DIY Laundry Detergent

There are hundreds of DIY Laundry Detergent online...Which one should I do?  I researched and read many blogs and Pinterest posts. I wanted something that leans more to natural and economical. In most of the How to's, they added Purex Crystals for scent. I omitted this and made myself a bottle of Epsom salt with Baking Soda and Essential Oil. I used Lavender and a few drops of Peppermint. I sprinkle this in the washer.

Now for the detergent. I shopped in Walmart and spent around $20 for my materials. I mixed them (my hubby) in a repurposed cat litter pail. We did not dump everything at the same time, we put about a cup of each and mix, mix and mix with a huge wooden paddle. After thoroughly mixed, I got a jar from some fruit preserve and pour in some of the powder detergent. I put in drops of lavender essential oil and a few drops of lemongrass. Shake, shake, shake the jar. You can adjust the essential oil according to how much you want it to smell. I added about 20 drops.

Now to put into test! My first load was dog towels. They were dirty. It came out clean....really clean and mildly scented. I am totally satisfied. Second load, hubby's jeans and work clothes... came out clean and fresh! Am now really happy. Best part is you only use 2 TABLESPOONS. I added an extra tablespoon for heavy grimy dirty load. This batch is expected to last for a year. I shall keep you posted. I do a lot of laundry.

Ingredients:

20 Mules Borax

Biz

Baking Soda

Zote Flakes or 2 bars of grated Zote or Fels Naptha soap

Washing Soda

Essential Oil

Buy ingredients from Amazon.com  CLICK HERE

Flea, Tick and Mosquito Spray

 

My family is loving the milder weather in Northern California. Our dogs love the woods behind our house. On our first week here, we found a tick on our Labrador. No judging, but we always try to pick the healthy option and less chemical approach.  Therefore, we decided to get our dogs herbal/natural flea and tick collars. And I made a Flea, Tick and Mosquito spray.

14 oz. witch hazel

12 drops lavender

15 drops citronella

15 drops lemongrass

Simply combine in a spray bottle. Shake thoroughly and store away from heat and sunlight. In combination with their herbal collars, I spray them this every morning.  No more fleas and ticks.

I experimented and used the same formulation but used 2 oz. of Almond oil instead of witch hazel and made a repellent. I prefer oil based to use on my skin. To give it an extra kick - I added a couple of drops of peppermint (drives away mosquitos and other bugs). We have been using it for a week and no bites and I love the combination of the smell of lavender and the lemony aroma of citronella and lemongrass. The peppermint gives it a bit of cooling effect. May be used on insect bites too ;)

Welcome Spring :)

Bone Marrow Broth

I successfully canned Bone Marrow Broth! I have been researching online its benefits and there are many... like helps with joints, inflammation, leaky gut, good for skin and so on. Also, I found it was good for our fur babies too. So, I headed to my local butcher and got a couple of pounds of bone marrow.

I will revise this blog next time I make it and put pictures. First, I boiled a big pot of water and dropped all the bones in. I let it simmer for about 20 minutes or so. Then got all the bones and put into a baking tray and roasted it in the oven for 40 minutes at 450 degrees. I strained the water and saved it to give to my pets.

After roasting the bones, I put them in my pressure cooker (you may use a crockpot/slow cooker or stove cooking). You need to add some vinegar. I used apple cider to draw out more of the good properties from the bones. Filled my pot with water and I added a quartered onion, some carrots, celery, a couple of bay leaves, and sea salt. It is really up to you how you want to season your broth. I cooked it for 40 minutes in my pressure cooker. Natural release. Then I strained it and put in the refrigerator after it cooled.

The following day, I took out the film of oil on top and ladled them into my mason jars and canned them. I read that you can use the bones again for a second round of broth and it will still come out better than store bought ones.

You may freeze your broth, but I do not have much freezer space. Try it!

Klamath Falls, OR Vendors/ Farmers

Shop local....support your farmer. Below is a list of vendors in your area:


Eggs
Price: $2/doz, $1.50 if you bring your own carton
Contact: Shorty Ogden-Moles
Phone: 541-892-1188


Want your own egg container, here is one of the cheapest I found in Amazon. Click here.


*Please contact me if you want your products be added to this list.

Pressure Cooking

I love cooking from scratch. It gives me control on what I put in (makes me think healthy) and manage the cost. Slow cookers are heaven sent to me... dump and leave and 6 to 8 hours later - a great meal. Not until I discovered 'Pressure Cooking'. Geez, my 6 to 8 hours turned into 10 to 45 minutes. I can cook frozen food and have meal ready in like 30 minutes. Now I got extra time :)

Watch out for recipes that I tried. I share what I make and shop...so you can do the deals/coupons that I used to prepare the meal. Cool huh!


http://astore.amazon.com/kfallsblogger-20

Coupon 101 Workshop

I conducted my first Coupon 101 Workshop yesterday at the Lakeshore Landing by Moore Park. I love the fact that I was able to share valuable tips on how you can stretch your family's budget, save money and have fun. My FB group 'Klamath Falls Couponers' has now 448 members. A few months back, I joined this group to find local deals. A couple of weeks later, the page was left without an Admin and jumped in to share my knowledge and encourage people to use coupons and understand how it works. The group has about 100 members back then.

I regularly get a private message on how do I start using coupons? Can you teach me? The idea of finally doing a live workshop came into play. There will be another workshop next month (June), same place - LAKESHORE LANDING. Cozy little coffee shop with a wonderful owner/operator (Carol), best place to get the best SUGAR COOKIES in town!

Once I have it scheduled, I will post the event at 'Klamath Falls Couponers' and other FB groups that allows such announcement. Coupon 101 Workshop is designed for new coupon-ers. It covers topics like:
- how coupon works
- kinds of coupons
- where to get coupons
- ways to use coupons
- basic stockpiling and inventory management
- planning a grocery trip
- and other valuable tips

Cost is $7 and that includes a cup of coffee or tea. If you are an advanced coupon user, this may be a good review or nice venue to meet other coupon divas :)   As we build and have more participants, I plan to do regular monthly meet-ups to do coupon exchange, share experiences, share deals over a cup of tea/coffee with (of course) SUGAR COOKIES at the Lakeshore Landing.

Love,
Ethel

NOW OPEN - Sportsman's Warehouse

Sportsman's Warehouse is now open. 

It is located between Bealls and Thunderbird.  

They have gears for camping, fishing, hunting, etc. 

The selection is substantial. It is not huge but big enough.

Staff is super friendly and there are lots of them. Like you will find one in almost every other aisle.