Sunny days are laundry days in Pietermaritzburg, SA.
Daniel, Oliver and I got back on Thursday from our wonderful holiday in South Africa and are doing laundry for days. We tried to pack lightly for our trip so we didn’t have too many bags to drag around the airports, but that meant we needed to do laundry pretty regularly while we were there. Unlike the wash, dry, hang-in-the-closet process in the USA, doing laundry in SA is a whole-day event.
In 2009, when Daniel and I lived in Durban, the washing would almost never dry because it was so humid, or it would rain while we were at work and we would have to start all over again. You almost need a meteorologist’s degree to predict the afternoon thunderstorm so you can get the washing down before it’s soaked and dirty again from the rain water. After the washing is down from the line, you need to iron it because of the creases from the washing line and the two pegs. I literally remember doing more ironing than anything else in the first few years of our marriage. I’m so glad those days are over!
Doing washing in the States is a breeze compared to what I was used to. I still hang some clothes outside to get the stains out, but the dryer has made life a whole lot easier for me. I tried the conventional dryer sheets for a while but wanted something reusable with a natural fragrance. I looked up different natural options and then came up with my own recipe for these dryer sheets. I use Greenshield Organics laundry detergent (no softener) then pop one of these reusable dryer sheets in to the dryer with the washing, and that’s it! Apparently the vinegar softens the laundry (I learn new things everyday) and the essential oils leave your washing smelling fresh. Put the dry t-shirt piece back into the mixture and use it again.
Grab an old t-shirt and you’ll have these made in no time!
DIY Dryer Sheets: Natural + Reusable
Ingredients
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 tsp coconut oil melted
15 drops essential oils your choice
5 pieces cotton squares cut from an old t-shirt
Instructions
Add the vinegar, coconut oil and essential oil drops into a glass jar and shake gently.
Cut up an old t-shirt and add the cotton strips into the mixture. Shake gently.
When you transfer your washing from the washer to the dryer, simply pop one or more of the cotton dryer sheets in with your load.
Once the load is dry, simply put the cotton strip back in the vinegar mix and use it again.
Notes
The vinegar acts as a softener and the oils give the washing a lovely faint smell.
What essential oil would you use?
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