Still using it...just stopped buying white stuff.
What whites I have like sheets, pillow cases, etc. I just wash with bleach and no detergent. Comes out fine because they aren't really dirty like socks, underthings, etc. I can't begin to calculate just how much money it has saved me by making my own laundry soap but I've been doing it for 7 years now and I really can't see myself giving that up...too easy to make, too much savings to ignore.
Now, Aly is a busy mother of a squad of kids, so finding time to make it vs. just buying a jug could be the deciding factor and I understand that completely. Sometimes you just have to make those choices in life. When my boys were home, as a working mom I decided that disposable plates and cups were the sacrifice I would make to save me time and worry...and it was a good choice. I'll never regret that choice, environmentally correctness be darned!
I think that is one key to SS that some folks miss...that it's not all about doing something cheaper. Sometimes it's in finding ways to do something cheaper AND still have what you want.
Like the rising prices of feed. I've explored fermenting the feed/grains this year and find it really extends the feed and increases the nutritive value enough that I'm getting by much cheaper by just implementing that extra step...and increasing the health of my flock at the same time by feeding the fermented foods. Decreased feed costs, increased flock health = a cheaper, better egg/meat end product. It's a win/win.
Next experiment will be in developing a flock that can still maintain high egg production on a diet they have foraged themselves, with very little need for feed supplement. I didn't have a place that was conducive to good foraging opportunities before but now I do, so why not use that free food and cull any birds that don't thrive on it?
FYI: Grating the soap can be as easy as placing the soap in the freezer for awhile until it's hard and brittle, then putting it in a ziploc bag and smashing it with a hammer. No knuckles involved, no grating needed. Kids love to smash things, so this can be an activity they can enjoy and will help you with this chore.
Those are the ones who survive free range conditions. Thanks for the heads up!
