Zero Waste Dryer Sheets DYI

Dryer sheets and fabric softeners are full of chemicals (and can actually damage  clothing, depending on the fabric). Did you know that vinegar acts as a natural fabric softener without leaving any chemicals + residue on your clothing?

I’ve taken some old unpaper towels that were at the end of their life and cut them up to make my own natural + sustainable dryer sheets. Here’s how to do it!

What you need:

-any old rags or fabric you have laying around

-white vinegar

-essential oils of your choice OR white vinegar that has been diffused with natural scents.

How to do it:

1. Put your old rags and fabric in a jar.

2. Mix about 10-15 drops of the essential oil you’d like to use with about a cup of vinegar. You can also diffuse the vinegar ahead of time with discarded citrus peels, rosemary, lavender, or pine needs leftover from your Christmas tree (that’s what I did here).

3. Pour the scented vinegar over the rags in the jar until they’re moistened, but not totally soaking in liquid.

4. Use one of the cloths per load of laundry.

5. You can throw the rags into the wash once they’ve been used and re-soak them to keep using again and again.

I'll Have My Tea Without a Side of Microplastics, Please.

A study found that 11.6 billion microplastic particles are released when one tea bag is steeped in water (and on top of that, 3.1 billion even smaller nano plastic particles are released into the cup). That’s thousands of times higher than the amount of plastic previous found in other food + drink items.  (cnn)

Even a lot of premium teas that use all natural fibers in their teabags often use polypropylene to seal the bags. 

There currently aren’t any in-depth studies that show how the consumption of microplastics affect our health, so I’m going to play it on the safe side and try to consume the smallest amount I can… at least when I drink tea. 

I’ve been using a stainless steel tea strainer that my mom gave me and it’s kind of like putting a little spaceship in your mug. I love it. I’ve dropped some of my favorites below:

Botra Teapot | Gold Stainless Steel Tea Egg | Brass Stem Tea Strainer ( I like to call this one the Golden Snitch) | Wooden Tea Press | Solid Brass Tea Strainer (reminds me of Flight of the Navigator for some reason)

The one in the top photo is one that was given to me by my mom for Christmas. Linking it here.

Do you have one that you use and love? I’d love to add more to my list of tea strainers! Most of the ones I picked look like they’re from an alien world or straight out of Harry Potter, which I am more than OK with.