Simple, Homemade Laundry Softener

As you may know for the past year, I have been concocting my own household items with little more than what I have on hand or what I can find at the organic market. I am determined to rid my house of harmful toxins and chemicals by making my own homemade products.

(More of my DIY household recipes are at the bottom of this post.)


photo source unknown
But the products must meet or exceed three important expectations for this frugal gal:
1. It must be easy to replace-no beakers or science lab experiments. Thank you.
2. It must be just as good or better than the current product I’m using and,
3. It must cost the same or less than the current product I’m using.

I thought I hit a brick wall when it came to Laundry Softener and I would have to settle for store bought. My fluffy towels are very important to me.

 


I began to experiment when I remembered that vinegar is not only a wonderful cleansing agent, but a water softener as well. And baking soda is not only a whitener, but it regulates the pH level in the water, cutting through the mineral deposits (which makes your clothes feel stiff). So, why not combine the two?

 


Here’s all the you’ll need to make your own Laundry Softener:
Container
1 Cup of Baking Soda
6 Cups of White Vinegar
(8 drops of Essential Oil if you are worried about the vinegar smell in your house. There will not be a vinegar smell on your clothing.)

 


Pour the 1 Cup of Baking Soda into your container.

 


Slowly, I REPEAT-SLOWLY-add the vinegar a little at a time. It will fizz and bubble up. Allow it to recede and then add a little more.
Do not pour all at once, as I did, and watch your kitchen enjoy a nice vinegar shower. I am an idiot-was I not paying attention in science class?

Add the essential oils if desired. I’m cheap so I skip this step.

 


Allow the detergent to breathe for a little while (5 minutes or so) before capping it.

 


Add about 1/2 Cup of this mixture to your laundry’s rinse cycle (I set a timer as I start my load for about 20 minutes in to the washing cycle). Or, if you are impatient, it doesn’t hurt to add it at the same time you add your laundry soap. However, adding it to the rinse cycle will give you a little more fluff for you buck. I think that’s the saying….

 


This Laundry Softener leaves your clothes feeling soft and fluffy. It replaces the store bought laundry softeners that contain chemicals and perfumes, which only mask the odor. And, the best part is-it’s only about .01 per load.

Win-win-win, once again!

Simple, Homemade Laundry Softener
Author: 
Recipe type: Laundry Product
Prep time: 
Total time: 
 
I began to experiment when I remembered that vinegar is not only a wonderful cleansing agent, but a water softener as well. And, baking soda is not only a whitener, but it regulates the pH level in the water, cutting through the mineral deposits (which makes your clothes feel stiff). So, why not combine the two?
Ingredients
  • Here's all the you'll need to make your own Laundry Softener:
  • Container
  • 1 Cup of Baking Soda
  • 6 Cups of White Vinegar
  • (8 drops of Essential Oil if you are worried about the vinegar smell in your house. There will not be a vinegar smell on your clothing.)
Instructions
  1. Pour the 1 Cup of Baking Soda into your container.
  2. Slowly, I REPEAT-SLOWLY add the vinegar a little at a time.
  3. It will fizz and bubble up. Allow it to recede and then add a little more until you have added all 6 Cups of Vinegar.
  4. Add the essential oils if desired.
  5. Allow the detergent to breathe for a little while (5 minutes or so) before capping it.
  6. Add about ½ Cup of this mixture to your laundry's rinse cycle (I set a timer as I start my load for about 20 minutes in to the washing cycle) or place it in the softener reservoir (if you have one).

•   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •

I hope you have enjoyed these recipes! It may seem overwhelming at first to rid your home of toxins and store-bought everything. And maybe you don’t want to make these products, but would like the benefits of non-toxic products in your home without going broke. I have found some simple solutions to replace the things that I cannot make/don’t want to make myself by purchasing them from a non-toxic green company online. Without directly endorsing them, if you are interested in knowing more,  Feel free to email me with questions.

Here are links to my other Homemade Household Cleansers and Beauty Products:

Easy Laundry Soap
Homemade Beauty Products
DIY Brass Cleaner
Organic Vegetable/Produce Cleaner
Homemade Household Cleaners

And here are a few Homemade Food Items to easily replace store-bought items:
Simple, Tasty Granola
Easy Crockpot Yogurt
Simple, Homemade Butter
Cooking and Freezing Beans, avoiding BPA
Homemade Hummus
Garden Fresh Salsa

If these parties are up, I link to them! (Here’s my complete Linky Party Page):
Monday: Crafts Keep Me Sane, The Better Baker, Skip to My Lou, DIY Showoff, Say Not, Sumo’s Sweet Stuff, Etcetorize, Sew Chatty, Brassy Apple, Flour Me With Love, Creating my Way, Mad in Crafts, Our Delightful Home, Sew Can Do, It’s So Very Cheri, Craft O Maniac, Polly Want a Crafter, Tuesday: Craft Edition, Inspiration Board , New Nostalgia , Lettered Life , Coastal Charm, Tip Junkie , Ladybug Blessings, Hope Studios , Todays Creative Blog, Wednesday: Someday Crafts , Day2DayJoys, Jillify It , Junk in the Trunk, We are that Family , Frugally Sustainable, Sew Much Ado, Fine Craft Guild , The Thrifty Home, My Girlish Whims , Quick, Easy, Cheap & Healthy, Trendy Treehouse, Thursday: Somewhat Simple, No Minimalist Here , A Glimpse Inside, The Mommy Club, The 36th Avenue, Cheap Chic Home, Beyond the Picket Fence, Fireflies and Jellybeans , House of Hepworths , The Shabby Chic Cottage, Friday: My Repurposed LifeIt’s a HodgePodge LifeThe Shabby NestJust Wingin’ ItOne Artsy MommaFrench Country CottageFinding Fabulous, Passionately Artistic, Petals and Picots, Simply Designing, Little Becky Homecky, My Romantic HomeBacon Time, Simply Living, Saturday: Polkadot Pretties, Tatertots and Jello, Create and Inspire, Be Different, Act Normal, Craft Envy, Funky Junk Interiors, Petites Passion, Sunday: Under the Table, Natural Mothers, Mopping the Floor

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for the entire world. Deal with it.
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14 Responses to "Simple, Homemade Laundry Softener"

  1. Barbie says:

    Hi Rebekah-

    Can I add this to the fabric softener reservoir in my washer?

    Reply
    • Rebekah says:

      You sure can! I just have an old-school machine, so I didn’t think to add this to my post. Get crazy and add it to your reservoir!

      Reply
  2. Dayna says:

    I have a stinky teenage football player at my house. I dump a cup of baking soda in the clothes and fill the bleach cup with vinegar for every load. I quit using fabric softener in the wash and only half a sheet in the dryer to help with static cling. I let half a sheet go through 2 loads at least. The baking soda/vinegar has beat the odor! When I finish using my stash of laundry detergent I’m going to try your recipe for detergent and see how it works for smelly football clothes.

    Reply
    • Rebekah says:

      The Fels-Naptha soap in the Homemade Laundry Detergent smells so wonderful-it actually makes doing laundry pleasurable! I hope you enjoy the detergent recipe. Let me know what you think!

      Reply
  3. Kelly from Smart! School {House} says:

    I’m a HUGE fan of handmade laundry soap! I’ve been using plain ol’ vinegar in the rinse cycle but am definitely going to try this recipe!

    Reply
  4. Debi @ Adorned From Above says:

    I love this. thanks for the recipe. I have a link party on Wednesdays, and I would love it if you would link this and any other posts. It is called Wednesdays Adorned From Above Link Party. It runs from Wednesday to Sundays.
    http://www.adornedfromabove.com/2012/08/free-bee-sweet-hat-pattern-crocheted.html
    I hope to see you there. I am your newest follower, and I would love for your to follow me also. Have a great Day.
    Debi Bolocofsky
    Adorned From Above
    http://www.adornedfromabove.com

    Reply
  5. Potholes & Pantyhose | Homemade Laundry Products says:

    […] Homemade Laundry Softener  makes about 6 Cups Here’s all the you’ll need to make your own Laundry Softener: Container 1 Cup of Baking Soda 6 Cups of White Vinegar (8 drops of Essential Oil if you are worried about the vinegar smell in your house. There will not be a vinegar smell on your clothing.) Pour the 1 Cup of Baking Soda into your container. Slowly add the vinegar a little at a time. It will fizz and bubble up. Allow it to recede and then add a little more. Add the essential oils if desired. I’m cheap so I skip this step. Allow the detergent to breathe for a little while (5 minutes or so) before capping it. Add about 1/2 Cup of this mixture to your laundry’s rinse cycle or in the detergent reservoir if you have one. […]

    Reply
  6. Carrie- young living oil lady says:

    Oh, my husband will love it if I make this! We are essential oil lovers, so this will make for a fun project! I am excited!!! Thank you for sharing this with us at Healthy 2Day Wednesdays! 🙂

    Reply
  7. Jill says:

    What a nice simple recipe for laundry softener!

    Thanks for linking to a Round Tuit!
    Hope you have a fabulous weekend!
    Jill @ Creating my way to Success
    http://www.jembellish.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  8. Cheryl@ Sew Can Do says:

    Love how easy this is and an alternative use to the usual homemade volcanos this combo is used for too! Thanks for linking to Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do:)

    Reply
  9. Star Fashion Addict says:

    Awesome! The price of fabric softener seems to keep going further and further up. And my kids seem to think that more fabric softener (like double and triple amounts) is the way to go. This is going to be a nice money saver. Thanks!

    Reply
  10. Potholes & Pantyhose | DIY Laundry Stain Stick says:

    […] Laundry Soap Homemade Laundry Softener Homemade Beauty Products DIY Brass Cleaner Organic Vegetable/Produce Cleaner Homemade Household […]

    Reply
  11. Staci says:

    do you shake it before each use?

    Reply

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