Make Your Own Fabric Softenerby Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 03 Aug 2007 05:28 AM A few years ago, I stopped using fabric softener all together. Not only was it an added expense, but I didn't always like the way it made the clothing feel. I know, maybe I am out of the ordinary, but I like clothing as clean as possible, and the thought of adding another layer of stuff into the fabric of our laundry items just sort of turned me off. I don't mind dryer sheets, though. But, again, that is another expense, not to mention another allergen for my family of kiddos with sensitive skin. Most of the time we try to line dry our laundry, anyway, in which case a dryer sheet is useless. But, I have to admit, it is nice to have soft clothes. And so, I make my own fabric softener to use in the laundry. It costs just pennies, uses stuff I already have around the house, and it leaves absolutely no residue or smell of any kind. It also has the added bonus of removing stubborn odors that my laundry detergent might miss. And, the homemade fabric softener is gentle enough to use even on the baby clothes. The recipe of my homemade fabric softener is so easy and simple that you will wonder why you haven't tried it before. Just take 1/4 cup of white vinegar and add it to the last rinse of your wash load in the washing machine. That is it! The laundry will come out nice and soft, and fresh. Don't worry, it won't smell like vinegar at all. The white vinegar also seems to do a great job at brightening cloth diapers, too. One tip: make sure that you use white vinegar. Cider vinegar, for example may stain your laundry or not work as well. Did you know that you can also your make own laundry detergent? Check out this article to learn how. Mary Ann Romans also writes for the Computing Blog here at Families.com where she shares everything from the latest news on technology to cool downloads and fun websites. Related Articles: Frugal Laundry: Make Your Own "Detergent" Space Age System: Wash Your Clothes without Detergent? Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevantfrugal tags User Comments  Valorie Delp (49340) 23 Aug 2007 06:18 PMLOL I took my jar of vinegar to the laundromat today and the matron was not impressed. I think I love the smell of Downy way too much though!  Mary Ann Romans (26876) 24 Aug 2007 06:39 AMDid you try it? The vinegar smell rinses out in the wash. Tell the matron that it has the added bonus of cleaning out the washing machine. :) Mary Ann Romans (26876) 24 Aug 2007 06:56 AMOh, and one extra thing--if there is still a smell of vinegar even after the items are dry (which is unusual) cut down on the amount of the vinegar by half. You can alo make your own fabric softener sheets for the dryer (see another article in the Frugal Laundry Category). Valorie Delp (49340) 24 Aug 2007 08:33 AMYeah. . .and there wasn't a vinegar smell. I just like the extra downy smell. Mary Ann Romans (26876) 24 Aug 2007 09:23 AMAh, well I can't help you there, unless you want to dab it on your wrists :) Valorie Delp (49340) 24 Aug 2007 06:10 PMLOL No but now that you have given me the brilliant make your own dryer sheets idea, I can buy Downy on sale. . .make it stretch, stretch, stretch and it should be about the same price as the other kinds I don't like as well. ;-) How many wet rags would you put into a large load of laundry. (I do my laundry at the laundromat so think big loads.) Mary Ann Romans (26876) 11 Oct 2007 04:51 PMI would recommend a one-to-one ratio. Whatever you usually put in with a standard dryer sheet. I tend to go very lightly on fabric softener. Did you know that it can build up in your dryer vent causing less efficiency (more quarters). Valorie Delp (49340) 12 Oct 2007 02:59 AMYes, but I love Downy smelling clothes! And actually, I have a drying budget. LOL The dryers at the laundromat are inconsistent. Some dry really, really well, and some not quite as well. So I put in 4 quarters. If it's not totally dry, it gets hung up at home. ;-) We've also started doing some laundry by hand bc yikes--laundry for 7 people gets expensive! Happy2BHome (10) 24 Aug 2008 08:48 PMDoesn't Downy make a wrinkle releaser? Could you lightly spray your clothes? It might actually help with wrinkles too. An added bonus. :0) ncscubachick (5) 11 Mar 2009 12:46 PMCan the homemade fabric softener be used in a front loading machine that you put all your liquids in before you start the machine (i.e. can't open the door mid-cycle)? Thanks so much! Community Tags fabric softener, laundry, make your own Discuss this article
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