Homemade Laundry Soap

With my new found vow to start living smart and single I've been trying to find ways to really save some cash, every little bit helps I think. One thing that I've always wondered about is making my own laundry soap. My Mom tried it once awhile back but she didn't like the recipe she used.

I found this awesome recipe on Pinterest. The author lays out the directions very specifically and I can't stress enough that following those directions closely and exactly makes a huge difference. The recipe calls for three main ingredients (well four if you count water but that's sort of obvious):

• 20 Mule Borax ($6)
• Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (NOT baking soda, very different) ($3)
• 1 bar of Fels Naptha soap ($1)

(all pictures from Google search, mine sucked lol)

I found all of these ingredients at WalMart except for the Borax, that was at Albertson's for me but they are all in the laundry area. Should be a total of about $10 dollars. Not bad considering a regular size thing of Tide is $12.00. 

I am going to suggest you just go directly to the recipe site{here} because the directions are very long and specific and I don't want to mess them up. 

I will tell you that grating the Fels Naptha soap was the biggest pain in the hinny. I just used a grater that I got at the thrift store so that if it got nasty it wouldn't hurt my feelings. I sat and grated the entire bar and watched about 2 and a half episodes of "The United States of Tara" on NetFlix. So it took a little time but I think it was worth it. 

The mason jar on the blender trick was freakin' fabulous and I will be using it again! I didn't buy lids for my jars (whoops) but here's how mine looked in the end:

I put plastic over the tops and tightened a rubber band around them. So far I've washed a load of whites and a load of colors using this soap and they came out smelling good and looked nice and fresh! I will still use my Woolite Dark on my denim jeans because I love them as dark as possible but so far I have been impressed and I think I will keep making this stuff! Especially since all I would have to buy next time is the Fels Naptha, $1 vs. $12. Easy math even for an English teacher. 

Welcome 2012 Good Bye 2011

It's still hard to believe that 2011 is over! I felt like that year was never going to end. It was a crazy year in my little life, but I definitely have no regrets from last year. One of the greatest things that happened? I started my blog! So let's see what happened in The Messy Business house during the last year...


I redecorated the guest bathroom, updating the light fixtures, decor, vanity, and paint.

Tore out the ugly and weird vanity and replaced it with an IKEA shelf for more storage.

 One of the biggest, and still probably my favorite remodel, Renovating the laundry room to make it actually a useful space!

Finally got a new rug for the living room from Target!

Another favorite project... the master bathroom!! Remember how awful it was before??

And now the beautiful after!

My friend Stephanie moved out of her old house and gave me all of her patio furniture. It just needed a little elbow grease and paint!

Turned out great don't you think?

 The most recent project has been the master bedroom! It has also gotten a totally new face lift with the bathroom. It's such a great fun space now! I am totally in love with it!

We also figured out a way to dress up a cheap bookshelf. I will say that it looks great in my bedroom where my home office is also located.

Arcadian Lighting: 8 Laundry Rooms to Love

We all know I've had light fixtures on the brain lately... especially if you follow on Pinterest you know I've been pinning some drum lights like crrraaazzzzyyyy, and of course you all know my love for great laundry rooms. Luckily Arcadian Lighting is joining us today to give us a dose of both! Awesome!

Hi, I'm Susi, a blogger for Arcadian Lighting, a cool source for the latest in decor trends and light fixtures. When I'm not writing for Arcadian Lighting, I love guest writing for great blogs like This Messy Business. Today's guest post is about eight laundry rooms to love. Yes, love. Even if you hate doing laundry, you'll like these stylish laundry rooms. Enjoy!

This laundry room is filled with beautiful natural light. The long counter and the drawers provide lots of room for folding and storage. A laundry room with a view—how wonderful!

Wide pink and white stripes make this pretty pastel space a chic laundry room to love. Tile on the floor means easy care, while the tons of storage space is irresistible.

Luxe touches like marble in a laundry room can make the room feel glamorous, and maybe even make laundry less of a chore. A deep farmhouse sink replaces a utility sink in this laundry room.

Speaking of glamour, a chandelier is an unexpected and oh-so-pretty lighting fixture for a laundry room. Combine with task lighting for extra functionality.

I love the garden style of this laundry room. Stainless steel and galvanized metal give the room a chic industrial feeling that is warmed by the garden room accessories.

Pops of color and a colorful rug make this laundry a cheerful space. Storage is a must in a laundry room, so why not make it attractive as well as functional?

A TV in the laundry room might mean you are doing too much laundry, but what a great distraction while you fold sheets! I love the clean, contemporary style of this laundry room.

Beautiful wallpaper and a stylish ceiling light make this a sophisticated laundry room. Gorgeous cream cabinets make it a warm space that is still functional. Just because you're doing chores doesn't mean you have to work in a drab environment. Add some style and beauty to your laundry rooms to make necessary tasks more fun. If you like these tips, check out Arcadian Lighting's blog for plenty of ideas to spice up your home decor! (Images: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

Six Montha-bloga-versary

It's hard to believe that I've actually been blogging for about 6 months now! It feels like so much longer. I've certainly had a lot of fun getting my foot into the door of blogland. I've met some great people and found a LOT of inspiration. I've done things I never believed that I could do all by myself. 

(Okay maybe with a little bit of help.) 

Plus there is something proud about being a blogger. I've had some days where I've felt like I'm wasting my time just typing to have no one reading but then I get those comments on a post and I feel so accomplished! 

(I won't lie I may or may not go back and look at the post over and over and over.)

I have also managed to conquer some HTML and computerized scripty stuff and moved from being a .blogspot.com address to having my own thismessybusiness.com page. Which feels great!

I figured that it would be fun to go through some of the projects that I've accomplished over the last 6 months.

The first huge one that I blogged about was my guest bathroom redo. The place before was a total disaster! And though everyone has seen each of these pictures about a millionzillion times, I figured I could show it again. For old time's sake.

 

Check out all the details from the wall color to the new counter to painting the fixtures {here}.

The first major building project that we worked on during the last 6 months had to have been the laundry room. I am still immensely proud of that space as a whole. It was soo gross when I first moved in and then it wasn't too bad for the first few years of living there. After I purchased my washer and dryer I decided that the laundry room was ready for an overhaul. Ahhh remember how great my laundry room counter top is?

 

It's crazy beautiful and different! There is so much more storage space and it's all custom and DIY'd! Very proud laundry room mama right here.

If you missed any of the laundry room re-do check it out here, here, here, and here too.

I even got my own office after an old roommate moved out over the summer! I probably spend more time in there then anywhere else in the entire house. 

Of course I still need to do some work in there such as maybe a new desk or organizational system of some sort. It's a work in progress but I love having that space so much! 

You can see how I painted the stripes (which was terribly time consuming and tiring) here as well as some other office details here.

I've gotten all new furniture for my porch, which looks fantastic! After some elbow grease and DIY action I was able to take some old (but free) chairs and tables and make a really fun space to enjoy with my friends in the summer. It may have taken a lot of spray paint but they really turned out great!

My master bathroom was quite the process to redo! It all started with the drywall having to be repaired after the plumber put a huge hole in it. Then it morphed into painting the walls, the cabinets, the ceiling, replacing the curtains, completely redoing all of the accessories anddd

oh yeah! Remove the doors.
Basically the bathroom got a total overhaul! Check out how great it looks! You can find all the details here !

I also was able to install this fabulous built in the displays all of my necklaces and other jewelry. It's probably the coolest thing in the house considering that it used to be an old mirror covering a huge hole in the wall! Check out how all that went down and how it looks here!

And then just recently within the last few weeks I have started working on my master bedroom... There are so many more things to come that it is just so exciting! I'm so grateful to have such a great group that helps me with all of my crazy projects that I love to do. Having this blog has helped me to keep my sanity when full time work, full time school, and volunteering in classrooms feels like it's taking over my life.

Okay well honestly it is taking over my life but you get the point! Thanks so much to everyone whose a reader or follower on my blog as well as on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest! I really appreciate each and every one of you and enjoy each comment and get super excited to see a new follower!

You've all stuck with me through crazy cat stories and awesome bargains!

I love you all!
So stay tuned... if you thought the first 6 months were exciting... it can only get better!

Here's to all the little things

So recently I've been doing little updates around the house in terms of the decor. I have been switching out little things like wall art and moving vases around... switching the books... etc etc.

I started with the laundry room since it has remained untouched for so long. (Okay a few months really hehe)

Remember the "Live Well" sign that I found at Big Lots for only $5? I really really like it but I felt like it was a dark image and the space beneath the cabinets is pretty dark too, it all felt a bit dark I suppose. I wanted something to lighten it up! And lately I've been on this MEGA vintage kick. Mega-huge vintage kick. 

More on that in tomorrow's post. First! Check out the big difference a little sign switching can make.

The original reveal photo from many moons back:

A close up:

I took down the Live Well sign with my handy dandy pink hammer. I love my pink tool set! It has proven to be incredibly handy of late.

Please note that I also filled the vase full of close pins. I thought that was kinda cute you know- very laundry room like.

And I hung up the new sign! Which I  found on a notorious sale at Hobby Lobby here in town. That Hobby Lobby store and their 50% off deals... gets me every time. Plus I like that the sign is a lighter color so it seems to make the space "brighter" in some ways. I'll find a new home for my live well sign but I think this $7 dollar metal guy was super cute and coordinates with the newly paid off in full washer and dryer. 

Yay for being a grown up!

It's amazing how much better you feel after doing such little things. I surprise myself by how much I like it!

That and I am on a vintage kick. Have I mentioned that yet?

hehehe