A new year is the perfect time to get organized and start fresh. It’s also a great time to clean rooms you might forget about, like the laundry room! Several years ago, the team and I thoroughly tested recipes for laundry soap and posted our favorites here. My laundry soap recipes have several main ingredients: washing soda, citric acid and shredded soap. Citric acid works to break down enzymes in stains, washing soda is a stain remover, and shredded soap adds cleansing properties.
Homemade laundry soap is also a great time to use up any lye-heavy cold process soap you may have on hand. While lye-heavy soap is too harsh for the skin, it works great on dirty clothes that need extra cleansing! You can also use regular, non-lye heavy soap in your laundry recipes. Just keep in mind that any free floating oils in your soap will be added to the laundry as well. I prefer to use soap with a superfat of 3% or less in my laundry soap recipes. In addition, you can download and print these free Natural Cleaning Labels to give your products a professional look.
I recommend a small test batch of our recipes with your clothing and your washing machine to ensure that the recipe works the way you expect it to. Washing preferences, like soap preferences, can vary from household to household. This recipe is great for heavy duty loads, like towels.
Natural Lavender Laundry Soap
What You’ll Need:
2 cups Washing Soda
1/2 cup Citric Acid
2-3 cups Cold Process Soap (finely shredded)
5-8 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil (increase or decrease depending on preference)
Optional: 99% Isopropyl Alcohol
Small Cubes Mold & Package, Plastic
Natural Cleaning Labels Templates
Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!
ONE: Using a cheese grater, shred your cold process soap using the fine grate option. If you have lye heavy soap, this is a great time to use it! If not, non-lye heavy soap works great too.
TWO: In a large mixing bowl, add the washing soda and citric acid. Washing soda can cause skin irritation, so I recommend wearing gloves and long sleeves when working with it. It can also irritate the nose and throat, so you can wear a mask if you like. Add the grated soap and mix to combine. Add the lavender 40/42 essential oil and use your hands or spatula to fully mix in. Spritz the mixture with rubbing alcohol until it has a slightly damp texture. This step is optional, but it helps the mixture keep its shape in the mold, much like a bath bomb!
THREE: As the laundry soap sits, it will begin to harden. You can place the soap into a jar, but within a few days it will harden and be difficult to scoop. To prevent this, I recommend placing it into individual cavity molds. I used the Small Cubes Mold & Package. In our tests, the Bendy Basics Molds worked great as well!
NOTE: If using a jar to store the laundry soap, use within 2-3 days to make scooping easier. If you placed the mixture into a mold, allow the soap to dry and harden for several days. This way, you can remove the soap from the individual cavities and place several tabs into the washer. For a very large load, I used about 4-5 small cubes of the soap. Enjoy!
If you love the smell of fresh laundry (who doesn’t?), these natural dryer sheets are for you. They are extremely easy to make and give your clothes a very light scent with essential oils. All you need are small towels or fabric scraps, white vinegar and essential oils. I bought my towels at the dollar store. They don’t need to be fancy! I used a combination of lavender and lemon essential oils for a fresh and calming scent.
I also love that these dryer sheets are reusable. I recommend storing them in an airtight container to make sure they stay moist, and to keep in the vinegar-y smell. Don’t worry about these sheets making your clothes smell like vinegar. The vinegar acts a fabric softener, leaving your clothes feeling soft and clean. In my tests, I had no problems with the essential oils transferring to my clothes. But, I would not recommend using too much essential oil in this recipe. Too much oil could cause oil stains on clothing.
Natural Dryer Sheets
What You’ll Need:
Small Hand Towels (or other pieces of fabric)
About 13 oz. White Vinegar
5 mL Lemon Essential Oil
6 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil
Natural Cleaning Labels Templates
Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!
ONE: If necessary, cut your hand towels or fabric into small pieces. My towels were 15×25 inches and I cut them down to 15×12.5 inches. The exact size of the towels is not important, but the larger the towels, the more vinegar and essential oils you may need. Depending on the fabric, you may also want to sew the seams to ensure they don’t unravel in the dryer.
TWO: Roll the towels and place them into the container you plan on storing them in. Then, mix the lemon and lavender essential oils with the vinegar in a small container. Depending on how big your towels are, you may need more liquid to fully saturate the towels. You can also add more essential oils depending on your personal preference. With the amount listed above, I found them to not leave a strong essential oil scent. If you would like it to leave a stronger scent, feel free to add more.
THREE: Pour the vinegar and essential oil mixture over the towels, making sure to saturate each one. You don’t want the towels to be dripping with liquid, but they should be damp to the touch. I recommend storing them in a large container that has a lid. That way, they won’t dry out before use. Once you’re ready to use, place one towel into the dryer and dry as normal.
Have you ever made laundry soap or natural dryer sheets before? I would love to hear about what kind of formula works for you!
- 2 cups Washing Soda
- ½ cup Citric Acid
- 2-3 cups Cold Process Soap (finely shredded)
- 5-8 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil (increase or decrease depending on preference)
- Optional: 99% Isopropyl Alcohol
- Small Cubes Mold & Package, Plastic
- Using a cheese grater, shred your cold process soap using the fine grate option. If you have lye heavy soap, this is a great time to use it! If not, non-lye heavy soap works great too.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the washing soda and citric acid. Washing soda can cause skin irritation, so I recommend wearing gloves and long sleeves when working with it. It can also irritate the nose and throat, so you can wear a mask if you like. Add the grated soap and mix to combine. Add the lavender 40/42 essential oil and use your hands or spatula to fully mix in. Spritz the mixture with rubbing alcohol until it has a slightly damp texture. This step is optional, but it helps the mixture keep its shape in the mold, much like a bath bomb!
- As the laundry soap sits, it will begin to harden. You can place the soap into a jar, but within a few days it will harden and be difficult to scoop. To prevent this, I recommend placing it into individual cavity molds. I used the Small Cubes Mold & Package. In our tests, the Bendy Basics Molds worked great as well!
- Small Hand Towels (or other pieces of fabric)
- About 13 oz. White Vinegar
- 5 mL Lemon Essential Oil
- 6 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil
- ONE: If necessary, cut your hand towels or fabric into small pieces. My towels were 15x25 inches and I cut them down to 15x12.5 inches. The exact size of the towels is not important, but the larger the towels, the more vinegar and essential oils you may need. Depending on the fabric, you may also want to sew the seams to ensure they don't unravel in the dryer.
- Roll the towels and place them into the container you plan on storing them in. Then, mix the lemon and lavender essential oils with the vinegar in a small container. Depending on how big your towels are, you may need more liquid to fully saturate the towels. You can also add more essential oils depending on your personal preference. With the amount listed above, I found them to not leave a strong essential oil scent. If you would like it to leave a stronger scent, feel free to add more.
- Pour the vinegar and essential oil mixture over the towels, making sure to saturate each one. You don’t want the towels to be dripping with liquid, but they should be damp to the touch. I recommend storing them in a large container that has a lid. That way, they won’t dry out before use. Once you’re ready to use, place one towel into the dryer and dry as normal.
I have couple questions. I make my own laundry detergent mainly liquid form what can i add (washing soda, borax, soap, and of course water) to keep it from gelling up so bad maybe vegetable glycerin? If so how much would you suggest to add? I also try give some to my elderly in law grandparents but the grandmother doesn’t like it cause it doesn’t suds which no matter how much I explain suds isn’t what cleans clothes she still has doubts so she won’t use it lol. What do u suggest that I can add to these ingredients to make suds?? Last question lol…. on the cube heavy duty recipe can i add glycerin to this recipe I like to try this one tomorrow but think cube form would be easier store in jars since powder form tend get hard anyways.
What are you using in your recipe now? Let me know and I can offer some tips.
Thanks!! I am using 1 1/2 cup amor hammer washing soda, 1 1/2 cup borax, 1 bar zote or fels naptha I melt down soap in bout 4 cups water once melted I add the other 2 and mix well till all melted. Pour into 5 gallon bucket. I leave it concentrated. I have a top load washer. I just was wondering what I could add to this recipe (since I’ve been using it over year now nd does just fine) to at least make it suds some but not alot. I’m fine with no suds but grandmother isnt lol. Has anyone tried adding something else to keep it from separating or being as clumpy (more like store brands)…Maybe a Poly 20 or 80?….
Polysorbate 80 can help emulsify oil and water, I’m not sure about the soap and powders. You can start with about 6% in your recipe to see if it mixes the water together.
As for suds, I’m not sure if there’s something you can add. SLSA creates bubbles, you may see if that works in your recipe: https://www.brambleberry.com/Sodium-Lauryl-Sulfoacetate-SLSA-P5244.aspx
Ok thanks for your response I will be happy if I can at least find something to add to grandmother’s laundry soap to even give it lol suds or at least similar lol…have great day.
You too Toni. 🙂
I have heard that using EO’s, even FO’s in the dryer is not safe and can potentially cause fires because of the heat. Are these dryer sheet safe?
Yes, they are dryer safe. The fragrances are diluted and they are not near an open flame. You can check with your dryer manufacturer to be extra careful though.
The laundry soap recipe is awesome!!!
For my rebatch soap, I used fully cured ugly soap that was very hard. I added a bar of softer, not-fully-cured HP soap to make the mixture “wetter” and avoid having to add too much alcohol. This gave me the perfect consistency.
I used some of the laundry soap last night and my clothes came out of the dryer clean, fresh, and oh-so-soft! I will definitely be using this laundry soap to wash all my clothes from now on! 🙂
Note of caution, though — I ran out of 6-cavity wax tart molds so I used disk molds for about half the batch (I made a double batch of the recipe). I don’t recommend disk molds! The soap hardened once in the mold of course, and it was difficult to break up to avoid having a huge cake of detergent in the washing machine. Stick with the wax tart molds or bendy molds as recommended in the tutorial! 🙂
That’s awesome Marianne, glad your laundry soap recipe is making your clothes nice and fresh. Thanks for the tip about the disk molds too. This recipe is pretty hard, so the smaller molds make them easier to break apart and toss in the washer.
Hi,
Thanks for posting this recipe. You mention baking soda in the laundry soap intro description, but it is not listed in the recipe. How much baking soda are you supposed to add?
Thank you!
This recipe doesn’t have any baking soda, sorry about the confusion. We removed it from the blog post. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Hey ladies,
I’m super excited to give this a go… Can you use fragrance oil in place of the essential oil for the DRYER SHEETS?
You can! Just be sure to test those sheets on clothing you don’t mind getting dirty to make sure all goes well. If so, you can use it on a regular load. 🙂
Fragrance oils: https://www.brambleberry.com/Fragrance-Oils-C161.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Does this laundry soap work well in High efficiency washers??
When we tested it in a high efficiency washer it worked well, but we always recommend testing clothing you don’t mind getting dirty just in case. Make sure to put the soap right in the washer itself, not in the soap slot.
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
can i use HP soap instead of CP?
You can! Both cold and hot process work well for laundry soap.
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I have a question about the laundry sheets: can I use a hand towel that was made from 100 percent cotton yarn?
That should work just fine. You may test one in a small load just to be sure. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thank you Kelsey…I will give it a try.
Hello (:
Will microfiber cleaning cloths work just as well as cotton cloths for the dryer sheets?
Thanks!
I believe that will work just fine. You may want to toss in a tester dryer sheet just to be sure.
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thanks Kelsey!
I make a 0% super fat CP soap for laundry. It’s just coconut oil, lye and EO. It works well. You do have to be extra careful when making it because of the high lye content. I can’t wait to try it with this kit.
That will be just perfect in this recipe! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
How well does this dissolve in hard and cold water? We have a well and I always use cold water to wash, unless it needs warm/hot water.
Hi Khristin! We found these dissolve a bit better in hot water. What you can do is keep the laundry soap in powder form instead of packing it into cubes and store it in an airtight container. In powder form it should dissolve a bit more easily in cold water (but may not all the way). It can also help to shred your soap in very fine pieces. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thank you Kelsey!
You’re welcome!
How do the cubes or powder work in front-loading washers? Is there a better recipe to use?
Front-loading washers tend to use less water. Because of that, the powder may not dissolve as easily. You may want to leave the powder loose rather than packing it into cubes. It also helps to put the powder in the washer rather than the soap dispenser so it has more time to dissolve. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Does anyone know if the dryer sheets will be effective for the static cling? I posted the question on the 22nd and have not received a reply tomy question.
Hi Christina! I posted a response on the 23rd. I’m not sure why it’s not showing up! Sorry about that. I’ll paste it below.
I’m not entirely sure! When I tested these in my dryer I didn’t notice a lot of static cling, but I can’t say for sure. You may test them out to see if they help prevent that. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Kelsey,
Thank you for reposting your reply…
You’re welcome!
Do the dryer sheets help reduce the static cling?
I’m not entirely sure! When I tested these in my dryer I didn’t notice a lot of static cling, but I can’t say for sure. You may test them out to see if they help prevent that. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
If you use the shredded re-batch castille soap can you add FO to the mix as you are making it? if so how much for this recipe?
Hi Lindsay!
You could add some fragrance oil to this recipe if you’d like! We added about 6 mL lavender essential oil, and it turned out lovely. Because the fragrance oil is not being applied to the skin, this detergent could be considered a “wash off” product, so you could use a little more fragrance if you’d like. You can use the Fragrance Calculator to find out exactly how much to use. Simply mix all the ingredients together, then weigh the entire batch. Select the fragrance you’re using, and select “rebatch soap” in the calculator. This will give you a nice range on how much fragrance to use 🙂
Fragrance Calculator: https://www.brambleberry.com/Pages/Fragrance-Calculator.aspx
-Amanda with Bramble Berry
For this can I use Melt and Pour shreds instead of CP shreds? I haven’t ventured that far in my soap making abilities.
Hi Cassandra!
We don’t recommend using melt and pour in laundry soap. It can create a lot of suds in the washer. We do have rebatch bases you can use! They’re preshredded cold process that you can use in laundry soap. 🙂
Rebatch bases: https://www.brambleberry.com/Rebatch-Bases-C14.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Hi!!! I have a question, im having a hard time trying to get washing soda in my country, Argentina, because you need a special authorization to purchase some chemical products. Can washing soda be replaced with something else? Sorry if my english is a little messy! Love from Argentina! 🙂
Hi Julieta!
You can actually turn baking soda into washing soda by baking it! To do so, preheat your oven to 400F and spread about 2-3 cups of baking soda on a baking sheet. Bake until the powder is flat and grainy. How long it takes will depend on your oven – usually around 30 minutes or so. 🙂
Read more about that process here: http://www.mommypotamus.com/how-to-make-washing-soda/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thank you very much Kelsey!! 🙂
You’re welcome! 🙂
I have been making my laundry powder for several years now and everyone I have given it to loves it. I have not made CP soap only HP and starting making the laundry powder before my 1st soap batch. I buy Dr Bronners bar soap. It comes in many fragrances but everyone favorite has been lavender. I make really big batch and store in an empty, clean bucket that cat litter is sold in. I fill a ice looking glass jar that sits beside the washer with a measuring tablespoon in it for ease. I shred the organic Dr Bronners and I will use around 4-5 bars. I don’t have a specific recipe but one batch is a box of washing soda, a box of borax, and 2-3 bars shredded soap. I just double or usually triple amount made because I’m too lazy to be making it all the time. Even giving away jars to family & friends, one of those buckets will last me almost 2 years! Only two adults in my house though. I use 2-3 Tablespoons per load depending on what I am washing. Towels or very large loads get 3 tablespoons. I use vinegar in my fabric softener dispenser. I don’t have to worry about powder getting hard as I don’t add EO since it’s already in the soap and I have never had it get hard from just the bars of soap. I use homemade wool dryer balls in my dryer and occasionally I will use a syringe with a needle on it and inject a few ml’s of EO into the middle of the ball but have found it doesn’t make that much difference. My clothes always come out fresh smelling. Others who have used the powder have HE washers and say the laundry powder worked fine in them mainly because the powder doesn’t produce a lot of suds.
That sounds like an awesome recipe Michelle! The fact that it lasts so long is definitely a bonus. Thanks so much for sharing. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Why does laundry powder harden if it’s loose in a jar? Would drying the grated soap flakes more help with that? Would it work to press the laundry mix flat in a cookie sheet for example, and then when it’s completely hard, cut into small cubes or even crumble so it can be scooped out? Thanks!
Hi Martina!
The citric acid and washing soda soak up the moisture from the soap and the essential oil and make the laundry soap solid rather than a loose powder.
If you prefer a loose powder, a longer cure time for the soap will really help! I would recommend grating the soap, spreading it in a thin layer and letting that cure for 1-2 weeks. That will mean the powders won’t have as much moisture to absorb. Another way to keep it looser is to add a couple silica packets in the jar. That will help prevent some of the clumping.
If you want the soap to be in the solid cubes, I would recommend using fairly new soap so it hardens into one solid layer. Then, you can cut the squares from there. If the soap is a bit more loose, you can pop it into a jar with silica packets and scoop from there. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Dryer sheets- should they always remain damp while sealed? What about if they dry out?
Hi Samantha!
We recommend keeping them sealed in a jar in between uses. If they dry out, the vinegar and essential oil can evaporate and may not be as strong in the dryer. Having damp sheets will make your clothes smell nice and fresh. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
If I don’t have cold process soap around since I have not ventured that far in my soap making skills, what can I use as a substitute for the soap? Will any soap grated work?
Thanks, Michele
Hi Michele!
We didn’t try this recipe with other grated soap, like store bought, but I believe that would work! I would recommend making a small test batch with the soap to see how it cleans clothing. 🙂
You can also use our rebatch bases! They are grated cold process soap and would work nicely for this recipe. https://www.brambleberry.com/Rebatch-Bases-C14.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Another question. Has anyone tried this with an HE washer? I just got an HE washer and want to make sure it actually cleans the clothes 🙂
Anne-Marie tested this recipe in her HE washer and it worked well! I would recommend testing this recipe in your washer to see what you think. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Can you use one of the fragrance oils instead of the essential oil? Like BB Crisp Cotton scent?
Absolutely! Crisp Cotton Fragrance Oil is so nice and fresh. I would recommend testing a small amount in the soap to see how it smells on clothes, and to determine how much to add. I would start out with 3 mL or so and add from there. 🙂
Crisp Cotton Fragrance Oil: https://www.brambleberry.com/Crisp-Cotton-Fragrance-Oil-P6192.aspx
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
This is for a TOP LOAD WASHER. It may not work for front load washers!!!!
Here’s my trick to make my own laundry soap so I do not waste any of my soap. When bars get too small to hold onto in the shower, I throw them into a bowl. When a few accumulate, I shave them down with a cheese grater. This way, I don’t feel wasteful about not using a bar until it’s gone. Take about 1/2 cup of the shredded soap that would have otherwise been thrown away and 1/2 cup of borax and dissolve them in 1 quart of hot tap water (I use a glass quart jar with a lid) and let it sit overnight. If it doesn’t fully dissolve, shake it very well or use your stick blender. There’s not THAT much soap, but it takes a lot of water to fully dissolve everything. Use the FULL quart in a full load. If a large “froth” ball appears on top, just shake it well and pour it into the washer. I’ve done it for years and my clothes (my wife’s clothes too) always come out clean and fresh. I use a heavy superfat (yes, OVER 10%!!) to soothe my sensitive skin and it doesn’t hurt or dull our clothes. Try it!
Thanks so much for sharing your recipe with us! It sounds like a great way to get your clothes nice and clean. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry