DIY Natural Laundry Liquid

This mixture will keep you going for ages, it works just as well in cold or hot water, and can be used in front loaders as it doesn’t foam. Grated Green Goddess Almond & Avocado Castile is the base for this recipe.

Adding eucalyptus essential oil will give you a liquid that’s wonderful on woollens, merinos and delicates, just make sure you wash them on the most gentle cycle to keep the fibres in good shape. For babies clothes and anyone with super sensitive skin leave out the essential oil.

If you’d like to add a softener the most effective natural option is to add 1/4 cup Green Goddess Premium Baking Soda to your wash.

For a budget version you can use good old Sunlight soap (as long as you’re not allergic to fragrance and other additives that are in this soap) instead of Green Goddess Avocado & Almond Unscented Castile or Dr Bronner’s Baby Mild Castile soap, you’ll still be doing a lot less harm to the environment than using commercial laundry detergents that contain an array of pollutants and allergens.

Grated soap for natural laundry liquid

DIY Natural Laundry Liquid

60g grated Green Goddess Avocado & Almond Unscented Castile or Dr Bronners Baby Mild Castile Soap
1.5 litres cold water
½ cup Green Goddess Premium Soda Ash
50g Green Goddess Premium Borax
1 litre hot water & another 5 litres hot water

Place soap in a saucepan with the first quantity of water and heat on low until soap is dissolved. Stir in washing soda and borax. Stir for a few minutes until it starts to thicken and then remove from heat.

Add 1 litre of hot water to a bucket. Add soap mixture and mix well. Fill bucket with another 5 litres of hot water and mix well. Pour into old milk bottles or other containers and set aside for 24 hours or until mixture thickens.

Makes approx 7.5 litres. Use 1/3 cup of liquid per load.

For a scented laundry liquid add about 20 drops essential oil at the end before pouring into the bottles. Eucalyptus Essential Oil is great for woollens, Lavender smells lovely or try Orange Sweet and Lemon for a citrusy scent.

Tags: DIY laundry recipe, homemade, laundry liquid, natural

12 Comments

Nicola Jackson

September 8, 2021

Hi there, can you use liquid Dr Bronners soap instead? if so how much? thanks
Julia

September 22, 2021

I’m keen to give this recipe a go but it sounds like it makes quite a large amount (6 liters?). I’m assuming the ingredients could easily be divided in half if I wanted to try it out first?
Also, how long would the liquid last in the milk bottles?
Thanks so much!
Triona

September 29, 2021

Hi Julia, yes you can half the ingredients. It will last up to a year sealed in milk bottles out of the sun/heat. Give the bottle a good shake before use.
Frida

November 6, 2021

Sunlight soap is awful stuff. the advertising on the packet says it is pure but just read the list of ingredients, including palm oil. Pure soap is fat or oil plus caustic, and that's it!
Triona

November 8, 2021

Yes it's not the best, but some people can not afford Castile so Wendyl has always recommended it for those who can not buy pure Castile, which is by far the best.
Bailey

June 19, 2022

We can’t all afford expensive soap. Sunlight might not be the best. But it’s a lot more affordable
Bailey

June 19, 2022

I’ve made a batch with sunlight but it’s very gluggy. Can’t tip it from the bottle! Has anyone else found this?
Triona

June 20, 2022

Hi Bailey, it can be rather thick, you can add warm water to it and give it a good shake.
Julia

July 6, 2023

Is there a substitute for Borax? It’s banned in Europe unfortunately… also I can’t find Soda Ash here. Would sodium percarbonate work as well along with baking soda perhaps?
Many thanks!
Triona

July 6, 2023

Hi Julia, this recipe really needs borax to work, you could try it with sodium percarbonate and baking soda but I really do not think it will combine and have the right consistency.
Triona

May 14, 2024

Hi Nicola, no you can't use liquid soap, another lovely customer just pointed out that previously in the comments it was stated that you can, sorry about that, this recipe requires grated soap in order to become thick. I guess you can try liquid soap but I have beeb unable to find a recipe where Wendyl Nissen recommends that. Triona
Kay

July 10, 2024

I've been making a very similar reciepe for a long time. Stick with it and refine each batch, use the hottest water. If you mix well, leave to go cold, then mix again i and then bottle/jar, the liquid will be more pourable, however it will always be thick, you can jar it and spoon it out. The results, frangrance free and low cost make this so worth it. Is an excellent wool wash and works for cold water washes, geat for merino. I use sunlight soap as its has excellent cleaning properties. If you need a strong fragrance in your wash, add more essential oil.