Just Wednesday

Oh so stormy here..Straight winds up to 70 miles per hour left a lot of old trees in the street and power outages. Such a hectic June and July is almost here.

Maybe its the humidity, but work has been weird. I dunno who's fault it really is. For one thing, summer school is over so we have a lot of juvenile nonfiction books back. As if that alone could cause a work related issue, but it did. Perhaps, it was just an excuse. Anyway, customer service can be stressful and in between those moments we are putting books in order. Get something out of place..and well..(squinting hard, not sure if I should really write about it)...Lets say I know someone very passive aggressive (not me) and well..

Anyway, I hope the rest of the week will be better. Getting artsy with the summer reading program.

Cost. Depending on the brand, both liquid fabric softeners and dryer sheets can cost up to $.15 per dryer load. But why pay for the stuff, if you have an option to not spend your money that way? You can make your own fabric softeners for less than a penny a load and as a bonus, know exactly what’s in it.
While there are many homemade alternatives to commercial fabric softeners, these four options are the most effective and easiest to make, depending on personal preferences.
Option #1. The easiest homemade fabric softener is plain white vinegar. Add 1 cup of white vinegar to the last rinse. Vinegar is cheap and nontoxic, effective and antimicrobial. It naturally softens because vinegar helps to remove every last bit of detergent from your clothes. And vinegar aids in static reduction during drying. If your washer has a liquid softener dispenser you can fill it with white vinegar and you’ll be good to go.
Option #2.  If a subtle, clean fragrance is what you want, this recipe is for you: Combine six parts water, three parts white vinegar and two parts hair conditioner in a container with a sealable lid. A cheap bottle of hair conditioner from the dollar store works great to soften and also fragrance your laundry. Use this in the final rinse or fill the softener dispenser in your washer, as you would with any commercial liquid softener.
Option #3. If you prefer dryer sheets you can make those at home, too. Take an old t-shirt or cotton baby blanket and cut it into a few small squares. Place them in a sealable container like a Mason jar or a plastic container with tight-fitting lid. In a small bowl, mix 1/2 cup white vinegar and 8 drops of your favorite essential oil, which can be purchased from your local health food, drug store or online (a bottle of oil may cost from $6 to $10, but it will last a long time, and you can add fresh natural scents, such as lemon, lavender or peppermint to your laundry). Pour enough of this liquid over the cloths in the container to saturate them. Close the container. To use, simply remove a sheet from the container, squeezing any excess liquid back into the jar, and toss into the dryer. When clothes are dry, simply place the sheet back in the jar for use later.
Option #4. Here’s a great way that you can continue to use your favorite commercial softener product, while drastically cutting the cost: Mix 1 part fabric softener with 3 parts distilled water and pour into a spray bottle. Spray the inside of your dryer before tossing your clothes in the dryer. This option works amazingly well and will make that bottle of softener seem to last forever. Just that small amount will soften and fragrance an entire load of laundry.-Mary Hunt

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