Make your own styling gel
Making your own styling gel is easy and all it takes is water and gelatin. The best gelatin to use is Knoxx unflavored gelatin. It is simply gelatin with no other ingredients added. You can prepare the gelatin according to the instructions on the box, but you will probably want to cut the recipe in fourths. Only make the amount needed for one packet of gelatin rather than all four packets. If you like, you can add lavender or other essential oils to make the styling gel smell nice. Store the gel in the refrigerator for longer shelf life.
You can also take a tablespoon of the gel and dissolve it in one cup of water. Pour into spray bottle and store in the refrigerator. This turns the styling gel into styling spray. It works just as well and is much easier to apply. You will want to take it out of the refrigerator about a half hour before you use it.
Make your own hair spray
Thanks to my cousin over at the Imperfect Homemaker for this recipe
1 cup water
4 teaspoons white sugar
Bring water to a boil. Dissolve 4 teaspoons of white sugar in the hot water. Allow to cool and store in spray bottle with fine mist or in an old hairspray bottle. Apply like regular hairspray.
This easy recipe calls for white sugar. Be sure to use white sugar. I made the spray with only 3 teaspoons of sugar rather than 4 teaspoons. However, we did not have white sugar on hand, so I used the imported Mexican sugar we have. It is supposed to be just dehydrated cane juice. It definitely gave a firm hold. When I tried to brush my hair out the next morning, a bunch of tiny sugar crystals fell out of my hair and onto my clothes. One of the nice things I found about using this hairspray is that no gnats or mosquitoes tried to bite my face. :-) Maybe I should spray it on the rest of me!
Make your own deodorant
Here are a couple of ideas for making your own deodorant. These are inexpensive and work well. (Also, I thought the video was cute :-) ) If you are allergic to coconut, you might try using plain baking soda. It works nicely as well, but is not as pleasant or convenient to use. Do not apply baking soda to broken skin.
http://moneysavingqueen.com/February-2012/Furgal-Living-How-to-Make-Your-Own-Deodorant/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=balCVkVgw_A
Make your own toothpaste
There are several ways to make toothpaste at home, but this video shows the easiest one I’ve seen so far. You can also find ideas for whitening your teeth by clicking here.
Make your own laundry detergent
Making your own laundry detergent is easy, rewarding, and inexpensive. Here is what you will need.
1 bar ivory soap
2 cups borax
2 cups washing soda (available in WalMart)
Grate the bar of ivory soap. Add the borax and washing soda to the grated ivory soap. Stir thoroughly and seal in an air tight plastic container.
The most common suggested amount to use is 2 tablespoons per load. However, you may need to adjust this to a little more or a little less depending on whether or not you have hard water or soft water. You will need more if you have hard water.
I hope you enjoyed these and that they help you save some money and have some homemaking fun!