I remember my grandmother using soapnut to wash her nine-yard silk saris that she would then fastidiously hang on the clothesline. I also remember weekly oil baths with a robust hair wash made of shikakai (acacia concinna). Coconut shells with besan (gram or chickpea flour) would be kept handy to be used as soap in the bathroom where a wood-fired copper drum yielded piping hot water. For ceramics and glass, use a combination of gram flour with laundry liquid/bio enzymes. Hand wash: Try a dry powder mix made with a combination of 1/3 gram flour, 1/3 green gram flour, 1/3 dried citrus peel powder.

Source: The Hindu June 10, 2019 05:37 UTC