Survival....literally.

So as you all know, I quit my job.  And i'm LOVING being at home, every night.  The one drawback, however, is the adjustment to being broke, compared to what we've been used to.  So, we're implementing a few changes.  One I was really excited about, was making my own washing liquid (I know, I'm sad, lol).  It's something i've always wanted to try but never really had the time, and i'm quite pleased with the result.  It washes well, leaves the clothes smelling nice (even stinky ones that sat in the wash when I forgot to hang them out - oops!) and cost a fraction of the Earth's Choice brand I was using.  In case you're interested, here it is, step-by-step.

Ingredients:

2 cups grated pure soap (I used Velvet soap because I preferred the smell, but you could make it cheaper again using Home Brand.  The difference was a dollar per box, both boxes have four bars).  One bar makes the two cups)

1 litre boiling water

2 cups of borax

2 cups of washing soda (in the laundry section of Woolies for about $3.50 per bag).

Method: Put grated soap and boiling water in a saucepan, stir until the soap is COMPLETELY dissolved.

Pour into a large container, add borax and washing soda and stir again until dissolved.

Add 7 litres of cold water and stir well.

Now, don't pay too much attention to how little is in this container - I adapted the recipe from US measurements and initially wrongly converted gallons (whoops!).  This actually makes about 9 litres, and you use 1/4 cup per wash.  It's low-suds, so it's ok for front loaders and fussy top loaders.  It does separate for a while (the soap sits on the top and the water goes to the bottom) but if you keep stirring it every now and again over a couple of days, it mixes ok.  I'm planning to decant mine into bottles so I can just shake it before use.  And at a cost of around $7 for 9 litres, it barely compares to the just under $6 I was paying for a 500ml bottle, and should last my family of 6 for at least four months.  

So as a first cost-saving measure, i'm very happy with it.  I've also been doing a lot of bulk-cooking - last night it was a bolognese sauce big enough for five meals, a chocolate cake, and mini-quiches for the kids' lunches using bread as a crust, which works quite well - i'll use the leftover bread in a bread and butter pudding.  Tonight I made Mars Bar slice as a treat, and i've just ordered some PUL to try something I never thought I would - re-usable sanitary pads.  Apparently they're quite good, and at a saving of around $120 per year i'm willing to give it a try.  I'll let everybody know how i'm getting along!