I was skeptical until I tried this myself. I received the recipe from my sisters (Terri in Kentucky and Jennifer in Ohio) last year. It is sooooooo easy and truly very frugal. I actually prefer the smell of the fresh washed closthes with this soap than I did when we used commercial brands.
The ingredient list is:
1/3 bar Fels-Naptha soap
1/2 cup washing soda
1/2 cup Borax powder
Water
Start by using a large 2 gallon (or larger) bucket (you can see mine is dearly loved).
In a large sauce pan, heat water on a very low setting (you don't want the water to ever boil) and add Fels-Naptha soap. My Mother tells me that her mother (Grandma Amy) used Fels-Naptha to clean EVERYTHING. The floors, the dishes, the dogs, the children...
To easily melt the Fels-Naptha in the hot water you can shred it and divide it into 3 zippy bags when you purchase it.
Let the soap/water mixture warm as you stir. This is not a quick process. You don't have to stir constantly, just make sure the mixture does not boil. When it is fully melted you should not see any little pieces floating around as you stir it.
Once fully melted, add the 1/2 cup washing soda (I use Arm & Hammer because that is the only brand I have found) and the 1/2 cup Borax powder.
Again, do not let boil. Cook and stir until well melded together and it has the consistency of vanilla pudding that hasn't quite set (this is just 1-2 minutes).
Fill your large bucket with very hot tap water, about 1/3 full. Pour in the hot soap mixture. Stir to combine. Fill the bucket with more hot tap water just to the 2 gallon line.
Stir stir stir.
Let this set for 24 hours. You will need to stir this before transferring into a smaller container for easier use.
We use an old large liquid laundry soap container and made a home-made funnel out of a clean milk jug that had the bottom cut off.
This makes 2 gallons of good quality laundry soap for less than a dollar. The same amount of commercial soap would be close to $20 with tax.
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