Natural Laundry 101: The Ultimate Guide to a Clean and Healthy Home
My Story.
Hi there! If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I work hard to have a low tox lifestyle in our home. This was not always the case though. I really had no idea what the products in our home were doing to our bodies! I was very conscious of what we ate, but paid no attention to what we put on our bodies every day, especially our laundry products! I was actually obsessed with dryer sheets! (Now I know that they are a huge trigger for my allergies!)
I used to take 5 allergy medications a day, and still was sneezy at night and had trouble falling asleep! I had been to an allergist who told me I was not allergic to anything! After buying some essential oils from a friend, I started to make some of our personal care and laundry items! Within 3 months, I was no longer taking medication! I went down a rabbit hole researching the ingredients in our laundry soaps and fabric softeners and I was shocked! I am on a mission to help others learn about this because it's helped me so much!
Ingredients to watch out for!
The laundry room is one of the most toxic rooms in the American home. (I say American because most ingredients in our laundry rooms are banned in Europe.) These products are made to bind to our clothing and stay there for a long, long time! They also contain chemicals that can aggravate allergies and headaches, as well as, disrupt hormones. And our clothes and sheets are touching us day and night! On the largest organ in our body, our skin! Here are some ingredients to look out for!
SLS
This is what makes detergent lather. It is a known skin irritant and allergen. The real concern is that depending on the manufacturing process, it can produce 1,4 Dioxane which is a known carcinogen. This will not show up on labels because it’s a bi-product of SLS.
Dyes
Not only do they add no cleaning power, they are the number one culprit when unexplained rashes appear. Your soap does not need to be purple or blue in order to clean!
Optical Brighteners
Optical brighteners don’t actually make your laundry cleaner, they just appear to be. They are chemicals that adhere to the fabric and are touching your body round the clock! They actually ruin your clothing and washing machine.
Petrochemicals
Derived from petroleum and a common ingredient in detergent fragrance. These can cause skin irritations and hormone disruption. They do not show up on an ingredient list because they are hidden under the word fragrance on the label.
Synthetic Fragrance
This is an umbrella term used by companies to hide ingredients. Companies do not have to disclose what ingredients they use to scent or make their products unscented. These chemicals are known allergens and endocrine disrupters.
Formaldehyde
Yes, this is a carcinogen. The other sneaky info surrounding formaldehyde is that you won’t find it on a label, but it can still be there. Detergents can release VOCs into the air to form entirely different substances like formaldehyde.
Greenwashing.
Greenwashing is the practice of marketing a product or a brand as being greener or more environmentally friendly than they really are. As people are increasingly aware of their impact on the planet, many companies have seen this as a great business potential.
What to look out for? (All or some of these things, most important is the ingredient list.)
-Packaging: White, green, or simple labeling
-Marketing terms- organic, all natural, pediatrician or dermatologist recommended, Ecco friendly, fragrance free
-Ingredient of Natural fragrance without the disclosure of where it comes from.
-When the company sends you to their website to read the true ingredients or you have to 'dig' for them.
Fragrance free and baby detergents are the most guilty of greenwashing. Often they use chemicals to mask the smell or marketing terms like 'pediatrician recommended'. See the full ingredient list to watch out for above.
Top 5 Ingredients For A Low Tox Laundry Room
Here are the ingredients I recommend to start revamping your laundry supplies! Many you might already have in your home.
01 Vinegar
Brighten, soften, whiten, and reduce odors without chemicals
02 Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
Found in your local grocery store, this washing powder gets clothes cleaner, softens water, and helps with odors
03 Baking Soda
Softens fabrics naturally and absorbs odors
04 Pure Essential Oils
Use to naturally scent laundry without chemicals. Lemongrass, purification, and lavender are favorites. (Make sure to use pure oils!)
05 Thieves Laundry Soap
Plant based laundry soap free of artificial fragrance, parabens, and optical brighteners. Super concentrated to save you money!
Recipes
Scent Booster
The washing soda adds extra cleaning power and the baking soda absorbs odors!!
8oz jar
1/2 washing soda
1/2 baking soda
10-15 drops lemongrass
Shake and add 1/4 cup to each load!
I like to use lemongrass in all my laundry DIYs! I feel like it scents the laundry best! Lavender is a great option too! Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Laundry Soap Hack
1) Empty 2/3 of the Thieves Laundry Detergent into an empty pump bottle. I use these!
2) Add 2 capfuls of Thieves Household Cleaner and top with distilled water!
3) Optional: Add 20 drops oil of your choice. I like lemon, lemongrass, purification or lavender.
128 loads for the price of one bottle of Thieves Laundry Soap!
***5-6 pumps a load. And you can also pre-treat stains with the same mixture!
Most people use way too much laundry soap. Over time it can ruin our clothing and washing machines.
Stain Recipes
Thieves All purpose cleaner!
1 cap of Thieves household cleaner
16 oz water
Yes! You can walk around your house with your thieves cleaner and get stains out! My favorite place to use this is on my outdoor patio cushions!
Lemon (straight up)
I have used lemon straight up to get a stain out of a linen curtain panel! Pure essential oils do not stain! You can also use this to get sharpie off of any surface!
Stain spray
2 oz spray bottle
20 drops lemon
Splash of witch hazel
Fill the rest with distilled water
Stain Stick
20ml roller (from Amazon)
Fill half with Thieves dish soap
10 drops lemon
Fill the rest with water
Dryer Ball Spray
4 oz spray bottle
40 Drops EO
Splash of Witch Hazel ( alcohol free )
Fill Halfway with Distilled Water
Fill Rest with White Vinegar
Tips::
Don't worry about the vinegar scent, it will smell in the bottle but not on your clothes once dry!
Add more white vinegar if you have sweaters, blankets, towels or anything extra static prone
Want a stronger smell, add more essential oil! The citrus smells may get lost more quickly , so add more!
Any spray usually requires 10 drops per ounce, so you can adjust this for your bottle size!
FAV Dryer Ball Oils: Lavender, Purification, Lemongrass, Eucalyptus, & Bergamot!!!
Fabric Softener
DIY Fabric Softener
16 oz bottle
2 cups white vinegar
1/8 cup rubbing alcohol
15 drops oil of your choice
I love using lemongrass! Lavender, Thieves, and purification are great choices too!
Combine all ingredients in glass bottle. Shake well.
Add desired amount to your washing machine! I do about 1/4 cup.
Vinegar will naturally soften, brighten and whiten clothes! It reduces odor and mildew in fabric. It also reduces lint and pet hair. Bonus: It keeps your washer fresh too!
The alcohol will disinfect and help with stains!
DIY BLEACH with THIEVES
Bleach is a household cleaning favorite for many, but also has so many disrupting chemicals in it. If you haven't looked up Bleach on EWG…it isn't good. Rated an F. Here is an amazing DIY equivalent!
Any glass jug will work- (Amazon has great ones!)
3/4C Hydrogen Peroxide
1/4C Lemon Juice
15 drops Lemon Essential Oil
3/4C Baking Soda
1/4C Thieves Household Cleaner
7C Water
Mix all ingredients in container. For laundry, use 1C per load. Also, use in tubs and sinks as you would regular bleach!
Next Steps- Ready to get started?
-Shop Thieves Home Bundle here. Add to a Loyalty order to receive points and promos! Bonus: Do a new Loyalty order next month and get a free diffuser from YL! Read here to learn about Loyalty Rewards.
-Amazon supply list for the laundry room.
-Shop labels on Etsy here.
-Want just one item? You can shop the catalog here.
Make sure to save this guide….If you’re a paper person, you can print the info below! I’d love to know what you think and what you try. You can comment here after you experiment!
Want a printable recipe book? Get my laundry recipes here and cleaning recipes here!
XO
Sarah
Using natural cleaning and laundry solutions does take some trial and error. It will also be a different experience than you are used to. Just keep that in mind as you start this journey. It’s a mindset shift and I promise you’ll love it!