I am constantly looking for ways to save money and I am not afraid to try a few frugal experiments along the way, so when I saw this DIY natural foaming hand soap idea on Pinterest I had to try it.
At around 25 cents per bottle, this is a super cheap and natural way to keep everyone’s hands clean. The tea tree oil used in this recipe is a natural antiseptic, bactericide, fungicide and anti-viral with anesthetic qualities (even used by soldier’s in WWII to treat infections) and by using this DIY foaming hand soap you are avoiding sodium lauryl sulfate, triclosan and synthetic fragrance, which are all harmful.
You will need:
- 1 foaming liquid soap bottle (8 – 9 ounces)
- 2 tablespoons liquid Castile Soap
- 2 drops of Tea Tree Oil
- 2 drops of Essential oil (optional – for fragrance)
- water
Instructions:
- Add castile soap, tea tree oil and essential oil (if using) to an empty foaming hand soap dispenser.
- Fill the bottle almost to the top with water and shake gently.
While you will need to make an initial investment for the ingredients, they will last a LONG time. I also used foaming soap dispensers which I had purchased previously. To save even more money, I used Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint Castile Soap along with the tea tree oil and skipped the extra essential oil. We enjoy the fresh fragrance, but you can experiment with different types of essential oils to see which you like best.
You can find 32 ounce bottles of pure castile soap at Vitacost.com for $8.00 – $16.00. The Vitacost brand tea tree oil is $5.99 for a 1 ounce bottle and is Buy One Get One Free right now so just $3.00 per bottle! You can also get FREE shipping on orders over $25. Vitacost brand essential oils are also on sale Buy One Get One Free right now.
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You can also purchase the ingredients on Amazon.com. Click here for links.
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Easy recipe! I like the Tea Tree oil for its antibacterial properties. I added Lemongrass EO for scent. It worked fantastic!
So glad that this worked for you Muniyrah! I have considered adding the Tea Tree oil to my next batch. Thanks for the reminder.
I’m curious where you got that pretty bottle? I used to see these dark blue cobalt soap dispenser bottles made by Wyndemere (sp??) at the various health food stores in town and got the last one. They don’t seem to be made any more, and health food store says they haven’t been able to get them too. I’ve been googling various times the past 2 or 3 years since I bought my one bottle (I have like 4 sinks in the house, plus it would be cool to make extras to give as gifts – like to wean my mom away from the artificial junk she uses that smells terrible.), and I’ve not seen that bottle since. I’ve seen empty soap dispensers online, sure, but not the type that I want and KNOW will make the nice foam. Most of them clog up and get gloppy or sputter out irregularly etc.
Any other ideas? Thanks.
It actually came from Target but I purchased it at the beginning of summer so I am not sure if they still have them. It is part of the Method brand. Hope that helps. 🙂
Nice!!
Thanks Jill!
This is such a great idea, Kimberlee. We’ve switched to this method, and it saves us about $12 a month in soap – no joke!
However, after doing this for a couple of months, our foaming dispenser has about had it. Any idea where we can get new ones? Thanks!
Thanks Stacey! I have only seen the foaming dispensers with soap already in them, but you might check at a store like Bed, Bath and Beyond. It is probably more cost efficient to buy the ones at Walmart with soap. I just pour the soap into a recycled jelly jar and use it to wash the car or patio furniture.
This will be going on our grocery shopping list tonight. With four kids I’m always looking for cheap but healthy ideas. Thanks for taking your personal time to keep this blog going. Its been such a huge help to my budget and sanity.
You are very welcome Mandy! Thanks for taking the time to let me know that the blog is helpful to you. 🙂
I’ve been using castile soap for foaming hand soap and I get a lot of residue left in my sink. Do you have that problem? I may be using more than 2 tablespoons of soap and my husband uses a fair amount to wash his hands. 🙂
I haven’t noticed that, but we have only been using it a short time Heidi.
Hmm. I’ve been doing it with just the regular soap and water in the dispenser which still saves money but isn’t natural. I have a big bottle of something called Dr. Woods Shea Vision Pure Black soap with Organic Shea Butter. It mentions it as a facial or body cleanser and also for cleaning dishes, floors, etc. lol Wonder if that would work?
It’s worth a try Kristy.