Homemade Fabric Softener for Use in Your Washer

So I was telling my mom I was scared of this recipe because of the vinegar in my clothes and she said...oh yes honey....vinegar will take bad smells out of clothes and it will keep dark clothes from fading. Well there you go......May have to give this a try because I just ran out of store bought softener.  My mama knows everything!!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup baking soda

3 cups distilled white vinegar

4 cups water, divided

Equipment:

Large plastic bucket to mix ingredients (non-metallic and larger than 1 gallon)

A plastic container to store your fabric softener (you can use an old milk jug, I used a dollar store pitcher)

Funnel

Instructions:

Measure 1/2 cup baking soda and place in a plastic bucket.

Add the 2 cups of water and mix with the baking soda.

VERY, VERY slowly add the vinegar to your bucket: the vinegar and baking soda will start to fizz.

The add the remaining 2 cups of water and swirl to mix.

Using a funnel, transfer the softener to your storage container (pour slowly)

How to Use:

With the lid OFF your bottle, swirl the fabric softener to mix. For an older model machine, use 1 cup of fabric softener in the final rinse cycle. For a newer HE machine, I use only 1/2 cup. This can be used in a downy ball.

Notes:

*NEVER swirl or shake your fabric softener with the lid on your bottle....it might explode

*You can add 2 or 3 drops of an essential oil for fragrance if you'd like before you add the softener to your machine.