Laundry can feel like a never-ending chore. Especially if you are anything like me and have a family that generates a never ending pile of yogurt laden shirts, smelly socks and wet towels. I also have a 4-year-old daughter who likes to change outfits more often than a rock star at a 2-hour concert, so you can imagine the amount of laundry that my family generates in a week. For a while I actually was insane enough to help a friend with her laundry business, so in addition to my own family’s laundry every week, I did laundry for 3 other families too. Folding until midnight was not uncommon during that period of time.

Now that I’m back to just doing our own laundry (and beginning to recruit our 4 and 6-year-old to help), no more midnight folding sessions listening to podcasts!

Essential oils are great companions in the laundry room. For fabric softener, we use distilled white vinegar with a drop of essential oil. I prefer mostly the citrus oils for their clean scent, but I have been known to use others depending on my mood.

I also have a front loading washer which means needing to clean it every so often. Instead of the toxic chemical cleaning tablets, I simply use vinegar and a few drops of arborvitae. Arborvitae is great for cleaning!

In the dryer, I no longer use dryer sheets. Most dryer sheets contain synthetic chemicals not to mention create waste. I use wool dryer balls and place a drop or two of a citrus oil, peppermint, lemongrass or lavender on them. They make a great natural fabric softener and reduce drying time by lifting and separating clothes in the dryer. It’s a win-win for energy savings and reducing waste! 

While laundry is still a chore around our house, using essential oils make our clothes cleaner and fresher without toxic or synthetic chemicals. It makes my hippy-mamma heart happy 🙂