Saving Some Dough

Remember how I was trying to save money, and entertaining the idea of starting to coupon?  Yeah.  I kind of fell off the wagon.  I’m going to get back at it, though!  I think it might be easier to have the Sunday paper delivered to me, but around here, it’s more expensive that way.  Paying extra to have it delivered kind of defeats the whole “saving money” idea.  I’m in town for church every Sunday, anyway.  And, there’s a little grocery store down the road, so if all else fails I can get a local paper from there.  It’s not the paper from the closest biggest city, but it would do in a pinch. 

Once I convinced her not to eat it, she set about squishing it and putting it in a cup, and I set about making my laundry detergent.

Below are the recipes, and my estimated savings.

Laundry Detergent (recipe from Why Not Sew)
1 bar soap (any kind)
1 cup Borax
1 cup washing soda
water

Grate soap into a big pot; pour in 1 gallon of water.  Cook until soap dissolves.  Add Borax and washing soda and bring to a boil.  Turn off heat.  Add 1 gallon of water.  Stir well. 

The recipe my SIL uses (linked in text above) differs in that it makes a bigger batch, and that it uses Fels-Naptha soap.  This recipe makes 2 gallons.  I used Ivory soap this time, but I may try Dove in the future just to make it a little easier on the skin.  How much am I saving? Let’s compare!
All Laundry Detergent:  $4.77 for 32 loads --- Homemade $0.32 for 32 loads 

Play Dough (recipe from Skip to my Lou)
1 cup flour
1 cup warm water
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon oil
¼ cup salt
food coloring

Combine all ingredients except food coloring in a medium saucepan.  Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens into dough (about 1-2 minutes).  Place ball of dough on wax paper and separate into fourths (Dinah is playing with one fourth of the batch in the pic above).  Add a few drops of food coloring to each section and knead. 

I didn’t have cream of tartar, so I substituted a splash of lemon juice and it worked like a charm.  I put the sections in a Ziploc bag with the food coloring and kneaded so I wouldn’t stain my hands.  Dinah enjoyed helping me knead the dough to get it colored.  SO easy! I believe 4 cans/colors of play doh costs about $5.00 in the store.  Estimated cost: $1.16. 

What do you do to save money?  Please share!!