How to Get Liquid Fabric Softener to Stretch Further

I love liquid fabric softener.  I especially love the scent of Gain, but there are two things I don't like.  First, it's expensive (even with a coupon).  Second, the way it is manufactured, sometimes it is a little too much scent.  I've found a way to not only decrease the scent while still having soft clothes, but also make it stretch much further.  

I love white vinegar, and I like to use it in my laundry.  It is an excellent fabric softer alone, and while the vinegar doesn't leave a scent, that can sometimes be the problem:  It doesn't have a scent!  However, if you combine both Gain and white vinegar (plus a little water), the problem is solved, and the liquid fabric softener can be stretched to give you more uses.  This decreases the overall cost of buying the liquid fabric softener. For me, I like the fact that it's a frugal alternative while feeling I'm not skimping on something I like. 

Here is what you'll need: 

1 empty bottle (this one is from Purex crystals; I removed the label and washed the inside). 

1 bottle of your fabric fabric softener 

1 cup white vinegar

Enough water to fill the new container.  

Fair warning:  This will be VERY liquid/watery, so it will pour quickly, unlike regular fabric softener which has thickeners, so use caution with pouring or you might get a little more than you wanted!  

 

Start by putting 1 cup of vinegar in your container. 

Add enough liquid fabric softener to fill the container halfway. 

Fill the remainder of the container with water.  Place top firmly on bottle, and shake to combine.  

Use as you normally would, about 1/4 to 1/3 cup per wash load.  

I love to use this for towels and other clothes because it leaves a clean, light, fresh scent, and because there is white vinegar in the mixture, it makes towels extra fluffy and soft!  We used to live in Colorado, where the city had very hard water, and I used this.  Guests would say we always had the fluffiest, best-smelling towels, and this is why!

Oh no, I'm out of dryer sheets!

Have you ever uttered that phrase?  Especially during a marathon laundry session?  White vinegar and an aluminum foil ball are all you need to achieve soft, static-free laundry. 

I use about 1/2 cup of white vinegar in the rinse water for a top-load machine.  Use 1/4 cup for HE machines.  For both machines, place the vinegar in the liquid fabric softener dispenser for your machine.  Your clothes may or may not come out with a vinegary smell to them, but that will disappear in the dryer.  

If your clothes have static, this is where the aluminum foil ball comes in.  Tear off an approximately cookie sheet size piece of foil and roll it into a ball.  I wait until the clothes are dry or nearly dry to see if they are sticking together.  Then I throw in 1-2 balls of foil and restart the machine to finish drying.  I know some people place the foil balls in at the beginning of the drying cycle, but I have a fear of the foil abrading the inside of the machine, so I wait until the clothes are almost dry. The foil balls will last for up to 6 months and can be reused over and over again. 

This is really neat trick for people who have allergies and are allergic to commercial scented fabric softeners.  It leaves no scent whatsoever, except what remains from your laundry detergent, and it has an added benefit of making any towels you may have washed super soft, fluffy, and more absorbent.  The white vinegar removes hard water deposits and soap residue from prior washings, making clothes brighter and softer.  

This method is also environmentally friendly and "green" because it does not use harsh chemicals, dyes, or fragrances to achieve soft and static-free clothes.  I use this frequently with my loads of white towels and wash clothes to make them soft and more absorbent.  While I like the smell of fabric softeners and use them most of the time, this is a wonderful and economical alternative to store-bought softeners.

Homemade Fabric Refresher Spray Like Febreze

I love deodorizing sprays like Febreze, particularly for those days when you walk in the house and can smell everything that just happened in the last 24 hours and some that were even further back than that.

What I don't like is the price!  Depending on where you shop and whether you have coupons, the price is between $3.00 and $5.00 for one bottle.  

There's a much less expensive alternative that works just as well, and you can make it from ingredients you probably have sitting around.  I love using these homemade versions to spray around the house, on the carpets, couches, bedding, and to just randomly squirt throughout a room.

Here are my two versions.  

Homemade Febreze

1 part liquid fabric softener (I like Gain) 

1 part isopropyl or rubbing alcohol  

2 parts water 

Homemade Febreze Recipe #2 

1 part liquid fabric softener  

1 part isopropyl or rubbing alcohol 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

2 parts water 

I use 1/2 cup Gain, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol, and 1 cup water, but I have made a larger quantity using the same ratios.

Mix well and pour into spray bottle, then spritz wherever odors are evident.

NOTES:
The rubbing alcohol is needed to perform two functions.  The first is to act as an antibacterial.  The second is that it allows the water in the solution to evaporate faster so that splotches of water, resulting in  water circles, are not left on items sprayed.

For the second recipe, the baking soda is, again, optional.  In my experience, it can leave a white, powdery residue on items when dry, but it does help with deodorizing properties.

I hope this economical version is pleasing, and I'd love to know what has worked for you.