My good friend Holly from Spotted Owl Soap is our guest writer today.If you've ever wondered what to do with your leftover herbs at the end of the season, you're not alone. Every year I'm faced with a glut of mint, lavender, rosemary, sage and more. Some of it I freeze to use in the kitchen throughout the winter, but usually I can barely make a dent before spring comes around again. If you're faced with a surplus of flowers and herbs you hate to see shrivel with the first frost, here is an idea to enjoy summer's fragrant bounty indoors, all winter long.
Homemade laundry detergent has been gaining popularity with frugal families everywhere and homemade dryer sachets are a perfect compliment. They are also an excellent idea for anyone with perfume sensitivities or allergies. Best of all, they are reusable, natural, and easy to make.
Start with dried flowers or herbs of your choice. I like Lavender because it grows well in my area and the scent is a personal favorite. Other herbs and plant parts that work well with lavender are mint, ci
trus (dried rind or lemongrass) and rosemary as well as most common flowers. Be creative and use favorites that grow plentifully in your area. Nearly anything that works in potpourri will work in a dryer sachet.An average sachet contains 1-2 cups of dried herbs. You can use a variety of pouches from sewn fabric cases to pre-made muslin baggies to heat sealable tea bags* - even an old sock with a knot will work as long as it is free of holes.
If you keep essential oils in the house, you may add a few drops of complimentary scent to your herb blend. Be aware that adding flammable oils to a hot dryer could be dangerous, so proceed sparingly and with caution. Steer clear of synthetic fragrance oils which are often more volatile.
Seal or tie the sachet container shut and pop it in the dryer with moist clothes. The sachet can be reused many times. For lavender sachets, it helps to squeeze the bag between dryer loads. This frees up more of the fragrant oils inside the buds.
If you've already taken the "green initiative" and started venting your dryer inside your home**, you'll enjoy the added benefit of a natural air freshener.
Once dryer sachets are exhausted, they can be placed in dresser drawers for a light fragrance.
Dryer and drawer sachets make great gifts for anyone with sensitive skin, new babies or perfume allergies. Lavender is simple to grow in many climates and the sachets are very inexpensive to make - mine cost just pennies. It's not uncommon to see these sachets in stores for $12 each.
(example: http://www.amazon.com/gp/
* Heat sealable bags and muslin bags are available from herb and spice suppliers such as San Francisco Herb (sfherb.com). For those who can't grow lavender, it can be purchased in bulk from the same company - around $10 a pound (20 sachets).
**http://www.brighthub.com/
9 comments:
if your being green wouldn't you just not use a dryer?
Great idea for all that lavender. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing. I think
I will put this on my list
of gifts to make.
God Bless You and Yours!!!
I have to agree with comment #1. We haven't used our dryer now in 3 years. Even in the middle of winter (and with kids who sometimes go through 2 to 3 outfits a day) we never use our dryer. Put simply: There is no green way to use a clothes dryer. It's a complete waste of resources, and there are always alternatives.
I agree that the dryer wastes resources, but there are people (like me) that are unable to dry all their laundry. I hang dry everything I can, but in an apartment it is very difficult and I don't have a space outdoors to do it. So, I try my best, and dry the rest.
Your kids wearing 2 to 3 outfits a day isn't "green" either. Pot meet kettle.
Geez people .. With some people going green is a step at a time. One thing is better than nothing at all. Get off your high horses!
To the person who said that kids wearing 2 to 3 outfits a day isn't green - either you don't have children or your children never play. Kids get dirty and if they're covered in mud or food or paint they need to change. I've never owned a dryer and never would but this article is for the people who do.
I am very impressed by this simple, straightforward and relevant blog. I am all things laundry so I appreciate this one. You mentioned something I hadn't heard of..love that. Only thing is, can we use cotton ballsin teh baggies instead of the herbs? I would like to use my own scent which is not lavendar. Also, I worry about the essential oils. What if they stain my clothes? Imean, it is oil...which is why I am not adding the oil to my wool dryer balls. The sachets would buffer the oil somewhat. So the real question would be would the herbs and flowers be more or less absorbant. Also..I know to throw in these things after the main part of the drying is over since heat seems to lessen the scent very much. I have all guys that are outdoorsy--so I wonder if there is a recommendation for woodsy that is even heavenly to others..I was thinking maybe vanilla mixed with wood??
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