Keep it Simple: In the Laundry Room
Making the transition to healthy living can sometimes seem overwhelming – there is so much information out there as to what is “safe” and what is “toxic,” what products are just using clever marketing to appear “natural” and what companies are genuinely interested in people over profit. Where should we begin if we are new to the idea of living an eco-friendly lifestyle? What are our options if we are working with a limited budget and cannot afford some of the bigger swaps? How can we skill-up in our habits without compromising on our sanity?
A few years ago, I came across this phrase on a piece of home decor from my sister…
Keep it simple.
These three words have been something like a lifeline when I have felt as though I am swimming in a sea of information and products. These three words encourage me to take a step back and to look at things pragmatically.
You may be asking, “But what exactly does it mean to ‘keep it simple’ when it comes to healthy living and stewardship?” That is where this new series come into play! My goal is to distill what I have learned over the past ten years and narrow it down to my top five habits, products, and/or tips for each of the main rooms/parts of your home. Now, of course, my top five may not be the best fit for your home, your lifestyle, or your needs, so take my suggestions with a grain of salt. And feel free to build your own top five from scratch, using mine as a springboard!
Let’s dive into the first post in the “Keep it Simple” series, which is how to keep it simple in the laundry room!
- Keep it simple with laundry detergent – Branch Basics concentrate.
If you have followed along for very long, chances are you have heard me brag about my favorite cleaning concentrate, made by a wonderful company called Branch Basics. Their cleaning concentrate is a bit pricey upfront, but I promise you will not regret making the switch to this non-toxic cleaner!
We have been using their concentrate for our laundry (a capful of concentrate for laundry detergent, or you can buy their refillable bottles with fill lines for easy mixing with water) for years now. Keeping a bottle of concentrate on hand means I never run out of laundry detergent or stain remover. Plus, this stuff works wonderfully, without all the side-effects from using conventional laundry detergent (ex: eczema, fragrance-induced headaches, hormone disruption, etc.). In case you are curious, I also use this concentrate to clean my home, remove eye makeup, wash the dog, shampoo my son’s hair, and more. It is so gentle, yet incredible effective! Non-toxic living at its finest! (New customers can use this link for $10 off!)
- Keep it simple with fabric softener – Organic white vinegar.
Yes, you read that right. White vinegar can replace your fabric softener! We have had the same front-loading washing machine for nine years. We have used white vinegar as our fabric softener (we add a hearty glug to the dispenser each wash), bleach alternative (same as with softener), and washing machine cleaner (never have had mold or stinky smell in our machine since using it in the aforementioned dispensers!) for almost that entire time.
White vinegar is very affordable (even to buy organic) compared to conventional laundry products. You may be wondering why organic, and the main reason for our family is because white vinegar is typically made from corn or grain. Corn or grain grown conventionally is almost certainly genetically modified and sprayed with glyphosate. Buying organic ensures the ingredients are not genetically modified, nor sprayed with powerful herbicides like glyphosate.
If you are concerned about your clothes or washing machine smelling like Grandma’s pickles, have no fear! The vinegar smell dissipates during the wash, leaving you with freshly cleaned clothes and a mold-free washing machine. I also really appreciate that white vinegar only has two ingredients (acetic acid and water), whereas most laundry additives contain far more (and toxic ingredients at that!).
*Another important note about conventional fabric softeners – They oftentimes coat your clothing, giving you a false sense of softness. More importantly, however, is that the coating they leave will eventually result in a build-up that can make fabrics break down faster. Best to avoid it altogether and made the simple switch to white vinegar!
- Keep it simple by avoiding bleach – Harness the power of sunlight and/or use Oxygen Boost, as needed.
If you google the side effects of bleach inhalation or skin exposure, you might be alarmed to see how truly toxic it is. Sunlight, on the other hand, can do just as good a job or an even better job at getting stains out of your white garments. And it is free! Simply lay out your laundry on an outdoor clothes line or hang it safely on a piece of furniture or railing. Rotate as needed to ensure an equal amount of sunlight reaches all parts of the garment. Easy-peasy!
If you prefer a more hands-on approach to dealing with stains or for brightening your laundry items, check out another fantastic product by Branch Basics – their Oxygen Boost.
Oxygen Boost is made from only two ingredients: baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and hydrogen peroxide (sodium percarbonate). No bleach, ammonia, fragrances or dyes. Compare that to what you may be currently using. In terms of effectiveness, there is truly no need to buy the toxic stuff. Oxygen Boost, like Branch Basics’ concentrate, has many uses beyond the laundry room. (Here’s the $10 off link for new customers again.)
- Keep it simple by drying your laundry without electricity – Line dry your items!
Although we do have a dryer, we endeavor to line dry almost everything that gets run through our washing machine, the exceptions being sheets and towels. Sheets take up quite a bit of space on our drying racks, and our towels tend to get crunchy if we line dry them. Everything else goes onto a wooden drying rack we keep in our guest room. Our wooden drying rack holds one to two loads at a time and is very well built. We found it on Facebook Marketplace for a great price, and the previous owner says it is over 100 years old!
In previous housing and at different times in our current house, we have also used: retractable, wall-mounted laundry lines; a foldable, wall-mounted laundry rack; and cotton rope strung between two trees. While you can, of course, opt for plastic laundry racks, we will always advocate for non-plastic items when and where available!
Drying your laundry without electricity may seem old-fashioned, but it is the norm in many other countries. Plus, it hanging your laundry to dry is easier on the wallet and your laundry (less wear and tear). This article shares some additional benefits to air-drying your laundry.
- Keep it simple by avoiding dryer sheets – Instead, use wool dryer balls!
Wool dryer balls are made by felting natural, undyed wool yarn into ball forms. When used in the dryer, they can reduce drying time, reduce static built-up in the dryer, and naturally soften garments. One set of wool dryer balls (three to five balls) can last up to 1000 washes, so they are also an economical replacement to dryer sheets!
You can DIY wool dryer balls, using a tutorial such as this one. If DIY is not appealing or do-able, you can purchase pre-made wool dryer balls from Branch Basics. I have also seen some great options on Etsy! The main things you want to look for is 100% wool, ideally undyed and from a farm where no pesticides or harmful chemicals are used and the animals’ welfare is taken into consideration.
There you have it – my top five habits, products, and/or tips for keeping it simple in the laundry room! To see more of our cleaning and laundry recommendations, check out this page.
Have you tried any of these habits, products, or tips before? What are your favorite signature moves in the laundry room? Comment below to share with our community!
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Yours truly,
Erica Barlow
Plastic-Free Solutions for Raising Rabbits