Sarah EatonWith so many toxic ingredients in store-bought household items these days, it’s a good idea to invest in yourself and make your own homemade products. This includes homemade dish soap, the conventional version of which contains many harmful ingredients. Furthermore, these ingredients not only harm your hands, they also get washed down the drain and affect our environment. Making your own cleaning products can offer many benefits, then, not just for your family and household, but for others, as well.
Safe Yet Effective Ingredients
This dish soap recipe uses the antibacterial powers of essential oils and the gentle, cleansing capabilities of ingredients like castile soap. Lemon and lavender both go into this dish soap, and each scent—zesty and sweet—compliments each other perfectly. For this recipe, you’ll want to find washing soda, although you can substitute with baking soda. To learn how to make homemade dish soap, read below!
Here are the fantastic, powerful ingredients going into your homemade dish soap:
Washing Soda
Washing soda is similar to baking soda. The only difference is washing soda packs a more powerful punch when it comes to cleaning. You can, however, use baking soda instead, for the purposes of this homemade dish soap recipe. Both options cut through grease and can be used to clean many items around the house.
Castile Soap
If you’re wondering how to make homemade dish soap, know that castile soap is a must-have. Castile soap is fantastic for homemade soap products. It’s gentle, pure and can be used in laundry soap as well as in this homemade dish soap. Castile is so gentle it can even be used in shampoos and hand soaps, for adults and babies alike. It truly is a versatile, safe product.
Lemon Essential Oil
With its grease-cutting, bacteria-fighting and fantastic citrus scent, lemon essential oil is only a logical ingredient in your homemade dish soap. In fact, lemon essential oil is one of the top antimicrobial essential oils available. (1) This makes it top-notch as a homemade dish soap ingredient. It will leave you feeling invigorated while you wash the dishes, and afterwards, as well. Think of it as a spa bath for your hands! Your new dish soap will smell so great you may find yourself volunteering to do the dishes!
Lavender Essential Oil
Many searches for how to make homemade dish soap will include lavender as an ingredient. It’s often added to conventional dish soaps, and for a good reason. It’s associated with utmost gentleness, has antioxidant capabilities, and it smells great! The bonus is that while you’re washing, the antioxidant properties can seep into your skin, which will benefit your health. And the therapeutic qualities of lavender will help induce you into a state of calm—something you may need while completing a chore. Lavender has powerful capabilities to calm and treat anxiety. (2)
How to Make Homemade Dish Soap
Are you ready to learn how to make homemade dish soap? Roll up your sleeves!
What You Will Need:
- 1 cup castile soap
- ¼ cup soap flakes or grated Castile soap
- 4 tablespoons washing or baking soda
- 4 ounces purified water
- 30 drops lemon essential oil
- 30 drops lavender essential oil (optional, rosemary)
Directions:
- Place the soap flakes and washing soda into a bowl, blend with a whisk.
- Bring the water to a boil, then over the soap flakes and soda. Stir.
- Add the remaining ingredients, blend well.
- Allow homemade dish soap to cool, stirring occasionally.
- Pour homemade dish soap into a BPS-free squirt bottle. You may choose instead to use a glass bottle with a pump.