Update on my computer: No, it is most certainly not a cooling fan. My techie/guru gave me a couple of CD’s to run tests on the memory and the hard drives – it’s most likely one or the other of those. Oh, joy!
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Believe it or not, this active political and spiritual commentator is also a DIY soap maker. I’ve made all of our bar soap for the last 2 1/2 years. A couple of days ago, I ventured into liquid hand soap. I would have blogged sooner, but I wanted to see how well it worked. The results are in – it’s effective, easy, and smells great! Here’s the recipe I used:
Liquid Dish/hand soap
- 8 oz. Castile Soap (unscented – you can buy larger quantities for bulk discount, and save it)
- 2 tsp. White Vinegar
- 2 tsp. Washing Soda
- 1/4 tsp scented essential oil (optional, your pick of scent if desired. For this test batch, I used Lavender, which smells dreamy!)
- 1 glass/ceramic bottle with pump or squirt handle
Combine 1 cup hot water with other ingredients in a mixing bowl, and whisk together until well blended. Allow ample time to cool, whisking occasionally to ensure the mixture stays combined. (Note: I used a light plastic mixing bowl, and let it set on the counter until the outside of the bowl was cool to the touch, stirring every 5 minutes. It took about 20 minutes to cool).
Using a funnel, slowly pour into pump bottle for use.
FYI – this batch actually made more soap than what the pump bottle I had could hold – so it was a good thing that the 8 oz. Castile Soap came in a glass pump-handle bottle, too. I put the extra soap in it, and moved it to the bathroom! BONUS!
UPDATE 7/26/2014: After careful consideration, I would not recommend using pump-handle soap bottles. A snap-top squeeze/pour type of bottle would be better, as pump handles seem to be poorly made and develop leaks quickly, which leads to additional mess on your counters and sinks.