If you are a regular reader of my blog you know that several months ago my blog was one of about six thousand that was bothered by some malware thing and because of it all of my posts , comments and blog roll had to be erased. One of my most popular post has been the one on making your own wool dryer balls. I have people contacting me wanting to use it on their blogs so I am writing a new post on how to make them.

First let me say that you may be shocked to learn that most commercial fabric softeners whether they be liquid or dryer sheets contain many toxic chemicals. I am going to list just eight of them here

1 Alpha Terinol- This chemical has been linked to disorders of the brain and nervous system as well as loss of muscle control depression and headaches.

2 Bensyl Acelate- It has been linked to cancer of the pancreas.

3 Benzyl Alcohol- Linked to headaches, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and depression.

4 Chloroform- This is on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Hazardous Waste list because it has been identifies as a carcinogen and a neurotoxin!

5 Ethanol- Also on the EPA’a Hazardous Waste list for it’s ability to cause brain disorders.

6 Ethyl Acetate- Causes headaches and is also on the list.

7 Linalool- In studies this chemical caused loss of muscle coordination, brain disorder and depression.

8 Pentane- causes headaches, nausea, dizziness, fatigue,  drowsiness and depression!

Studies have shown that being exposed to even small amounts of these toxins can have serious effects. I don’t know about you but  I don’t want to use these toxic chemicals.

We learned about how harmful fabric softeners were when we were living in California. I read that when you use them that the toxins are absorbed into the fabric and then if you sweat while wearing the clothing you absorb the toxins into your bloodstream through your skin. YUCK!!

So about six years ago I learned how you can make your own wool dryer balls.This is a great way to be Eco Friendly, save lots of money and remove harmful toxins from your home as well.They are so inexpensive and easy to make.To start you need a sweater, skirt or even a blanket that it is at least 85% or more wool. I went to Goodwill on 99cent day and bought three 100% wool sweaters. Try to find extra large ones because they shrink during the felting process.

Put them in your washing machine using HOT water and wash them. Then dry them in the dryer. This is called felting.

                                 Cut the sweater into strips, roll them up and stitch them as you go along.                                  As you can see mine are all different shapes. If you are more of a perfectionist than me you can take the time to make them really pretty and round. I figure the clothes won’t know the difference and my way took less time! You really will need to make about 12 of them. I made 12 in about an hour and a half while we were watching television. It took not quite two sweaters to make 12 of them. Just throw all of them in your dryer and just leave them there. That’s all there is to it! Six years ago we were spending $10.00 every two weeks on a large bottle of fabric softener at Sam’s so that first year we saved $260.00. Now because of those wool dryer balls so  far we have now saved one thousand five hundred and sixty dollars since not having to buy fabric softener!!

So these little balls are amazing, not only do they eliminate having to buy fabric softener, which eliminates all those terrible toxins but they cut your drying time by 35-45% !!!! Just imagine how much money that  will save over a years time. These balls will last at least two years. The ones I am using now I have had for over three years and they still are working great. You also can put essential oils on them if you want your clothes to have a nice scent. I sometimes put a few drops of Lavender essential oil on mine.

Are you a big fabric softener user or have you known of anyone that has had reactions to using it?

                                 If you have been over doing it this Summer with outside sports and have sore muscles check out our Joint  Pain Relief at Eco Naturals.

                                 Also if you have never tried a shampoo bar you should check out our Scalp Hair and Health Bar also.