Soft, Sweet Laundry Routine

H'okay folks: I gave you my laundry detergent recipe here, so now I give you the rest of my fluffy, happy, good smelly recipe to make you love your fresh dry clothes. Here you go.

With Wash Fabric Softener
1/4 cup epsom salt

Add to each load with the soap.

Good Smelly Dryer Sachet
pair of new sheer knee highs
lavender buds, citrus peels or fabric swatches with 15-20 drops of essential oil on it

Stuff the knee highs with your choice of good smelly stuff, tie tightly and toss in to your dryer. Replace as needed.

Anti-Static Quick Dry Dryer Balls
two unused tennis balls
pair of unused ladies socks in white

Wrap the socks around the tennis balls tightly. Toss in with dryer.

Tropical Carpet Powder

Personally I don't keep carpets. They are allergen magnets. Icky stuff gets trapped in the fibers. Brackish water collects under it. And sometimes they stink- oh lord! Some of my past rental places, however, wouldn't let me tear out the carpets, so I had to improvise.The powder below is full of deodorizers that won't kill your sinus allergies.

Ingredients:
1 cup of baking soda
10 drops of lemongrass essential oil  per cup
10 drops of mandarin essential oil  per cup
10 drops of ginger essential oil  per cup

Mix together and sprinkle the aromatic blend onto your carpet, let sit for 30 minutes, and vacuum as normal. Wonderful mattress deodorizer, too!

Citrus Bleach Alternative

So, I told you that I liked lemons? Oh: they're my favorite fruit! This is part of why. Instead of using bleach- which I am very, very, very allergic to- I use this to whiten loads.

Ingredients:
12 cups water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup hydrogen peroxide

Mix. Add 2 cups per wash load or put in spray bottle and use as a household cleaner. Can be added to a wash as well.

Ghetto Febreeze

I love the name of this stuff. I'm really allergic to Febreeze, so I avoid any product with it in it. This stuff, however, I can use as much as I want. I like to use clove bud oil in mine and spray it on curtains, sheets and seat cushions. Thanks Jessyratfink for the recipe!

Ingredients: 
1/2 cup rubbing alcohol or vodka
1 cup hot water
10-30 drops of your favorite essential oil

Combine all of the ingredients in a plastic spray bottle and shake well to mix. The freshener will remain good for 6 months.

Note: Please remember that this is flammable. Rubbing alcohol is not to be ingested.

Basic Linen Spray

If you've ever worked in fancy hotels, you know the secret to that ungodly fresh, crisp linen smell is vodka. I kid you not. In the recipe below you can opt out of any essential oil for a fresh linen smell or add your favorite scent.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup distilled water
1/2 cup vodka
10 drops essential oil

Mix ingredients well and pour into a spray bottle. Shake before each use.

Spray Starch

My mother- the compulsive ironer- always frets that I don;t have spray starch on hand for her to use. This, mom, is for you.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons corn starch
water

Add in a big spray bottle.  Shake before use. If you get flakes, pour half of your mixture out and refill with water. Flakes are about amount, not quality.

Laundry Detergent Powder

In order to find a laundry detergent without surfactants and optical brighteners you have to pay out the nose. While I adore Second Generation, it's just too expensive to buy regularly when I do up to 20 loads of laundry a week some weeks. This mixture works just as well as Second Generation, only it doesn't have the pretty scent to it. This is safe for all skin types.

Ingredients: 
2 bar of Kirks Castile Bar Soap
2 cup of washing soda (sodium carbonate)
1 cup borax- sold in laundry section

Grate the bars of soap with a microplane or a fine grater. Mix the remaining ingredients in and thoroughly shake until well blended. Note: Avoid breathing in the dust.

Store laundry detergent powder in an airtight container. Use 2-4 tablespoons per load.

**I have substituted other soaps when I can't find Kirk's. Ivory seems to work the best out of the typically available soaps.