Sew Good

I had a little time up my sleeve today and I had promised my sister in law that I would make baby Amelia some bibs as she needed some more.

But the internet is full of exciting tutorials of how to make things and I could not resist making these booties!

So easy to make and cute too! A little bit too big for her right now but she can grow into them. I got the tutorial for the booties from www.stardustshoes.blogspot.com if you would like to make them too!

I can't wait to surprise Jane with them tomorrow!

Sew Good

I love laundry!

Yes I really do! But recently I have been a little disappointed in my laundry powder as it doesn't seem to dissolve and leaves white marks on the clothes.

But it's OK because I've found an extremely affordable, good for the environment laundry liquid to make! And it works even better than the powder.

I found it via Frugal Kiwi's website and have halved the recipe so that you can make it in a small bucket.

Laundry Liquid

1/2 Cup Borax
1/4 Cup of Washing Soda Crystals
1/2 bar of Sunlight soap or any other castile based soap
Essential oil

1. Grate the soap and melt it in 2 cups of water in a pot on a low heat. Avoid boiling it, it is ready when it has just melted.
2. Pour the melted soap mixture into a bucket and add 22 cups of warm water.
3. Add washing soda crystals and stir until dissolved.
4. Add borax and stir until dissolved.
5. Add essential oil to suit (I used about 20 drops of rose oil)
6. Cover the bucket with a towel or lid and let sit overnight.
7. In the morning the concoction should resemble a shiny globby gel. If there is water sitting on top simply mix it back in.
8. Pour the mixture via a funnel into clean milk bottles.
9. Use 1/2 cup per load.

This recipe made two 1.5L bottles full and one 2 litre bottle fill with a bit left over!!! Cost wise I think it works out to about 5c per load!!

Borax sounds like a horrible chemical but it is actually a mineral salt. You can read more about it here. As for buying it I sourced mine from Clorogene in Petone, Wellington for $13 for 2 litres. You can also buy it off Trademe and from Bin Inn but it is more expensive.

My clothes are clean and smell great!

I love laundry!