As I am sure you know by now, I am always on a quest to find healthier ways of living. I am well aware that the laundry detergent and fabric softener that I use on our clothes are loaded with chemicals, perfumes, and dyes. I have known for a while that there has to be a better alternative out there, but for some reason, it hasn't been a priority. Now the the holidays are behind us, I was able to start my hunt for better options.
I have read a bunch about the toxicity of fabric softeners and dryer sheets, so I figured that would be a great place to start. If you have NO idea what I am talking about you can read more about it here and here. Anyway, the good news is that there are a few good options out there for eliminating static cling AND softening your clothes. A few people throw tennis balls into the dryer to help with the static cling. Since I don't have any tennis balls lying around, I decided to go with another option which involves balling up a few sheets of tin foil and throwing them in the dryer. Apparently the metal cancels out any static. By the way, it totally worked. There is also the age-old method of line drying your clothing. I am not quite there yet, but I am sure if I were it would totally help out my electric bill!!
To solve the issue of crispy clothes, I put a half cup of baking soda into the wash when I started it. I also filled the spot where I normally put softener with white vinegar to be dispensed in the rinse cycle. Your clothes won't smell like vinegar, I promise. If you really like fragrance on your clothing, you can add a few drops of essential oil to the vinegar. I used a combination of eucalyptus and lemon essential oils. It was lovely. Another option, if you are not down with vinegar in the rinse cycle, is to spray a vinegar mixture onto your clothes when you throw them in the dryer.
I tried both of these ideas today and my sheets and towels came out of the dryer totally soft and free of static cling. YAY! Now I need to tackle laundry detergent. I whipped up a batch of homemade powder detergent today and plan on trying it this week. I will let you know how that goes.
So, there you have it - a safe and cost effective way to soften your clothes. If you know of any other ideas, please let me know! I love learning all I can about clean and healthy living!
I have read a bunch about the toxicity of fabric softeners and dryer sheets, so I figured that would be a great place to start. If you have NO idea what I am talking about you can read more about it here and here. Anyway, the good news is that there are a few good options out there for eliminating static cling AND softening your clothes. A few people throw tennis balls into the dryer to help with the static cling. Since I don't have any tennis balls lying around, I decided to go with another option which involves balling up a few sheets of tin foil and throwing them in the dryer. Apparently the metal cancels out any static. By the way, it totally worked. There is also the age-old method of line drying your clothing. I am not quite there yet, but I am sure if I were it would totally help out my electric bill!!
To solve the issue of crispy clothes, I put a half cup of baking soda into the wash when I started it. I also filled the spot where I normally put softener with white vinegar to be dispensed in the rinse cycle. Your clothes won't smell like vinegar, I promise. If you really like fragrance on your clothing, you can add a few drops of essential oil to the vinegar. I used a combination of eucalyptus and lemon essential oils. It was lovely. Another option, if you are not down with vinegar in the rinse cycle, is to spray a vinegar mixture onto your clothes when you throw them in the dryer.
I tried both of these ideas today and my sheets and towels came out of the dryer totally soft and free of static cling. YAY! Now I need to tackle laundry detergent. I whipped up a batch of homemade powder detergent today and plan on trying it this week. I will let you know how that goes.
So, there you have it - a safe and cost effective way to soften your clothes. If you know of any other ideas, please let me know! I love learning all I can about clean and healthy living!
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