Old Fashioned Laundry

I love to wash my laundry with real soap. Detergent is made with petroleum products, but soap is made with fat (vegetable or animal) and other simple ingredients. Soap does not break down the fibers of cloth as quickly as detergent, so when you use it to wash your laundry, clothing lasts longer. It also makes the clothing come out of the wash much softer. And it smells nice, especially when you let the laundry dry in a sunny breeze outdoors. It is especially nice to wash cotton clothing with soap. Try it, I think you will be pleased!

One used to be able to buy laundry soap at the supermarket, sold in boxes right alongside the boxes of detergent. Some of the brands were Ivory Snow, Ivory Flakes, or White King Laundry Soap. You can still buy Ivory Snow, but it is made out of detergent now, not soap.

To wash my laundry with soap, I buy Zote laundry soap bars, at Mexican markets. It comes in White or Pink, but lately I have only found Pink. I found it at Big Lots, which means it is probably being discontinued. No! :-(

You can also still find Fels Naptha Soap bars. My mother liked to keep a bar of this in the laundry room to rub onto stains before doing the wash. We also used it to wash our hands when we might have been exposed to poison ivy.

I shred the bar of soap on a grater:

Or you could use a food processor.

I use about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of soap shreds for a load of laundry. I used to put the soap into the washer and fill with some water (hot or warm) before adding clothes, to dissolve the soap first before doing the wash cycle. But now I just add everything at the same time, and put it on the "soak" cycle and let it soak for a few hours or overnight. This gives the soap time to dissolve and clothes time to soak. This really makes the laundry come out clean!

Vinegar does it all!

Vinegar is the wonder-drug of the home!

White vinegar does anything bleach can do in your home and is safer and cheaper.

Vinegar kills bacteria at least as well as bleach, and is a mold-killer and preventative.

KITCHEN:
Vinegar is a natural cleaner for everything in the kitchen:

•Fill a plain spray bottle with 1 part white vinegar to 3 parts water. Use it to clean kitchen counters, stove top, ovens, microwave inside and outside, refrigerator inside and outside, freezer, broiler, BBQ, dishwasher, floors, windows, doors, light fixtures, telephones, tables and chairs.

•I keep a pump hand soap dispenser on my kitchen sink filled with 1/2 vinegar 1/2 water - one pump can instantly cut soap or detergent residue, or grease, or that slimy feeling of doggy kisses.

•A tablespoonful in the dishwasher "rinse-aid" dispenser will brighten up your glassware and clean out any detergent build-up.

•Pour 1 cupful of baking soda down a sluggish drain, followed by 1 cup of vinegar and then 5 minutes later by a kettleful of boiling water.

•Keep your garbage disposal clean and clear by running it with 1 t baking soda 1 T vinegar.

•Clean a coffee pot, coffee thermos, or travel coffee mug by putting some crushed ice, salt and vinegar in them and swishing it around.


BATHROOM:
In the bathroom, vinegar gets rid of mold on the shower curtain, clears mineral build-up inside the shower-head, sanitizes toilet bowls and toilet seats, cleans mirrors and windows, cleans up soap scum from glass shower doors and bathtubs, and cleans the floor.

•Put 1 cup of vinegar in the toilet, let it stand for 1/2 hour, then scrub and flush. Wipe the toilet seat and outer tank and bowl with a cloth and a spray bottle filled with vinegar and water.

•Rinse your hair with a solution of 1 T vinegar to 2 cups warm water to clear hair product build-up and make hair shiny.


LAUNDRY:
Vinegar freshens laundry and clears soap buildup - add one cupful to the wash or rinse cycle.


PETS:

Vinegar is a pet-owner's helper.

•Put 1/4 cup in your pet's bath to deodorize your doggie and discourage fleas.

•Rinsing with vinegar can cut the "dog-slime" that always builds up in the dog's water dish. And it disinfects and sanitizes.

AIR FRESHENER
•Spritz some of that spray bottle of diluted vinegar through the air for an instant air freshener, or place a small bowl of vinegar on the counter to clear out cooking odors, such as fish.