Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets
I’ve been keeping a secret from y’all and I just can’t live with it anymore. I have a miracle stain remover recipe that has time and again proven to work on some of the most stubborn stains. Plus, find out why we don’t need dryer sheets anymore!
Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets
Recently, Pretty Handsome Guy came back from a business trip with a stained button-down shirt. It had wing sauce on it AND it had been allowed to settle for a few days AND he hadn’t pre-soaked it or used any stain remover. (Have I not taught him anything?! Sigh.) I thought for sure the shirt was a goner. But, I decided to put my miracle stain remover recipe to the test. Low and behold after 24 hours of soaking in the concoction, the stain was magically gone! No scrubbing, it was simply gone. Can I apply for a magic wand now?
I can’t lay claim to the recipe. I found it on our local “Mommy” message board back when I was a new mom. But, this recipe has worked on more stains than I can count.
I mixed up a batch today to try on one of my son’s shirts that got blueberry jelly on it. My mom tried to wash it to get the stain out, but it was still there after laundering. Normally once a stain goes through the dryer it is set in. But, that didn’t deter the me from trying my Miracle Stain Remover. Sit back and learn young Jedis (we watched Star Wars last week, so it is on my brain.)
Miracle Stain Remover…
Ingredients:
(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)
- 1 scoop of Oxi-Clean
- 1 scoop of Liquid Clorox 2
- 1 scoop of Cascade powder dishwashing detergent (or another powered brand.)
Fill your basin with warm water then add the Oxi-clean, Clorox 2, and powdered Dish Detergent. Give it a swirl and mix until the powders dissolve and bubbles form.
Place the stained garment into the mixture, being sure the stain is submerged. After two hours you can take a peek! My stain was gone.
For tougher stains, let it soak overnight. Remove the clothing to behold the miracle! Normally I will throw the garment into the wash, but you could simply rinse and dry it.
And, this formula is also safe for colors as well!
Laundry Detergent…
In the spirit of sharing, I also have this recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for only $1.25 per year! I mean, have you seen the price of laundry detergent lately?! 200 oz. for “gulp” $35! Whereas the recipe I made yielded 250 oz. for….are you ready for this…$0.61! This is a 97% saving on detergent by making your own.
And the best news is that it is safe for HE washers. You only need 1/4 cup per load. Click Here to Get the Recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for $1.25 per year!
Drying clothes…
And since I’m talking laundry today, this post wouldn’t be complete without mentioning my secret weapon for drying clothes.
I use two of them! They may look like medieval torture devices or rabid animals, but these little hedgehog dryer balls have completely kicked our fabric softener sheets to the curb! I haven’t used dryer sheets in over 9 years now! At first I was concerned about static (the bane of my hair’s existence), but then a friend told me that you can eliminate static by not letting your clothes over dry. Simply shut off the dryer when your clothes are about 95% dry. Don’t let the dryer run and run and run until the clothes are piping hot and there isn’t a spot of dampness on them. Instead, let the moisture sensor (if you have one) do its job and it should shut off right before the clothes are dry. The waistbands in jeans or sweatpants may feel slightly damp, but everything else feels dry. And most importantly, pull out fleece, polyester, or synthetic clothes about halfway through the cycle.
The dryer balls (you should use two) work together to punch, separate, fluff, and dry your clothes. They also help keep wrinkles to a minimum, but I’m not afraid of a few wrinkles (see my no iron solution to wrinkles post.) The Dryer Balls cost less than $10, but the cost savings of not using dryer sheets is definitely worth it. Plus, you don’t have to stress about the chemicals that are in dryer sheets. These little wonder balls (I can’t believe I just typed that) last for a long time, but it’s good to have three in case one hedgehog loses a nose (it can happen.) I have been using mine for over nine years. They start to get darker on the nubs from dye in your clothing, but it doesn’t transfer and it doesn’t hurt their effectiveness.
Greetings! I am so in love with the idea of make-at-home detergent! I’m a bit concerned, though, because I have pretty sensitive skin and am worried the homemade will aggravate it? I currently use All Free & Clear, which has no dyes or perfumes .. Any advice out there for me?
Thanks 🙂
Stephanie,
I tried making the detergent at home and loved it for most of the family. It was pretty easy to do and was definitely cost effective. But my teenage daughter who has allergies and and eczema had a terrible time with it. It really aggravated the eczema within a week of using it, and we had to go back to the All Free and Clear. We used Ivory soap with it as well. If there are any other suggestions, I would love it.
I would use whatever soap you’ve found to use as an allover wash for the shower, and see if that works
haven’t had any issues with my sensitive skin, although I have no allergies so I can’t advise on that part.
Stephanie, I’m not sure but perhaps you can find an alternative to for the Fels Naptha. That is the one that has the most perfume. I think the other ingredients are essentially odorless, but I’d double check.
Try using Zote laundry soap instead of Fels Naptha. It works well on stains, too. Just wet the end of the bar and rub directly on the stain before washing. Can be found with the other laundry soaps.
Zote works great!
Thanks so much for posting this! The timing could not have been better. Was dealing with frustrating laundry stains and then read your blog. Ahhh!
I recently made this same detergent. I also missed the smell of my old detergent. I happen to have a really good coupon for the DOWNY UNSTOPPABLE, so I bought a container of that and dumped in. Though it looks like you turned yours to liquid?? Left mine powder form nad just stirred it all together. I just pour it directly into the tub instead of using the detergent dispencer.
I started using a recipe for homemade laundry soap similar to this one. She suggests a fourth ingredient of Dial or Irish Spring bar soap. http://nurturingthenest.blogspot.com/2010/02/homemade-laundry-detergent.html I have loved it so far. Anything to save money these days. Thanks to Kat Moss for the tip on drying out the bars. I don’t have a food processor and found it difficult to hand grade because the bars were still pretty soft. Drying them out will be much easier. Brittany, thanks for the info on the dryer balls. I will have to try them. I also use vinegar instead of fabric softener and I like the way my clothes feel much better with the vinegar. Meg, thanks for the tip on using vinegar as a rinse aid. I never knew you could use it that way. I love being empowered and having the ability to make my own cleaning solutions. Thanks for sharing everyone!
Julie, I’ll have to check that other recipe out. Thanks!
I’m going back to re-read this post and take notes! I’m amazed at how much laundry I do, and the COST is staggering! (Of course, three of the five members of this family are over 6’5″, so their clothes are really big.)
I nearly teared up at the thought of your letting your boys watch Star Wars for the first time. I still remember the first time my fellows watched. Our lives were changed! And I’m fine with that. 🙂
Wow Richella, those are some tall guys you live with! We have been anxiously awaiting our boys to be old enough to ski and watch Star Wars! We started them on skis two winters ago, and this year it was time to introduce them to “The Force!” ;-D
So nice of you to share your ‘secret’ stain fighting weapon.
Question tho – How much is a ‘scoop’ of the products? I know that OxyClean has a scoop, but confused about the others. Use same scoop? or about how much in measurement?
Love your site. Thanks
Equal parts of all three. Just use the oxyclean scoop for each.
Brittany, great post. I enjoy saving money and you’re right laundry soap prices are astronomical. We pay more for less product. I’m going to give this a try. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing! Wow, miracle stain remover is wonderful! I’m going to try the dryer balls too!
We’ve been making our own laundry soaps for about 5 years now using this same recipe, although we’re lazy and do the powdered recipe. We also use a small food processor to grate up the soap – much easier! It also helps if you’ve opened up the Fels and let it dry out for a few weeks (months), it’ll grate easier. What we do is when we make a new batch, we open up 3 bars to dry out until the next time. They totally help with giving a great scent to closets! We’ve been using white vinegar in lieu of fabric softener, but may have to try the dryer balls instead, one less thing to buy…I like that.
Great tip! Thanks Kat.
I’m wondering what you would need to do to this recipe to make it HE compatible. Anything? Love the idea but don’t want bubbles taking over my laundry room… any ideas?
It works fine with HE machines!
Also just wanted to say that on the Dugger family website they offer a dry laundry powder recipe as well as the liquid… I use the dry recipe as it is much less complicated (1 cup super washing powder, I cup borax, 1 grated bar of Fels-Naptha). I do use the warm water setting though…. Sometimes on cold the soap wouldn’t dissolve completely…
Ace Hardware also carries the ingredients..
Hi, I tried this laundry recipe a while back and love it too! And for the person who doesn’t like the smell of Fels-Naptha, the smell is almost gone after the wash and totally gone after they come out of the dryer. I miss a scent and have tried replacing the Fels with Dr. Bronners Castillo soap (peppermint!) but alas the smell still doesn’t stay. And Bronners is much more expensive than Fels…so I will stick with cheap.
My helpful hint is to use your food processor (using the cheese grater disc) instead of a hand grater to grate up your bar of soap… Done in seconds!! I saw another recipe that also added in a scoop of oxyclean.. May throw that in there next time too just to try it.
Question about your stain remover… The bane of my existence are little oily spots on my shirts (usually from salad dressing splatters)… Does it work well on that?? Pretty much every shirt in my wardrobe has them…
Tricia, I’m not sure about the oil stains, but I recently heard to put a drop of dawn (or other grease fighting) dish detergent on the stain and let it sit for a while. The dawn will cut into the oil and pull it out. I did have good luck with this on a blouse I have. If it doesn’t work, try the miracle stain remover 😉
I get it on me almost every time!!! When you first notice oily stain, rub a little baby powder on area, leave on about 30 minutes and brush off. Repeat if needed. It usually takes all of it off, but put a tiny drop of dawn on it, if in doubt, rub it in and launder. Works every time!!
Also, as a last resort, oven cleaner supposedly gets grease/oil stains out of clothes. My mommy told me, I haven’t tried it but I believe her. She is the Queen of thrift and ingenuity! (She also warns to test the fabric in an inconspicuous area like the back of a collar.)
Thanks! Oh my, if its as easy as a drop of Dawn, shame on me!
Ladies,
I’ve been using a palin old bar of had soap on my spots. Even on items already put thru the wash. I hgad a deep red blouse with oil stains on is, so I tried settinbg the spot and erubbing it with the bar of soap, washed as usual and it was gone. Doesn’t matter what kind of bar soap, I bought the cheapest the grocery had! Worth a try!
Desiree
I’ve been meaning to reply!! A teeny drop of Dawn totally works… THANKS!!
Tricia not sure if you will read this over 3 years later but i recently started making my laundry soap and i love it but not only that my mother who is a fanatic of her laundry also absolutly loves it. She like you for as far as i can remember has had a issue with little oil spots on her clothes that drive her crazy and insisted on top of the line laundry soap that would get some of it out. After i made the soap and she did a load of laundry trying it i wasnt able to use the washing machine for over a week cause she loved it and washed everything she could put her hands on. And she said she was amazed with it for removing ALL of the spots on her clothes. we,have now made enough to last a year she doesnt want to run out. lol
For oil spots that don’t wash out of clothing… make sure the piece is thoroughly dry, then rub some baking soda on the oil or grease spot and let it sit a few minutes. Then brush it off. The baking soda will absorb the oil or grease and goodbye spot! This works if you are still wearing the piece when you get spattered, too.
Hi, I bought the Fels-Naptha tonight with the thought of making the laundry soap, but I gotta say it’s SO SO SO perfumey.
I wasn’t expecting that.
I should have looked at the back of the bar before purchasing, I assumed since it was all old-timey cool looking it would have minimal ingredients.
Still a cool idea making your own soap but for any one thinking of purchasing it, especially if they were getting it on-line, be aware of the scent, if you’re used to unscented soap products it’s not the soap for you.
Tracey, yes the fels naphtha does have a strong smell until you make the recipe and it is really diluted. I can barely smell our detergent now. In fact I really miss the scent.
We made the dry detergent formula and used Ivory soap instead of the Fels. I think it smells great. Plus, Ivory was cheaper. With the Ivory, you just microwave each bar for about a minute, let it cool, and then the “foam” it creates crumbles into dust. Youtube it, its pretty awesome.
Wow what a fantastic Idea. I have been using the Fels, but I think the Ivory might dissolve better. Then a Burlap bag of lavender and vanilla bean in the dryer!
Thanks a ton! A friend has been meaning to give me her recipe, which I suspect is the same as the one you posted, but hasn’t gotten to. And the homemade detergent…I never dreamed this possible. I’m going to start replacing rinse agent for the dish washer with vinegar (tinted with food coloring) soon, too.
Oh do tell me more about that rinse agent!
Is it for the dishwasher? Why add the dye?
There are several blogs DIY blogs like this one: http://www.diynatural.com/simple-effective-jabs-homemade-dishwasher-detergent-rinse-agent/ that have listed this replacement. Put vinegar into the dispenser exactly like the rinse agent. The blue tinting is so you can more easily see when you are out of vinegar in the dispenser, but you don’t have to use it if you don’t want. Hope this helps!
I already do this, and my glasses always come out spotless and the plastics are not foggy anymore! I love this tidbit of gold handed to me from a good friend of mine! (I do not die the vinegar, i just dump a 1/4 cup in the bottom of the washer every load, might be more work then it needs to be, but that way i make sure its in there lol
Update: I’ve learned not to put the vinegar directly into the rinse agent dispenser. The vinegar breaks down the plastic internal elements which can spell trouble. Sorry if I led anyone astray, I didn’t know this until recently. 🙁
I tried vinegar in my rinse dispenser and brown rusty looking crud came out and stained a huge line down my dishwasher door. It breaks down the working parts within the door and they come out as rust. I would not advise doing this.
I am glad to finally know someone personally who has tried the laundry detergent. I am definitely going to make it now, especially because we have Borax here because of a science project 🙂
We use the wool laundry balls purchased on etsy, they work great too!