3 C. Vinegar
2 C. Cheap hair conditioner (smell you like)
6 C. water
Mix together in an old fabric softener jug and use as you would in your washer. If you like you can use it to make your own dryer sheets. Cut up an old Tshirt and pour the softener onto the rag and toss in the dryer with wet clothes.
This works better than any store bought softener, by far!
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I have been using this recipe for a few months now I got it off the grocery cart challenge blog. It’s the best. Love it !
If you aren’t real set on a perfumed scent, plain white vinegar makes the best fabric softener. Depending on the size of your washing machine, use 1/4-1/2 cup white vinegar. Can be placed in automatic despensers, if your machine has one. Or used at the begining of the rinse cycle. The added plus to using vinegar alone is that it will help remove the build up of laundry detergant residue on your clothes. I promise once dry your clothes do not smell like vinegar.
I haven’t tried this recipe yet but hve tried the vinegar, baking soda, and water fabric softener-so good and so much cheaper than store bought. I think I will try the hair conditioner recipe once my batch of unscented softener is gone since I have hair conditioner but no one in my family uses it.
I use just plain Vinegar on my daughter’s cloth diapers when I’m doing the final rinse on them..works great and keeps the build non existent.. which I like.. I might try this on the other clothes though. now that its spring I like hanging my clothes outside and sometimes they do get slighty stiff so I was buying fabric softener to help with that.. My family really loves the vanilla and lavendar type scents as they are calming and relaxing and especially on bedsheets for the kids
I’ve been using the Suavitel (sp?) fabric softener mixed with water (5 parts water to 1 part Suavitel. Mix it in a spray bottle and spray my clothes after I hang them on the line or the clothes rack (we don’t have a dryer) and it works well. The YouTube video that I saw it on (link is on my most recent post of my blog) says that she sprays it on her clothes before she throws them in the dryer.
Just thought I’d share.
I’ve used the above recipe before too, it does work great!
I’ve used plain vinegar for over 20 years. When I have used fabric softener
my daughter has broken out with rashes.
I too have started using just white vinegar in my rinse water. The clothes come out soft and no vinegar smell.
I have used this recipe for probably nearly a year. I don’t know where I found it to be honest. I like it. I just use the biggest bottle of conditioner from the Dollar Tree, it makes 2 recipes, and I add usually lemon or lavender essential oils to it. : )
I wonder if you could use lotion instead of conditioner, anyone ever tried?
I am wondering the same thing. I have so much lotion!
I have used the homemade fabric softeners frequently because I’m allergic to some of the dryer sheets.
One thing I have had luck with doing is diluting regular liquid fabric softener with white vinegar and water.
I use an old fabric softener bottle (I’m partial to Downy). In it I place 1 cup white vinegar, then fill the bottle to the halfway mark with liquid fabric softener from a refill carton. Then fill the rest of the way with water. Shake well to combine. I then just use the cap measure for the bottle and that’s what I put in my dispenser.
This diluted mixture works extremely well. You get the benefit of the white vinegar and a bit of the commercial softener, but it’s diluted to a point that it’s more economical than just using the liquid fabric softener straight.
I have gone to vinegar only. Clothes are soft and clean smelling. Even my hubby’s killer socks.
I only problem that I have is my daughter’s fleece blankets. They are very static when I don’t use a dryer sheet. So I use Arm and Hammers Naturals. Just with fleece blankets.
Vinegar in your wash will also prevent fading and color runs…..and also removes stubborn odors and perspiration stains from clothing.
Vinegar is so versatile!
Most commercial hair conditioners are made with 1st run animal fat…..as are most lipsticks and cream foundations. Our homeschool group toured a grocery store and the butcher informed us of this when we questioned the large trash cans of trimmed animal fat in his shop. That said, I don’t believe rinsing your clothes with hair conditioner would be ideal. Tupperware has a “recipe” for making your own dryer sheets,using two bottles of fabric softener and a bottle of water. Choose a washcloth and submerge in the solution and wring it out. Toss it in your dryer…..and reuse each time. You will be able to tell which wascloth is the “dryer sheet” by feel. This was the recipe when the fabric softeners were not as concentrated…..not sure what the mix would be today. Vinegar is simple and good.
I’ve been using the the same bottle of softener for 2 years, I take an older washcloth, soak in in my softener, wring it out and let drip dry, over night, 1 wash cloth last 1 month,
my teenage kids thinks this is so cool, that there Mom can do these things,
Who ever knew that saving money,by making thing would be cool!
I am unsure about using cheap hair conditioner in fabric softner, or even on my hair. it contains very harsh, and in some cases, toxic chemicals that I don’t want on my clothes. I would use vinegar, or I dilute Seventh Generation all natural fabric softner. I try to be as organic as possible, and it is worth the cost!
If you want the scent of fabric softener, mix a cup of Suavitel fabric softener in a gallon of white vinegar, use about half cup per rinse. CLothes smell great and very very soft.
I’ve been making my own laundry detergent for about a year or so, so I’m reall glad to get this softner recipe! Thanks!
I am so going to try this! I have a half full giant bottle of melaluca hair conditioner that I don’t use anymore (my hair is finniky and after awhile condtioners stop working so I have to change every so often) so instead of throwing it out….!
is this recipe ok for HE machines?
I found another way to remove static if you choose to white vinegar or diluted solutions instead of fabric softener: ALUMINUM FOIL! When the clothes are almost dry, grab a sheet of aluminum foil and ball it up firmly. Then place in the dryer for a few minutes. Your clothes will come out static free.
One thing to note: I don’t put it in when the clothes are still wet because otherwise, if left in for a long period of time, it can scratch the paint on the inside of the dryer drum. However, if you just put it in for the last few minutes of drying time, it works extremely well to get rid of static.
Like the alum foil idea, but the only reason I really need to use a dryer sheet is for a few sweaters and my daughter’s crochet blanket. Aluminum would tear these items. Any suggestions for this situation?
I’ve seen on etsy.com people selling large felted wool balls as “drier sheets” Same principle as the aluminum foil but less detrimental to your dryer and/or clothes. I have used the aluminum foil and it works well, I don’t know if the felted balls would work, but it seems like it would.
Here is one shop that sells them for pretty cheap, $4 each or 4 for $15. Look around on etsy though, there’s lots of other people who sell this sort of item.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/LandLNaturalProducts?ref=seller_info
How do you add vinegar as a fabric softener to an HE washer? I would love to try using vinegar alone, but I don’t know how to add it to my washer. I don’t think the “fabric softener” cup in the washer will hold 1 cup of liquid. Anyone use the vinegar with an HE?
If you have a self dispencer for fabic softner do you just pour the amount of mixture that the washer requires?
We use vinegar in the dispenser cup of our HE washer without any trouble. Will have to try mixing it this way, miss the good smell of the commercial softeners.
really want to do this, just wondering if I can use a downy ball with this recipe?
Regarding the question of using vinegar in the hE dispenser for a front loader, just pour vinegar into the dispenser till it’s at the normal fill line (about 1/3 C on mine) and that’s it – it still works well. Years ago when my son was a baby and I used cloth diapers (he’s 43 now!) I always added 1 C. vingar to the final rinse for his diapers – he never had diaper rash. I think the vinegar residue (you couldn’t smell it) in the diaper neutralized the ammonia in the urine – or something like that. I hated disposables back then because they were awful. They’ve come a long way but I’d still use cloth now if I were taking care of a baby – the cloth feels so much softer!
I’ve found that using straight vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser of my HE front loading washer also helps to keep the machine itself clean. I don’t have to buy those machine cleaners that are recommended once a month for the HE front loaders. I do leave the door open when not in use as recommended also.
I am allergic to most scented products like fabric softeners, so I can’t use manufactured fabric softeners. or dryer sheets. I spray a washcloth with static guard. I sometimes adds a drop of perfume or colonge for a light scent.