@freedomtowrite - I make my own homemade laundry soap as well, a big batch lasts me about a year. I have a trick for grating the hard bar of soap though - put it in a blender (cut into chunks) and add about a cup of granuled Oxy Clean or the baking soda and it will grind the soap up into powder. Much easier and faster and it dissolves better in the laundry.