Lets think for one second about all the products we use, that are toxic to us and the environment. The household products that we use to clean our homes, the products we use to clean ourselves and the products we use to wash our clothes. The toxic materials we use to build our homes and lets not even start on the toxic food some of us put in our bodies. We are bombarding ourselves with toxins, over and over again.
But there is an alternative, we just need to make that choice . To choose to put our time and energy into making the products we have become so dependant on. Making them out of natural ingredients so that we are no longer polluting ourselves and our environment.
It seems a no brainer to me. There are so many amazing alternatives out there, natural ingredients that we can use for body care, for house care, it is all available to us, we just need to do the research and prioritize.
One thing I have been doing for a few years now, is making washing detergent out of wood ash. Wood ash contains Potash, otherwise known as potassium carbonate. Potash is great for dissolving grease, acts on most stains, is gentle on clothes, and has absorptive properties. It is super easy to make and costs nothing. Unless you wish to add lavender essential oil which is great for the smell or bicarbonate soda if you are washing white clothes. Each wash needs about 100ml of the liquid detergent.
In the above picture I have wood ash in the white bucket, it has been sieved to make sure their are no small bits of wood or nails in it. The black bucket holds the water in it.
You want to add the water to the ash in a ratio of 2:1. So twice as much water for wood ash. The reason you do this is to separate the potash from the ash.
You then leave this to sit for at least 24 hours. Make sure to cover it so that no bugs get harmed in the process.
After 24 hours you will see that the water has turned a beautiful yellow colour. You will need some cloth, another bucket, a funnel and bottle for this next stage.
You then, need to put the clean piece of cotton over the new bucket and pour the mixture into it slowly.
You really want the liquid to filter through the cloth slowly, so take you time and be patient.
When you have finished you will end up with a nice clear liquid with a soapy feel to it.
Now you are ready to pour it into your bottle. Make sure to label your bottle and put the date on it. This detergent lasts a little over a month. I know it is quiet a large bottle, but I am a family of 4!
You can then decide whether or not you wish to add essential oils, bicarbonate of soda, even grapefruit seed extract (anti-bacterial)to your detergent. I would usually add them in at the time of washing. This is so easy to make and like I said it costs nothing, unless you wish to add some extras. It really is as simple as that to chose to make your own.
All photos are mine, thanks to my eldest daughter for assisting me. Just another normal homeschooling day for us.
This is my entry into the Natural Medicine and Ecotrain Unite: The Alternative Consumer Challenge!. Please make sure to check out some of the other entries into this amazing and empowering challenge. We really, can all make a difference and it is not difficult to start.
8 Pillars of TribeSteemUp
Great entry! I am planning to use this as well, but I am still collecting the ash from all the logs I burn for barbecue. Will ash from store-bought coals work as well? Also, in my grandma's times women (and men possibly?) used to wash this same stuff for their hair)
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I only ever use wood that I collected from the woods and land around, I am not so sure how natural store bought coals are, you really need it all to be natural xx
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SUPERB ENTRY to the challenge, my dear!! I compost any wood ash but I suddenly see BBQ in my future so I can try this!! Awesome.
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thank you @artemislives, enjoy the BBQ's xx
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My goodness - mind blown!!! I feel like I've read something about this before but probably pre internet days before there were awesome steem posts to illustrate it. this is just fantastic - so impressed!!!
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it is pretty awesome, just as things should be nothing goes to waste, xx
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Ooh, so useful and easy! Why does it last only a month, what happens to it after that (I am a family of one human and two kitties, lol)?
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it's all about the potash really, you want it to be potent really, so the earlier you use it the better, just make smaller quantities, it's the ratio that is important xx
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Ah, ok, so it's not like it would grow mold or ruin your clothes after a month, it would just be less potent.
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That is super cool and so simple! I have tons of wood ash and was looking for an alternative for laundry detergent - now i can easily make my own.
Thanks for sharing!
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you are welcome @porters, it is so easy to make. The wood ash is great for your garden as well, but I am sure you already know that xxx
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Wow! This took my attention right away! very ingenious and wow, not hard at all! You make it and then you have it for a while! To bad I'm being busy with my LO but I'm bookmarking this for the future! thanks for sharing!
Cheers from Romania!
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you are very welcome @missdeli xx
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How amazingly simple! It's incredible how far removed we've come to know know such a simple and easily made detergent exists. I usually scatter our ask on around the garden and chicken runs, but I'm interested to see how effective it is now.
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wonderful! I knew it could be done but I've never heard from anyone who actually does it about how they like it or not. I find this totally inspiring and I am going to give it a try!
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Excellent! I try to not buy items in plastic, but laundry detergent is one of the items I can't find in any other type of vessel. The simplest things to make are so expensive in the stores! AND loaded with unnecessary toxins along with the plastic! This will save me a bundle of money, improve our health, and the only "loser is my compost pile. Thank you!
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