Reusable Dryer Sheets

Ok so lately I've been getting into having a less toxic home, so I have been making cleaning solutions using essential oils. I also switched to using cloth napkins for meals and cleaning instead of paper towels.  We'll talk about that in another post. The cloth napkins end up in the wash with the rest of the clothes and towels. I stopped using dryer sheets because they make the napkins less absorbent. But I found that my bath towels were not soft anymore. I tried wool dryer balls but my laundry still felt hard. After researching I found a recipe for Reusable Dryer Sheets. 

MIXTURE: They used white fabric for the dryer sheets and filled a glass jar with 1 CUP  of WHITE VINEGAR and 20 drops of ESSENTIAL OILS of your choice. I used 10 drops of Lemon and 10 drops of Lavender. Vinegar softens fabrics in the dryer, and essential oils add a pleasant smell. Now the smell of the Vinegar and Oils fades by the time your laundry is dry. I did not really detect a smell in my dry clothes other than normal clean. I will say I think the essential oils help get rid of bad smells. This was a perfect solution in addition to the wool dryer balls. Softer clothes without toxic fabric sheets. 

Note: With the fabric I used. I found that I needed to double the mixture to ensure that all of the cloths were lightly saturated with the mixture. Not dripping wet, but wet.

FABRIC: 

Any cotton fabric would work as I have seen cotton flannel used in other DIY's. However, I wanted something white that gave me the feel of a dryer sheet but more absorbent than just regular cotton cloth. I came across a four-pack of these muslin burp cloths and thought that would be perfect! They are absorbent enough to hold enough of the vinegar mixture for a whole load, but also rather nice to look at. I cut the burp cloths into 3 sections using pinking shears to reduce fraying. This gave me 12 reusable dryer sheets. 

The burp cloths have layers so I pulled out the sewing machine and using white thread sewed a straight line down the loose edges.

I mixed the vinegar and essential oils in a glass jar with a screw-on lid from Family Dollar for $2.50. I inserted the cloths about 4 at a time until all of the cloths were wet, and that's it!

When I dry my laundry I open the jar, take out one sheet, and throw it in with the clothes. Once the laundry is folded I just collect my reusable dryer sheet and once all of them have been used. I will make another batch and just insert them in to use again and again. As far a cleaning I found that after I use them twice I need to wash them because the smell of the vinegar becomes too strong.  I just throw them in a load of white clothes and they are ready to be used again.

I love them! and the pretty fabric in the jar looks really good sitting atop the dryer.

*(I purchased all items and have no affiliation with Amazon or Family Dollar)