Saturday, March 28, 2015

Canning Jar Obsession

Lately I have had an obsession with canning jars.  I just had to display and photograph them in groups.  My new canning jar obsession is with Mom's canning jars.  The woman on the jar is in an apron peeling apples.  Cute!  Cute!  Cute!


 I love the shabby chic look of these jar tops.


And if you are ready for a purple fest, here are the new purple Ball  canning jars, along with paper clips,a doilie, and pot holders.






I hope you are having a good weekend!


Please view my web store at: http://www.custercottage.com
And my Etsy shop at:
 
Dawnie
 
 



Saturday, March 21, 2015

Blender or mixer ball and Pink overload


 


I found an interesting item for mixing or blending.  It will work great for my mom when she mixes her flour and water together to make gravy.  I bought it to mix titanium dioxide and water or oil together when I put it in my soaps.  Titanium dioxide will leave little white specks in soap if it is not mixed well.  These gadgets will also work well for mixing oxides or micas in soap making too, and for other cooking uses.  They will fit inside canning jars, but would also fit into the smaller squeeze bottles the size of mustard and catchup squeeze bottles.  These are made from stainless steel and are only $3.00.  Link to view or purchase:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/206876602/stainless-steel-blender-ball-for-diy?ref=ss_listing


Pink Overload Pictures provided by my granddaughter.   




 I hope you are having a great weekend!


Please view my web store at: http://www.custercottage.com



Dawnie






Friday, March 20, 2015

Laundry Butter Recipe

http://custercottage.blogspot.com/2016/07/handmade-laundry-butter-or-laundry.html





I received permission to share this recipe with you.
This is from fat farm girl soaps.
It's an animal-free veggie-based variation on the cream soap that our grandmothers made for their own laundry, and it's *super* cheap! My grandmother made hers with tallow/lard soap, and instead of borax she used plain old salt, but this is better. You *can* use plain salt if you have concerns about borax.

Coconut oil soap is super cleansing, and is able to strip dirt right out of fabrics. The cool thing about Laundry Butter is that it's multi-purpose: you can use it as a laundry soap, a stain pre-wash, and it can also be used as a household cleaner for floors, draperies, etc.

Our household of three adults and 2 farm dogs spends about $4 total on laundry soap each year, and this is why.

If you don't buy coconut oil in bulk, to make coconut laundry soap, I recommend that you buy the coconut oil tub shown in the picture. It only costs $6 at Walmart, and will give you right around 3 pounds of soap. You can also use parts of laundry bars as stain sticks by just wetting them and rubbing them directly into stains.

However much soap you decide to make, be certain that you calculate for 0% superfat.

The way I make coconut soap is I scoop my room temp oil into a safety bowl in the sink, I add my lye solution, and I mix my soap past trace to full emulsion. When the soap looks like mayonnaise, use a spatula to pile it into a three pound loaf mold; a small bread loaf pan works for this if you line it with parchment or freezer paper and tape the inside corners to seal them. It will take about an hour for the soap to gel and solidify. I cut mine right away, others choose to wait until the next day.

To make Laundry Butter Cream Soap:

*Grate 6 ounces of 0% SF coconut laundry soap
* In a stainless steel pot with a lid, bring 6 cups of distilled water just to a boil, then take off the heat
* Pour grated soap into hot water and stir to dissolve completely
* *Slowly* sprinkle in 1 cup of borax, and stir until dissolved. *Do* *not* add to boiling water or with the soap when the water is super hot, or it will crystalize and you'll never get the crystals out.
* Stir in 1 cup of washing soda (made by baking 1 cup of baking soda @ 400F for 30 min.) and stir to dissolve. 
* Cover pot with the lid and let the mixture gel at room temperature for 3 to 6 hours until completely cool and set. Don't try to speed up process, or you'll end up with more crystals.
* When mixture is completely cool and gelled, use the stick blender to emulsify, making sure to get the bottom of the pot where some of your borax may have settled. Blend until the soap is the consistency of thick, creamy mayonnaise all the way through and all clumps are gone.
* At this time you can add any EOs that you'd like. Some essential oils survive the washer better than other. Some scents stay better if you use a clothes line rather than a heat dryer. Lemongrass is my best seller.
* Bottle into 2 one quart canning jars, tamping lightly on a folded towel to expel air bubbles. Store at room temp.

This recipe can be easily expanded. I make mine in 6 gallon batches to accommodate five flats of quart-sized jars. From start to finish, I can turn out a full batch in a 6 hour day.

The perks of Laundry Butter are:

Compact size: 1 jar washes approximately 160-175 standard loads in either front loading or top loading. washers. Unlike liquid soaps, you don't need a 5 gallon bucket to store a year's supply, and every jar weighs right around 3 pounds, making it ideal for college students and apartment dwellers.

Naturally phosphate free, making it gentle for the environment.

Less messy than either the powdered or liquid laundry soaps.

Very economical: it's not just multi-purpose, it's also super-concentrated. One Tablespoon washes a standard load of laundry. *And* the jar is recyclable. I give my farmer's market customers $2 off when they bring their jars back.

It's good for people with skin sensitivity. I have severe skin allergies, and this is the one soap that doesn't make me break out in hives.

For the record, if you make this soap to sell in bulk, you can make radical profits. Whilst the cost, not including the jars, is less than a dollar per jar, I sell this soap for $10 a jar, which is comparable and more economical that store-bought detergent, and it cleans just as well.





Updated laundry butter recipe with photos:

http://custercottage.blogspot.com/2015/02/laundry-butter.html

http://custercottage.blogspot.com/2016/07/handmade-laundry-butter-or-laundry.html




Please view my web store at: 
And my Etsy shop at:


Thanks for viewing!  Dawnie






Monday, March 16, 2015

Odd Things

We purchased a few baby chicks.  My son noticed one had an extra toe just next to another toe.












 I couldn't get over a cold and cough so I took some Sudafed.  I got the Sudafed from the pharmacist since they keep it behind the counter now.  My cold was much better but it left me with a bad rash from mid-thigh up.
Interesting.


Please view my web store at: 
And my Etsy shop at: 



Have a good week!
Dawnie

Saturday, March 14, 2015

New laundry soap containers and beard oil containers along with bubbles


12 quarts ready for laundry soap. 


New beard oil containers ready for labels.


Benefits of playing with bubbles.


http://mamaot.com/2012/08/28/11-benefits-of-playing-with-bubbles/


Please view my web store at: 

And my Etsy shop at: 




I hope you are having a good weekend!  All is well on the home front.   Thanks for viewing!

Dawnie


Thursday, March 12, 2015

Bile or Gall Soap

Have you ever heard of bile or gall soap?  I saw a stain stick which contained gall.  I thought it may be a herb I could buy and add it to my soap.  Unfortunately, I was wrong.   According to Wikipedia, Bile soap comes from deceased mammals and can be mixed with soap. This mixture is called bile soap and it can be applied to garments before washing them.  It is a traditional method for removing tough stains.  Have you ever heard of such a thing? 


http://naturalfrenchsoap.com/blog/how-did-anti-stain-ox-gall-soap-develop.html 

 

Please view my web store at:
http://www.custercottage.com
And my Etsy shop at:



Thank you for viewing!

Dawnie

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

New TUTU, Social Club, Paper Clips, Soap Challenge

Hello!  I hope you are getting some spring weather.  It is 74 degrees here. 
  
Paper clips embellished just for fun. 



5 reasons some people prefer bar soap to liquid soap.
 

I think you can stretch bar soap easier than liquid soap too.  What do you think?




Daddy helped K with her new tutu.

I just found out that we have a beard social club in Wichita!!!
It is The Bearded Monkey Social Club.  The email is beardedmonkeyssc@hotmail.com
 Also
There is a Wichita Beard and Mustache Club on Facebook.  It is for anyone who grows and appreciates facial hair.


I am participating in a soap challenge.  It is to make soap to match a landscape photo.  I am leaning toward this landscape.




 
Please view my web store at:
 http://www.custercottage.com
And my Etsy shop at:



Thank you for viewing!

Dawnie