Laundry -
 

Do you prefer to have your freshly washed things to be scented from the detergent/softener/dryer sheets?

Or do you prefer to have your things unscented?

I sort of miss the (light) fragrance from some of the detergents I had been using - but now I'm using Shaklee laundry detergent which leaves the things smelling like "nothing."

Not so crazy about the fragrances I can smell 200 or more feet away from the source.

How about you?

I try to buy the unscented laundry items. That is rather hard to do with dryer sheets - but at least the perfumes aren't overwhelming each other.

i love great smelling laundry.

since we have a lot of allergies, i now stick to unscented

I am (gasp!) a smoker - DH quit about 10 yrs ago. I've always used scented detergents/softeners. A year or so ago, DH also asked me to start using the scented 'beads' in the laundry as well, which I do. All is good for a few days.

I pulled a set of sheets out of the closet the other day which had been there for a couple of months since last being laundered. When I got into bed that night, they only smell like 'fabric' - no lasting scent from any of the products used (or anything else for that matter). Smelled like quilting fabric that I bring home fresh (as it were) from the fabric store - starchy/sizing??

So I'm not sure that all those scents (for those of us who do not have sensitivities) are really worth. But I'll still use them.

I don't wan any scent in my laundry products. That includes spray starch.

The only scent I really liked was Tide Clean Breeze. But now I make my own laundry powder and it has no scent, but, the clothes come out of the dryer smelling like they've been outside. Don't know how that happens. I also don't like scented hand lotion but don't mind scented body lotion. We are not allergic to scents.

I prefer mine to be just clean smelling, or have a very light scent.

I use liquid Ecos detergent-from Costco, and am very pleased. A light scent.
I use white vinegar as a natural fabric softener.
My laundry has no scent when done. :)

I find most detergents and softeners have way too much scent. I don't even like the "unscented" stuff-has a very chemical smell to me.

For my quilting fabrics, I use Best Press in the Caribbean scent, or Magic Brand Sizing.

I use non scented dryer sheets. I use Tide pods and the Persil pods and they are scented but can't smell them after drying. I have All Free and Clear pods for back up. Love the pods. So easy.

Unscented preferred...when my husband does the sheets/pillowcases he uses lavendar scented sprinkles. It's ok, but distracting when I'm trying to go to sleep.

I just use a splash of fabric softener. I want my sheets hung on the line outside to smell like fresh air!

Unscented everything not just laundry products due to health reasons. I've always thought that clothesline dried laundry smells so much better.

I agree with the unscented everything, but it seems like it's getting harder and harder to find unscented products.

It's Tide and Downy for me. Wish we had a clothes line, but living in the country with corn fields, you never know about the birds flying over or dust from the fields.

I have been thinking about trying to make my own laundry soap. Would you care to share your method/recipe?

As different scents bother me, I have switched to using 2 dryer balls instead of the dryer sheets. I've had mine at least 5 years and still look like new so it also saves money on buying the sheets.

Unscented-- I wish the stores would find a spot for all the unscented things like soaps-deodorant-shampoo/conditioner and laundry products. Going up these aisle's takes my breath away. There are way to many over powering perfumes in such a small area.

The scents bother me and I read an article where tests had been done and they found that the scents used can cause cancer so I am glad I don't us any of it.
Lynda

I like the smell of "fresh" the out side scent. However, not all housing areas will allow a clothesline outside. I buy a good essential oil in the aroma I want and sprinkle about 10 drops on a clean rag and pitch it in the dryer. The scent lasts a long time. I was told many years ago not to use dryer sheets because they deposit a waxy oil to your dryer and clothes.

Use unscented laundry and vinegar for softener.

I find unscented items work for me since I seem to be more sensitive to scents now. I have used the detergent by Norwex for a few years now, and it is the only detergent I use. I started out with a couple of their dyer balls, but you can find them at JoAnn's, Bed and Bath Beyond, etc. I found directions for making my own dryer balls out of 100% wool (the kind that has to be hand washed) and I love them. You can make as many as you want. They make the clothes dry faster with fewer wrinkles.

Unscented everything here, laundry to personal...

When I hit about 40, any and all scents started triggering migraines. They make the blood vessels in my temples contract. So, no scents of any kind. Dryer sheets seem to be the worst offenders! I had to forbid my son, who was grown and does his own laundry, from bringing a box of dryer sheets into the house. Or wearing his cologne in the house. Of course, he thought I was making it all up because I am an old hysterical woman...

It kills me to be around a woman who has doused herself in strong perfume. I just want to run.

i am highly allergic to scents and dyes so buy detergent without. my son is now allergic too, so we use the same detergent.

I like a light clean scent in my laundered items. I especially love the small of things right off the clothesline outside. Allergies have put a stop to that as I have aged..:)

No scent due to allergies and migraines. I have a friend with chemical sensitivities who calls my house the neutral zone because there is absolutely no "smell" in my house unless she stops by when I'm cooking. I have noticed when I walk in the neighborhood you can tell who is doing laundry. The smell of the detergent and dryer sheets pours out of the dryer exhaust hose.

I don't use softener or dryer sheets. My clothes go outside to dry and that is the best scent of all imho.

I use the Tide pods and they have a very light scent. I have started using felted wool balls in my dryer so no competing scents. I really like how they leave my clothes.

my method is for a single batch one bar of Zote laundry soap shredded in food processor or grated with grater. Easier in food processor. I cut the bar lengthwise in three sections and push them through. This gives shreds. Then I put the other blade in and whir it around til it makes small balls. Then I add about a cup and a half of arm and hammer washing soda (not baking soda) and about a cup and a half of borax and whir it around in batches. It comes out looking like powdered laundry detergent. It makes NO suds and I use it in my HE machine. I usually make two batches. Use about 2 tbsp per load. For us it gets the laundry clean and fresh smelling. We don't do any kind of work which would make for a challenging laundry

i did make my own dryer balls with aluminum foil and wool roving. I saw it on line. Easy. They are permanently in the dryer. I don't use fabric softener. Haven't needed vinegar yet for our needs.

No scents in our home. They always give DH a headache. I don't use perfume or scented hair spray & I don't even use candles (unless they are very, very mild).

No scents in laundry, use Nellie's dryer balls in dryer. Rarely will I use real bleach but the smell takes me back to my childhood. Back then it was Tide, Clorox Bleach and sometimes Breeze detergent with a free Cannon towel at the top of the box. The smell I really love is laundry hung outside to dry. Oh, those were the days.

At the RV part we winter in (near Dade City, Florida) about half the people still line dry their laundry.

unscented, all the time. Chemical fragrances instantly make my nose and eyes crazy.

Plastic beads - I understand that they don't degrade and wind up in our water supply. Fish and other wildlife are consuming them when they drink. It's reasonable to say that no one knows the long term affects of those tiny little beads on the world. They are in a number of beauty products, too.

Unscented....I hate when I go outside and I can smell the neighbors doing their laundry.

I like the scents!

It is amazing how many people nowadays are allergic to scents. I also get chemical allergies and when I worked at for a drug store's training department and the cosmetic ladies came in (some immersed in their fragrances) I would always get a headache that would last all day and sometimes into the night. Because of so many people are also allergic to chemical smells, I no longer wear perfume or scents.

However, I do love the smell of laundry dried outdoors. When they washed and dried indoors, I use no scents whatsoever.

I also remember the boxes of laundry soaps that would come with free glasses and free towels. Those were the days and most of those glasses and towels ended up in my trousseau.

Cold water Tide and Downy for me. After the time I spend doing laundry I want it to small clean. No hanging outside, too much time and have to rewash because of the birds. I love clothes out of the dryer, soft and unwrinkled.

The best smell comes from laundry left outside overnight when it is cool to cold to very cold.

I like no scents but I use Tide HE and it has scents! I made my own dryer balls from wool yarn and they work great. DH is allergic to Downy so these balls do help soften the clothes. We have hard water and no water softener so that is another problem. I may try vinegar but I don't know how much. I don't want my clothes to smell like vinegar.