Stay Sweet Wellness

Clean Homemade Laundry Recipes

Ashley

Clean Homemade Laundry Recipes (free of harmful ingredients + made with love)

Okay mamas, this one’s for you. I will never forget when my sister Steph, told me once I become a mother, I’ll never be able to catch up on laundry. It made me chuckle, because if you know me, I’m a fairly organized and productive woman. So, the challenge of keeping up with laundry after Keegan was born didn’t scare me in the slightest. Well, turns out Steph was absolutely right. Ha!

If you’re a mom, you get it. Even just one little baby can throw your organized schedule and laundry-doing right out the window. Nowadays you can find me throwing in a load of laundry once a day, if not more. From blow outs, to stains, to washing sheets, cushion covers, rugs, car seat inserts etc. it’s a never-ending cycle. But that’s okay! It’s part of being a mom and I’ve fully accepted it with open arms. With that being said, constantly doing laundry means I’m exposing my family to whatever detergents and soaps I wash with. So, I decided to do some research and was disappointed to find my (old) favorite laundry detergent was chocked FULL of harmful ingredients. The ingredients listed carcinogens, fragrances, hormone disrupters etc. Which some of these ingredients have documented studies leading to health issues like breast cancer, tumors, male reproductive health and asthma. SAY WHAT??!! I’m not trying to scare you here, but let’s be honest, that’s flipping terrifying. I’m no scientist, but you don’t have to be to realize these detergents are seriously flawed.

Use this app to tell if your household products are “dirty”

After discovering all of the harmful components of my laundry detergent I knew I had to find products that were safe and effective. Instead of loathing over losing the fresh smell and cheap cost of my old detergent, I went ahead and began educating myself on safer products. I downloaded the Think Dirty app to help me choose cleaner household products when in a hurry. Sometimes you don’t have 10 minutes to google every ingredient a product contains. So, the Think Dirty app helps do that for you. The Think Dirty app even breaks down ingredients and explains the harmful effects each one can potentially pose. As a mother who has sensitive skin, this was a HUGE help for me. Ever since I downloaded this app last summer, I’ve been slowly making the switch to cleaner, less harmful products. I highly recommend downloading the app today and searching some of your daily household products. It’s truly a mother’s best friend and it’s easy to use.

My first time using this app I searched most of my household items and was overwhelmed by all of the products I needed to replace. You see, it’s super easy for companies to sneak in harmful ingredients. That’s why the Think Dirty app makes it so easy for you to understand what products are harmful and why. I decided that instead of replacing all of my household items at once, (because lets me real here, that’s pricey$$$) I would research one or two products at a time. Making a gradual switch every time I needed to purchase something specific. My first product to replace? Yup, you guessed it, laundry detergent.

The Laundry Detergent I use on the daily

I searched some of the more popular plant based detergents sold at retail stores and the one that kept popping up on my radar was Seventh Generation. So, I looked it up on my Think Dirty app, saw that it was rated a “0” (which is the highest rating a product can receive) and have been using it ever since! I use it to wash all of our laundry including all of Keegan’s baby gear. He too, has sensitive skin (thanks to me) and so a clean laundry detergent is more important now than ever. I know there are tons of clean laundry detergents out there. So, I encourage you to find the one that works best for your family. Seventh Generation is affordable and super convenient for me because its sold at my local target. In addition to using a cleaner laundry detergent, I wanted to discover ways to make some of my own laundry concoctions. Long and behold I discovered and have been using these recipes ever since!

Why homemade?

I genuinely love finding ways to make homemade anything! Homemade food, homemade household products, homemade cosmetics etc. So naturally I wanted to try making homemade laundry products. These days, its super easy and affordable! So, let me just bullet point why you want to make your own.

How do you make homemade laundry products?

Making your own clean laundry products is really simple. I just add all of my ingredients into a large glass mason jar, mix and set downstairs on my laundry table. That way its prepped and ready to use. These products take less than 5 minutes to make and most of the ingredients you likely have on hand! All ingredients are typical household items so it’s super convenient. These common household ingredients include:

Homemade Bleach

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large glass mason jar, mix and store next to your washer to use. Use ½ cup per load.

Homemade Laundry Boost (for added oxygen and removing stains)

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large glass mason jar, mix and store next to your washer to use. Use 1-2 tablespoons per load.

I also have to add another product that I absolutely adore. These amazing little wool dryer balls. They’ve really become popular this past year and for a great reason! They keep laundry feeling fresh and fluffy as ever. Wool balls are a great alternative to classic dryer sheets for two reasons. Number one, dryer sheets contain A LOT of harmful chemicals. Many that (in the long term) can cause health issues similar to the ones I listed before (hormone disruption, skin irritation etc.). Number two, LESS WASTE. Theses dryer wool balls are reusable and last forever! All I do is rub in 3-5 drops of my favorite essential oil (usually lavender or lemon) and use 2-3 balls for each load. I reapply the drops of essential oil once a-week- tops. They’re easy to use and super affordable. You can purchase them from amazon here.

Some credible resources…

I also started researching credible resources and came across a super helpful and informative page. If you are interested in reading more about the harmful ingredients in household products I highly recommend checking out Lara Adler, also known as the Environmental Toxins Nerd. Lara is an Environmental Toxins Expert & Educator who knows the ins and outs of harmful toxic products. I’ve linked her website here

Another individual I want to mention is Tiffany Gray, also known as the Medicinal mama. She’s a mother of five who shares all sorts of creative, fun homeopathic practices to use on the daily. She’s an inspiration to follow and her family always warms my heart. She’s real, genuine and a bright shiny light in my eyes. I highly recommend following her on Instagram @thegraygang and @themedicinalmama. She’s actually the one who inspired me to create these laundry recipes. Most of these concoctions derive from her page, I’ve changed a few little bits here and there but she certainly deserves the credit. So, if you’ve ever reading this- thanks Tiffany!

I’ve used each one of these concoctions and I am genuinely amazed how well each one works! My laundry comes out smelling, looking and feeling fresh, fluffy and clean. No strong fragrance, no stains and safe for me and my family. I hope you found this post helpful and if you have any questions please don’t be afraid to ask! I’m here to connect and educate the best I possibly can.

Thank you so much for stopping by and I can’t wait to hear how your laundry potions come out!

Did you find this info helpful or make any these laundry recipes?

If so, please tag @staysweetwellness, follow me on Instagram and #staysweetwellness.

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stay sweet.

-Ashley

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