Can you recommend one?

I have sensitive skin so I switched to using distilled white vinegar.

Much cheap than store bought softeners.

Get cleaner laundry! Add about 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar to the last rinse. The acid in white distilled vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, yet strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents. Besides removing soap, white distilled vinegar prevents yellowing, acts as a fabric softener and static cling reducer, and attacks mold and mildew.

What not to use: http://products.mercola.c...detergent/

7th Generation mentioned above is good. They're almost everywhere now and they use natural ingredients.

My favorite brand is Mrs. Meyers, mainly because the combination of essential oils they use makes the laundry smell soooooooooo good, especially the Jasmine scented ones.

Also, you should add a half cup of baking soda to your wash--it naturally softens the water.

http://www.amazon.com/s/r...=0&y=0 <-- Mrs. Meyers products

imago said:

My favorite brand is Mrs. Meyers, mainly because the combination of essential oils they use makes the laundry smell soooooooooo good, especially the Jasmine scented ones.

http://www.amazon.com/s/r...=0&y=0 <-- Mrs. Meyers products

Our local store carries all her products ( which I used too ! ) except the Laundry items ! Go figure

don't add softener to your towels, it ruins the absorbency of them.

JerseyKRS said:

don't add softener to your towels, it ruins the absorbency of them.

this and the bathrugs which I have to wash often since I only have ONE bathroom.

Shanti0608 said:

I have sensitive skin so I switched to using distilled white vinegar.

Much cheap than store bought softeners.

Get cleaner laundry! Add about 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar to the last rinse. The acid in white distilled vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, yet strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents. Besides removing soap, white distilled vinegar prevents yellowing, acts as a fabric softener and static cling reducer, and attacks mold and mildew.

TY!!

paintedlady said:

Shanti0608 said:

I have sensitive skin so I switched to using distilled white vinegar.

Much cheap than store bought softeners.

Get cleaner laundry! Add about 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar to the last rinse. The acid in white distilled vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, yet strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents. Besides removing soap, white distilled vinegar prevents yellowing, acts as a fabric softener and static cling reducer, and attacks mold and mildew.

TY!!

If you really want to know how much cleaner you can get your laundry, check you washing machine and the water pumping through your house. If you have newer PVC piping and get your municipal water from an entity that pulls it from a river or lake, chances are your water will be fairly soft, and the softer the water that comes into your house, the less you need to clean your laundry. If your municipal water comes from a well, then most likely it will be hard water, so you need a decent water softener in your home to filter out the lime and scale coming from the intake pipes.

Second, if you have any Energy Star (R) rated washing machine manufactured in the last ten years, chances are unless you have exceptionally dirty clothes (like work outdoors in mud or work as a cook or a sanitation worker) you don't need to use as much laundry detergent as the detergent manufactuers recommend. You can probably get away with using about half as much for a normal load of laundry. And like someone else said, you can use distilled white vinegar in the rinse cycle to soften your clothes.

But if you're going to use a store brand fabric softener and don't care about being eco-friendly, you can get Suavitel. It's usually located at the dollar store and in Hispanic grocery stores.

i think its great that there r men here who actually know about fabric softener!!!

Machaela said:

imago said:

My favorite brand is Mrs. Meyers, mainly because the combination of essential oils they use makes the laundry smell soooooooooo good, especially the Jasmine scented ones.

http://www.amazon.com/s/r...=0&y=0 <-- Mrs. Meyers products

Our local store carries all her products ( which I used too ! ) except the Laundry items ! Go figure

Actually, now that I think about it, their Basil scented laundry detergent is AMAZING.

728huey said:

paintedlady said:

TY!!

If you really want to know how much cleaner you can get your laundry, check you washing machine and the water pumping through your house. If you have newer PVC piping and get your municipal water from an entity that pulls it from a river or lake, chances are your water will be fairly soft, and the softer the water that comes into your house, the less you need to clean your laundry. If your municipal water comes from a well, then most likely it will be hard water, so you need a decent water softener in your home to filter out the lime and scale coming from the intake pipes.

Second, if you have any Energy Star (R) rated washing machine manufactured in the last ten years, chances are unless you have exceptionally dirty clothes (like work outdoors in mud or work as a cook or a sanitation worker) you don't need to use as much laundry detergent as the detergent manufactuers recommend. You can probably get away with using about half as much for a normal load of laundry. And like someone else said, you can use distilled white vinegar in the rinse cycle to soften your clothes.

But if you're going to use a store brand fabric softener and don't care about being eco-friendly, you can get Suavitel. It's usually located at the dollar store and in Hispanic grocery stores.

I know all about Swavitel... "wepa!"

I don't care for it since it makes me rash out... I love the fragrance though. I do like the Ariel powder detergent... gets my clothes CLEAN with 2 tablespoons per load... (I have compact washer & dryer) in my unit. I stay doing laundry daily. Two loads at least daily.

I never knew about the vinegar... makes sense, my water is alkaline ph.8 but its otherwise rust free/mineral free. They add flouride and clorine to the water here, but its pretty clean, and tastes really good. My kids prefer tap water to Poland Spring out the bottle. We can taste the plastic in the bottled water.

[Edited 10/21/11 6:06am]

Not a fan of the fabric softener.

I miss the days when I had the time (and the yard) to hang the clothes out on the line to be softened by the sun and a good breeze.

Can not use ... HUGE allergen for me

imago said:

Machaela said:

Our local store carries all her products ( which I used too ! ) except the Laundry items ! Go figure

Actually, now that I think about it, their Basil scented laundry detergent is AMAZING.

Their scents are amazing ( thanx to EOs ! )

Also, be sure NOT to use fabric softener for your wrinkle-free clothing. I wondered, after years of using it for my favorite dress shirts, why they were getting wrinkled.

Salesman set me straight.