i grate the soap using the microplaner.  now i'm not going to lie to you - this takes awhile, BUT it makes a great activity to do while catching up on some trash television :)

+  add washing soda & borax to the soap shavings & mix well.

+  & voila!  that's it!  you only need 1/8 c. per load - amazing!!  i use a 1/4c & fill it half way for each load.

**the original recipe, recommends fels naptha soap, but i use this lavendar soap from the dollar store for (you guessed it) $1 each. 

 i love the smell of the lavendar.  ivory or dove would work as well, i'm sure. i do think basic is best. 

ALSO, i ended up buying a bar of fels naptha soap the other day (@ the grocery store) & it's AMAZING @ removing stains - i just got it wet & rubbed it on the {vomit} stain & it came out!

so there you have it, laundry soap for about 7 cents a load.

here's the original recipe i found, if you'd like to know more... HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP by MOMMY'S KITCHEN.