DIY Fabric Softener
| May 21, 2012 | Posted by Rita under For the Home, Tutorials |
I love the smell of fabric softener especially on my sheet and towels, so when I saw this idea here I decided that I really wanted to try this out! It is a very simple, inexpensive way to make your own fabric softener and it only has 3 ingredients!
Recipe:
- 6 cups HOT water
- 3 cups white vinegar
- 2 cups Hair Conditioner (I used Suave, but you can use any that you like the smell of) Whisk the hot water and conditioner together. Make sure that the conditioner is completely mixed with the water and there are no clumps. I just did mine in this empty ice cream bucket. You might have to stir for a couple of minutes to get all the lumps out.
Add Vinegar and mix well (I read that the vinegar is the actual softener- the conditioner I think is just for scent. Vinegar also helps with static sling). I put mine in an big empty Downy bottle and you use it just like you would any liquid fabric softener! This makes quite a large batch, so if you do not have a big bottle or container to pour it into, you may only want to make half a batch.
I like how inexpensive this was to make. You need to pick a conditioner with a lot of scent if you are a smell freak like me. This particular scent is not a real strong one, so next time I make it I will go for a different scent. But as far as the fabric softener goes, it works like a charm and it is so much cheaper to make your own!
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I only have 2 cups of distiller white vinegar, could I substitute a cup of apple cider vinegar? I had enough but my bucket had something in it and I didn’t realize it..now I have everything measured out ready to make and I don’t have enough vinegar.. Please let me know.. Soon! Lol
I am not 100 percent sure on the apple cider vinegar, but I would think that it would be just fine! It may affect the smell, but I don’t think that it will affect the softening agent. Sorry, I don’t know for sure. Good luck and let me know how it works!
You could use Johnson and Johnson Baby Conditioner made for sensitive babies.
Oh that is a great idea, thanks for sharing!
I love the idea of homemade fabric softener! I’ve been making my own laundry soap for about 6 months and its great that I’ll be able to make my own fabric softener too! I do have a concern though. I have a newborn with sensitive skin. I currently use Fragrance and Dye Free fabric softener for her and when making my laundry soap I do not add any scents to it. Is this recipe safe for infants?
I am not sure, if you could find a conditioner that is scent-free then it would be fine.
Suave is hypoallergenic. Or you can use just vinager as a softener.
Thanks for that info! I appreciate your taking the time to comment.
when making your own laundry soap, just add your vinegar to the mix. You don’t need the conditioner at all for this to work. I’ve been using vinegar for a long time and it works wonderfully for so many things! I buy the biggest bottles I can and try to always keep some around.
How much vinegar do you add to your laundry when using it along with the laundry detergent?
This works wonderful !!!!!!!!!!!!! I find that one bottle of conditioner has just a little more than the two cups so I just kinda measure it out and add more vinegar as well as a little more water to use up the remaining conditioner. Still works perfect.
Thanks for sharing.
That is good to know! Thanks for the great tip and for taking the time to comment. Love it.
Is it safe for he washers
There is nothing in the fabric softener that would hurt a washing machine.
I also have an HE washing machine and some fabric softeners gum it up. If anyone else with an HE has used this successfully, please share!
you can skip the conditioner and use essential oil(s) instead. the vinegar is what softens the laundry.if you purchase cheap conditioner,the scent may not be as strong as you expected…essential oils,however,you can customize the scent and the strength. :)
Thank you for that information. I am going to have to try that!
Just trying this out will let you know!