For Black Friday, one of the doorbuster free gifts I received with a couple of my packages of Cloth Diapers were 2 Wool Dryer Balls, we haven't used softners in years since my sons skin is so sensitive, so I threw them in and gave them a shot. After about 2 months I finally mentioned to someone, I'm not seeing any advantages to these things...she asked me how many I had, my response: 2, she said well you need more! At any given time she has 12 in her dryer. My eyes got big as golf balls as I did the math of 12 balls at $9 each and asked how did you budget that one! She said I made them, they're super easy to make! So I did tons of research, watched and read many reviews and tutorials and finally came up with a meathod of my own that combined some of the best aspects of a few other meathods. I hosted a wool dryer ball party this week and me and some friends made 21 of these together...it was very easy and one friend even said "This is stress relieving"! So here's what they're all about:
Wool dryer balls are a very eco-friendly alternative to dryer sheets. You can use as few as 2 or up to 8 to help reduce static and reduce drying time. Did you know that many of the commercially made dryer sheets for sale in your local grocery store are filled with lots of chemicals? These chemicals have been known to leave a film on your lint trap which can lead to fires. The chemicals in the dryer sheets also reduce the absorbency of your laundry, your towels for example. The other disadvantage to dryer sheets is that after one use, they just end up in our landfills; where as Wool Dryer Balls are good for years!
So are you wondering how these wool dryer balls are going to help reduce
your static and also cut down on your drying time? As the balls are circulated in the dryer, they separate your clothes to allow the warm air from the dryer get to all articles of clothing. The more dryer balls that you add to your dryer, the faster your clothes will dry. In addition, the friction created by the felted wool being rubbed against your clothing helps to cut down on static cling and soften your clothes. The more dryer balls that you add to your dryer, the softer your clothes get. They are safe for all fabrics that you put in the dryer - clothes, bath/kitchen towels and rags, and cloth diapers. They are 100% natural so not only great for those with sensitive skin but also completely safe for the kids and pets to touch!
Supplies Needed:
- 100% Wool Yarn (223 yards will make 4 balls) - $5.99 @ Michaels or Joann
- 100% Wool Roving (2oz bag will make 12 balls) - $4.99 @ Michaels
- Panty hose (1 set of knee highs does 8 balls) - .33 @ Wal-Mart
- Felting Needle (comes in a 2 pack) - $4.49 @ Michaels
- All Natural Essential Oil Fragrance (Optional – will make 8 balls) - $3.99 to $5.99 dependent on scent @ Michaels (In soap making section)
Total Cost for first 4 balls (going with $4.99 Lavender scent) - $20.79
These bad boys can be purchased online (www.kellyscloset.com or www.kissedbythemoon.com) for $8-$10each. So $32-$40 for 4 balls…so this Do It Yourself Project will save you $12-$20…also think about how much you’ll be saving by eliminating the commercial chemical softeners!!
Directions with Pictures:
Wool dryer balls are a very eco-friendly alternative to dryer sheets. You can use as few as 2 or up to 8 to help reduce static and reduce drying time. Did you know that many of the commercially made dryer sheets for sale in your local grocery store are filled with lots of chemicals? These chemicals have been known to leave a film on your lint trap which can lead to fires. The chemicals in the dryer sheets also reduce the absorbency of your laundry, your towels for example. The other disadvantage to dryer sheets is that after one use, they just end up in our landfills; where as Wool Dryer Balls are good for years!
So are you wondering how these wool dryer balls are going to help reduce
your static and also cut down on your drying time? As the balls are circulated in the dryer, they separate your clothes to allow the warm air from the dryer get to all articles of clothing. The more dryer balls that you add to your dryer, the faster your clothes will dry. In addition, the friction created by the felted wool being rubbed against your clothing helps to cut down on static cling and soften your clothes. The more dryer balls that you add to your dryer, the softer your clothes get. They are safe for all fabrics that you put in the dryer - clothes, bath/kitchen towels and rags, and cloth diapers. They are 100% natural so not only great for those with sensitive skin but also completely safe for the kids and pets to touch!
Supplies Needed:
- 100% Wool Yarn (223 yards will make 4 balls) - $5.99 @ Michaels or Joann
- 100% Wool Roving (2oz bag will make 12 balls) - $4.99 @ Michaels
- Panty hose (1 set of knee highs does 8 balls) - .33 @ Wal-Mart
- Felting Needle (comes in a 2 pack) - $4.49 @ Michaels
- All Natural Essential Oil Fragrance (Optional – will make 8 balls) - $3.99 to $5.99 dependent on scent @ Michaels (In soap making section)
Total Cost for first 4 balls (going with $4.99 Lavender scent) - $20.79
These bad boys can be purchased online (www.kellyscloset.com or www.kissedbythemoon.com) for $8-$10each. So $32-$40 for 4 balls…so this Do It Yourself Project will save you $12-$20…also think about how much you’ll be saving by eliminating the commercial chemical softeners!!
Directions with Pictures:
| wool_dryer_balls.pdf |
2-16-2013 Update - It's been nearly 1 month now since I made my Wool Dryer Balls and I have 6 that I use. I wanted to update y'all on how it's going so far!
Static
About 2 weeks in - my husband finally gave in and said "Something is wrong here" as he's walking by a folded pile of clothes and the hair on his arms is standing straight out!! This was not only happening fresh out of the dryer, it stayed with all the laundry - Our sheets were very clingy and one night I went in to check on my son while he was sleeping and when I touched the blanket I could see the spark of static. So after admitting we had a problem, I did some research and experimenting and found out exactly what it was!! While the wool Dryer Balls will reduce static, once the clothes are dry they will continue to rub and rub creating friction and you guessed it STATIC (just like a balloon you rub and then hold to your head to see your hair stand)! The normal Cycle on my dryer runs for about 1 hour 30 mins, when I started my experimenting I discovered the clothes are dry between 20-45 mins depending on the load size and types of fabric...so on days when I was busy (most of the time) and let the dryer run the full cycle they were in there double what they needed to be and that was causing our severe static issue! So to resolve that we now use the Timed Dryer Cycle and not only has it cut the static completely, my dryer finishes before my washer so I am knocking out the laundry in no time at all!!
Scent
I was rather disappointed with how short the essential oils last, I add about 5-10 drops to each ball and it will last for about 10 loads. I was informed that the essential oils from Michaels, while economical are not the most quality, I suppose maybe they are watered down to make it cheaper. I was referred to try the essential oils from www.soapgoods.com, the cost is not much more then michaels. I have not tried this yet but will be soon and will post an update then!!
Static
About 2 weeks in - my husband finally gave in and said "Something is wrong here" as he's walking by a folded pile of clothes and the hair on his arms is standing straight out!! This was not only happening fresh out of the dryer, it stayed with all the laundry - Our sheets were very clingy and one night I went in to check on my son while he was sleeping and when I touched the blanket I could see the spark of static. So after admitting we had a problem, I did some research and experimenting and found out exactly what it was!! While the wool Dryer Balls will reduce static, once the clothes are dry they will continue to rub and rub creating friction and you guessed it STATIC (just like a balloon you rub and then hold to your head to see your hair stand)! The normal Cycle on my dryer runs for about 1 hour 30 mins, when I started my experimenting I discovered the clothes are dry between 20-45 mins depending on the load size and types of fabric...so on days when I was busy (most of the time) and let the dryer run the full cycle they were in there double what they needed to be and that was causing our severe static issue! So to resolve that we now use the Timed Dryer Cycle and not only has it cut the static completely, my dryer finishes before my washer so I am knocking out the laundry in no time at all!!
Scent
I was rather disappointed with how short the essential oils last, I add about 5-10 drops to each ball and it will last for about 10 loads. I was informed that the essential oils from Michaels, while economical are not the most quality, I suppose maybe they are watered down to make it cheaper. I was referred to try the essential oils from www.soapgoods.com, the cost is not much more then michaels. I have not tried this yet but will be soon and will post an update then!!
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