Crayola Explosion

** This is not a sponsored post **

I feel like kids watch too much television these days, and sometimes I feel like it's a necessary evil. I try not to use television to buy me time to do things all the time, and today I opted for painting time in the kids' toy room. Bobble and Squiggle had begged all morning, and they even cleaned up their room so they could paint in there. The floor is a hard floor, so it works fairly well. No carpet to worry about messing up.

I needed just a little bit of time. The tiniest bit of time. Two cartoons would have done it (about 30-40 minutes), or part of a movie, even. Still, they want to paint. I want to let them do stuff away from the television. I allow it. I grab the Crayola Washable Kids' Paint, the paintbrushes, and some paper. They sit down quietly and start to paint.

Now, I'd like to point out that in the recent past, painting has gone quite well with them.

They focus quite well on the task at hand, even when the wind is trying to blow away their pictures (which is why there are rocks on the corners). The paints above are Crayola Washable Kids' Paint (paint pots), and though they don't hold much paint (which was bad for Squiggle since she scoops globs of paint out versus dipping and painting like Bobble), they worked nicely while they lasted. This gave me hope that this painting time would go well.

Their play room is directly above my head as I am washing and chopping potatoes, carrots, and celery. (Well, I peeled the carrots, too.) I hear them chatting as they paint. I hear excited foot steps from time to time, and I imagine them running over for a new sheet of paper from the pile. I wonder how bad the mess will be when I go up there, but still. Creative time. Cooking time. It was working.

... until I realized it wasn't. Bobble comes down the stairs and says that they started painting with their feet. I look at him, pause for a second, and then tell him, "Okay... I want you to go back upstairs until you are done painting, then call for me." I cringed a bit as he ran back up the (carpeted) stairs.

They decide they are done and they come downstairs, bringing with them containers of empty paint. Containers that were full when they started. I guessed that Squiggle glopped paint onto her paper since she doesn't dip her brush so much as scoop with her brush. I directed them towards the bathroom and asked them to clean up.

Then I go upstairs.

I stare blankly at the disaster, come downstairs, grab my phone, and record the explosion of colour in video and colour.

It was at this moment that I noticed the slogan on the (now empty) box of paint: Washability You Can Trust!

I sure hope so, Crayola. I sure hope so.

I grab dirty towels, a garbage bag, and a bottle of vinegar, then head back upstairs. I noticed the cup of water they were cleaning their brushes off with, and decided to utilize that water. This is water-soluble paint, right? It worked well, and I started pouring the water all over the dried paint that decorated our floor.

Pushing the towels across the floor, you could see the paint that it loosened just pushing away with the excess water that wasn't getting absorbed.

It didn't really make me scrub hard or anything, just wiping enough to make my arms tired after the millionth minute. I didn't need to use the vinegar at all.

It washed off the floor easily. It washed off the walls easily. It washed off the kids easily.

...but what about the laundry!? Her cute dress, the towels used to clean the mess... they are really testing Crayola's claim!

The open(ish) towel is a light blue normally, the wadded towel on the bottom is a medium-light brown. I used more towels than this, but this was just a sampling.

I washed them with our regular laundry detergent (some random store brand of free & clear detergent), dried them, and here they are:

I didn't take a picture of any of these towels open because I can't tell which ones I used for cleanup! I know the brown on top was used and the bright blue below it was used because those are the only two that colour in the load. I don't know which of the lighter blue (on the right) were used. The wipes in the picture were not used in cleanup, but are now stained.

Much cleaner than it was, but visibly stained.

Bottom half of the dress

Bottom section of dress on the back/side of dress

As far as the claim on washability, I'm split. The floor (walls, desk, table...) were a surprisingly easy clean. It gave me faith that the laundry stood a fighting chance... and the towels came out great. I can't tell which ones I used. The wipes that happened to be in the load with them (that weren't used on any paint) are very stained (they were white), and the dress is much cleaner, but it's not clean. The dress is definitely a crafting dress now, sadly. The confusing part of that (to me) is that the dress and towels are both cotton, and the wipes were cotton, hemp, and bamboo. If it washed out of the cotton towels, why didn't it wash out of the cotton dress?

I do need to thank you, Crayola, for living up to your claim in ease of clean up. I just wish it washed out of the clothing, too!

Over all, I'd recommend the products. They washed off the surfaces and children very easily. I would just recommend using old clothing that you don't care about while they paint (unless your kids will actually keep a smock on... mine won't!), or buy plain white clothes for craft time so they slowly become "artistic" looking clothes. My kids love tie dye, so I'm sure they'd love "painted" clothing. I just wish it wasn't this cute little dress that had to be the casualty!

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff is responsible for the content of this post. Crayola did not sponsor this post in any way. All products mentioned above were purchased by me, and all opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.

Cloth 101: Drying Cloth Diapers

Drying cloth diapers isn't a difficult task, though different people definitely have different preferences for how it should be done.

Dryer: You can use your dryer to dry all your diapers and covers *EXCEPT WOOL*. While prefolds and flats can take a beating, and you could dry these on higher temperatures (, anything with PUL you'll want to dry on low or no heat.

Hanging to dry (Outside): Line drying is a great way to dry diapers, but you need to be careful with that, too. Try to avoid having your PUL in direct sunlight for prolonged periods of time. Also try to avoid the hottest part of the day. No, your diapers won't suddenly burst into flame, you just want to be sure that they don't get hot enough that it damages the PUL (same reason you don't want to be drying in high in the dryer) or ruins your elastics (they can become brittle).

Hanging to dry (Inside): Rainy days, freezing/snowy days, or you just don't have a clothes line? No biggie! A drying rack can be super handy. If you don't have a drying rack, you can get octopus hangers to dry your diapers. If you run out of clips on that, you can drape extras across the top like this:

Other places you could dry diapers (inside): Curtain rods, over the edges of baskets and chairs, shower curtain rod... get creative!

My diapers tend to see a combination of both hanging and line drying. Sometimes the PUL/TPU diapers will go in the dryer, but normally they are hanging to dry. I'll usually throw my inserts in the dryer to expedite the process. If I hang those to dry, I will throw them in for a few minutes to soften them up (wool dryer balls).

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff is responsible for the content of this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.

Cloth 101: Washing and Prepping in a Front Loader

You've decided on cloth diapering, but now you're staring at a bunch of unprepped diapers and a high-efficiency front-loading washer. What to do now?! No worries! Grab your diapers, your detergent, and get ready to prep (and wash)!

To start, you want to make sure that you know how to prep your diapers. Man-made materials need to be prepped differently than natural materials such as bamboo, hemp, or cotton, so make sure you look to see what your diapers are made of before you go any further.

All your diapers will come with different washing instructions, so make sure to read what is recommended by the manufacturer to start. Any covers and microfiber items only need one wash and they are good to go. Easy-peasy! If you have natural material items, you'll want to do multiple washes to take the natural oils off of the materials (these oils can prevent the material from absorbing liquid, and if you accidentally wash with other diapers before these are prepped, they can get on the other diapers and cause repelling). Depending on the brand, you could see recommendations for anywhere from 3 to 7 washes before first use. I always try to do at least 5 washes, but the more they get washed, the more absorbent they will become. If you only have a couple of natural items to prep, you can wash them with loads of clothes or towels (whichever you wash on hot) so you don't feel like you're wasting water.

Your wash routine is going to be the trickier aspect of washing your diapers because no one way will work for everyone. There are many variables to take into consideration when coming up with your wash routine. First, you want to know your water type. This will determine how much detergent you need to use. The harder your water, the more detergent you need to use each wash. Once you know what type of water you have, you'll want to pick your detergent. Different diaper manufacturers recommend different types of detergent. The important thing to remember is that a cloth-diaper safe detergent will not void warranties on diapers. If you opt to use a commercial detergent, this may void a warranty, so take that into consideration!

Everyone seems to have a variation on a cloth diaper washing routine, but the basic routine seems to be:

1. Pre-rinse (cold) with partial amount of detergent
2. Wash (hot) with detergent
3. Rinse (warm) without detergent

Here are some tips to get your diapers the cleanest you can:

• Rinse and/or knock solid waste out of diapers before adding to diaper pail or wetbag 
• If your child is exclusively breastfed, you don't need to rinse the diaper (though this can prevent staining) 
• If your child sleeps for extended periods of time, the diapers can have a stronger smell to them. Rinsing these diapers before putting in a wetbag or diaper pail will help cut down on smell

•  Dissolve your powdered detergent in a bit of hot water before adding to the washer 
• Dissolving your detergent before adding to your wash helps prevent buildup on the diapers from any granuals that might not have gotten fully dissolved

• In HE FL washers, the more delicate the cycle, the more water it will use 
• HE washers are designed to use less water, but that isn't helpful when washing cloth diapers! Since there is no agitator in an HE FL washer, the clothes are expected to beat against other clothing items to get clean. There will be more friction if there is less water. To be more gentle on delicates (less friction), the machine adds more water when more delicate cycles are selected. This is great for washing diapers!

• If you have a button to select soil level, select 'heavily soiled' to make sure you still get a good clean! 
• Some machines have an "extra water" or "water plus" button. If your machine has one of these, use it for your cloth!

• Wash 12-18 diapers per load 
• If you find that you have a significant amount of suds and have to rinse a lot after your wash cycle, try adding a few more diapers to your load next time or using a little bit less soap. Any time you add/remove a significant amount of diapers to your wash, remember it could alter the rest of your routine (might need more/less soap to make sure they get clean).

• Sun, sun, sun! 
• The sun can be your best friend! Not only will the sun help take away stains, but it does a great job disinfecting/sterilizing your diapers, too!

Once you find what routine works best for you, stick with it! HE FL Machines can do a fantastic job cleaning cloth diapers!

** This does not apply to wool covers **

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Post may contain affiliate links. 

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 7

Day 7: Overall experience. What did you learn? Would you do it?

So here we are, day 7! I honestly can't believe it's already day 7. Probably because I only washed every other day, so I washed Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I'm debating on whether I should wash the diapers tomorrow morning by hand (since they were from the challenge and, therefore, should technically be handwashed, or if I should just throw them in the machine (hey, the challenge is technically over, right?).

My overall experience was a positive one. I was surprised at how easy it was to handwash stuff. I didn't have anything fancy. I had no camping washer with a plunger, I had no washboard (yes, I'm calling these 'fancy'! *laughs* )... I just have me, a bucket, water, and soap. Oh, wait... I had my fancy IKEA octopus hangers. They were awesome! (Especially since it rained most of the week here and I had to dry inside!)

The diapers were easy to clean. I always knew which she pooped on, but thankfully the diaper sprayer was allowed to be used. It would have sucked a bit more if I didn't have one. I still would have done it, though. I didn't wear any gloves. I didn't see the point. Most of the poo was off thanks to the sprayer, and when we visit family we don't really have a sprayer to use (well, we do at my mom's, but not hubby's mom's) so I dunk and swish as best I can without gloves. I figured that was a waste of money I just didn't have to spend.

I learned diapers are easy to clean. That, and flats are pretty darn awesome. My heavy wetter that needs two inserts (and sometimes a booster) at night in her pockets? Yeah. ONE FLAT and she was good all night. I'm starting to wonder if the pockets have issues simply because of the absorbent material being in one strip as opposed to wrapped around baby. Compression from baby moving in a flat (folded around baby) would just send extra moisture to other parts of the material. Compression of baby in pocket with inserts (or maybe even a flat? I haven't tested that one at night...) would just expel the moisture. I'm thinking we will stick to flats for night time. They don't hold smell as much as MF. I will still use some of my fitteds, of course, but the flats don't hold smell like fitteds. Much easier to clean. It just boggles my mind that ONE flat can do what multiple MF inserts can't.

I would totally do this if I needed to. This is a much better option than a laundromat! In fact, I'm contemplating getting a washboard and trying my hand at our clothes, now. I'm rather curious...

Oh, one more thing! This is QUICKER than doing diapers in the washer/dryer for me. Namely because I can't forget about them in the washer, run a million rinse cycles because I can't remember if I did it or not already, then forget to put them in the dryer. My husband is normally irritated that diaper laundry takes "a full day" to do (because of the above), but my washing took about 30 minutes by hand, and then I would just let them dry until the next morning, take them down, use them, repeat.

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 6

Day 6: Open Topic

I just wanted to share that anyone can do this. You think you're too lazy? I'm lazy, too! Wait, I have proof!

Yesterday, Thursday and day 5 of the Flats & handwashing challenge, I stuffed a loaded of pocket diapers with microfiber inserts right out of the dryer. I WASHED THEM AND DRIED THEM FRIDAY BEFORE THE CHALLENGE. That means I waited an entire week before doing something with them. I just let them sit in the dryer since I didn't need them. Also, that means I have slacked on doing ANY laundry all week. *twiddles thumbs*

Sooooo, yes. Lazy people can handwash, too! In fact, this actually is faster than my normal laundry routine, as I don't procrastinate going and starting the next cycle, switching the laundry over, or stuffing them. I have a limited amount of flats, and so they stay 'caught up' in terms of laundering.

I have noticed that the overnight diapers smell ripe the last 2 nights. I don't think I am using enough soap. It was hard to judge what amount of soap I should use for such a small amount of diapers, so I sort of was winging it. I'll try more soap today (diapers are soaking). If you're curious, they don't smell like ammonia, nor do they smell like barnyard. They smell like garlic. Not a yummy sort of garlic, either. I decided to add a few drops of TTO to my soak this morning, and I'll let them soak a bit longer than normal. I have some seeds to start for our garden, anyway. (Yes, I've been putting that off, too!)

So, for all you lazy people like me, YOU CAN DO IT! It's a good little work out (and, if you're like me, the only one you get that day other than chasing a toddler), it's faster than using the machines (again, especially if you forget about it or put it off a bunch), and it's surprisingly easy to do.

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 5

Day 5: Flats Experience, Folds you love, and Are they working?

Prior to taking this challenge, I had used flats a couple times. I only used the pad folded/trifolded and laying in a cover, or origami fold with a snappi. I rarely did the origami fold because it took time. Sometimes I would stuff a pocket with a pad folded flat, but mostly I just stuck to my pocket diapers with inserts.

Since starting this challenge, I looked at other folds to try. My biggest problem with the origami fold is that they just don't fit my chunk that great folded that way. I saw a lot of people liked the Kite Fold, so I decided to give it a try. I modify my kite fold, though.

I don't bother folding it to be a square, first. I don't care that it's crooked. I don't fold the point down, either. I like to keep that out to cover the fastener. I'll show you in a side-by-side comparison of the kite fold vs. my kite fold. They are two different sized flats, but you get the idea.

Fold corners in to a point like if you were making a paper airplane. (Note the flat on the left was folded previously to make it into a square where as the flat on the right was just folded for the first time in this step)

Fold top part down to make a triangle. This is where baby's bum will go!

Fold point of long end up to make a trapezoid (or don't.... I leave mine out like on the right!)

Fold bottom up and over baby's front

Fold wings in (then fasten!)

I fold my point over the fastener (pin, snappi, boingo, doesn't matter) so baby has less of a chance of being able to mess with it and risk getting hurt. Not really that much more protection, but it's something, right?

Normally I would fold my flat one more time (folding a tiny bit of the edges in to make it narrower) before folding it up and over baby, but you can also just roll the edges in around the legs to tuck in extra material and help prevent poop from getting out of the diaper and onto the cover. (see below example with stuffed animal):

Before folding the point up and over baby, I usually fold (or roll) the sides in a little

Yay, diaper is on!

I couldn't take these pictures with my baby as an example because, honestly, Squiggle lives up to her name. She wouldn't hold still for any of this, and you would have just had blurs!

Our flats are working great for us! I'm honestly surprised at how well they hold. If I don't put Squiggle in a double-stuffed (MF) pocket or a fitted and cover, her night time diapers normally leak. Surprisingly, we have only had one leak at night time during this challenge, and it was on the night I had the smaller size flat on her.  They have been drenched in the morning, but they've held. I've been very impressed. I prefer to use the Flip Daytime Organic inserts since I feel they hold more than my other flats, but I've had success with the larger sized flat as well.

What is your favorite fold?

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 4

Day 4 of the 4th Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge is all about wash routines

I already told you guys how I washed my diapers in day 2's post, but since I just did it again this morning, a little run down wouldn't hurt. (for all the pictures, check the linked post above)

I stopped using a diaper pail liner since I was using my pail as a wash tub. Save a step, right?

I fill up my pail (full of all the dirty items) with hot water, and let it soak while I eat breakfast or what not. I let it soak for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

I agitate (with my hands) for a few minutes before I take and drain the water out. I add some (dissolved) tiny bubbles detergent and fill it back up with hot water (as hot as I can handle).

Cue more agitation with my hands and rubbing a poopy flat under the water against itself. (yes, I know, that IS agitation... but I targeted that particular diaper since it was the only poopy one!)

I did this until the water needed to be emptied, filled with hot water again, agitated, emptied. Filled, agitated, water was clear, started rinsing.

I rinsed/agitated in the bucket, but my FINAL rinsing before hanging to dry was done under running water. I do the same thing with dishes and my husband hates it. He says it wastes too much water. I, personally, don't like bringing dishes up through whatever is floating on top (grease, particles, or soap) and calling it 'clean'. Same with my diapers. I don't have the water POURING out of the faucet, though, just running enough to do the job.

I hand wrung the items and tossed them into a clean laundry basket waiting outside the tub. One. By. One. After that, I hung them up on my octopus hanger and now they are drying while I have the day ahead of me! Of course, had I washed them yesterday instead of opting to wash every other day, they would have been outside in the sunshine and gentle breeze. It's supposed to rain again today, though.

My cleaning seemed to be decent, as we had no smell issues with any of the diapers I first handwashed. Yay!

How is this week going for you?

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 3

4th Annual Flats and Handwashing Day 3: Open Topic

Today I am sad to say I have slacked horribly. It's a beautiful, sunny day with a great breeze blowing, and I haven't washed any diapers at all today. It is looking more and more like I'll end up doing it tomorrow instead, and then complaining that I should have washed as I went. I'm great at procrastinating, have I ever mentioned that?

 

Squiggle getting ready for bed at the end of day 2

So far, the biggest surprise has actually been how much the flats hold. I figured I'd have leaks or go through a million flats, but I really don't. I have had 1 leak with Squiggle, and that was because I was using one of my smaller flats for night time last night (I didn't feel like going to the diaper bag to get the bigger one). It was a small little leak, and I just changed her and went back to bed. Using flats is a lot easier than I thought it would be! I've only handwashed 1x so far, however, so I'll hold off on my verdict for that!

Flats & Handwashing Challenge - Day 2

Day 2 of the Flats and Handwashing Challenge- what are you using and how much did it cost?

 I haven't purchased a single thing to take this challenge, and that's proving a wee bit challenging. I'll explain in a minute.

My stash shot doesn't exist, as I didn't think ahead enough to take one before we started the challenge. I have 21 flats. 12 of them are birdseye cotton flats, 6 are size 2 swaddlebees flats, and 3 are Flip organic day inserts. I have a bazillion covers, so that wasn't really an issue, though I only went through a total of 3 yesterday. 2 for Squiggle (she pooed on one), and 1 at night time for Bobble. I will probably use a total of 5 or 6 covers between the two children for the duration of this challenge, so I would say my cost was about $150 total. That is assuming the covers are $15 each. A couple were, a couple were more, a couple were less. It evens out.

I don't have a utility sink, I don't have a bucket and plunger, and I don't have one of those hand crank machines. In fact, I don't even have a washboard. Instead, I am using my diaper pail as my bucket (which, honestly, needed a good clean!), and my hands. To ensure the water got hot enough for cleaning, I used the hottest water possible (there is a temperature cap set at our house). I tried to handle the diapers at that temperature, too. This resulted in sore, burned fingers. In fact, typing this hurts. Perhaps a plunger wasn't such a bad idea.

I agitated with my hands and arms after a 30 minute hot water soak. The next 'cycle' I added some (dissolved) soap and did the same for a while. I churned the items with my hands over and over. If I had used the actual bathtub, I would have just used my feet. Unfortunately, our bathtub stopper is broken (same with the sink!). Otherwise, I would have totally gone "I Love Lucy" on those diapers! (Remember the grape/wine episode?)

After a bit, I emptied and filled with warm water to do my rinse. I pulled the covers out first since I was scared I would damage them on the inside of the diaper pail (it has four plastic sections that stick in a bit at the bottom, and I didn't want to tear the PUL!). Then I left water running as I rinsed then wrung each item. I didn't leave the water pouring out, mind you, just enough to use.

I don't remember using so many diapers yesterday, but my goodness! I think I might stick to washing as I go. It felt like hours! It was really only a total of about 30 minutes, though. They got nice and clean (I think), but I suppose we will have to see how it really worked when I put them back on the kids!

Thankfully, I have 2 of those awesome octopus hangers from IKEA (thanks, Bonnie!), though I really needed a third. Unfortunately, it is supposed to rain on and off all day, and I won't be here to bring them in if it does. I don't have a shower rod to hang them from since I have a (very annoying) sliding glass door, so I improvised. I don't know how well they will dry hanging from my curtain rod, but we'll find out! The covers I hung in our mud room, opposite our washer and dryer. This is where I normally hang my covers while doing diaper laundry.

If you're taking the challenge, how are you doing it?

Flats and Handwashing Challenge - Day 1

Why I am taking the Flats and Handwashing Challenge:

This is the 4th year of the Flats and Handwashing Challenge, and yet it's only the first time I'm actually participating. I always had reasons not to before. I didn't have many flats, I didn't have time because I was working overtime, I didn't have time or energy because I was working and heavily pregnant.... Okay, I didn't say they were GOOD reasons!

This year is different. Last summer I got laid off. Now, almost a year later, I still have no employment. I can't use the "too busy working" excuse this time. Squiggle, my youngest, is nearing 1 year old, now. I can't use pregnancy as an excuse.

Then, a few months ago, my washer wouldn't work. I kept turning it on and I could HEAR it turn on, but nothing would happen. No buttons would light up, no settings would change no matter how much I turned the knob... nothing. I had no idea what I was going to do, but I knew that my load of wash in the washer was a load of diapers. That's when I realized I was in trouble. I had no idea what to do. I had no idea how to handwash diapers, and I most certainly didn't have the money to fix my washer or get a new one.

Thankfully, the washer randomly started working normally a couple hours later, but I had decided it. I am doing the flats and handwashing challenge this year. Thanks to this challenge, there are all sorts of posts for me to read to figure out how to clean my diapers. If I can wash cloth diapers, which catch poop, clean by hand... then I can clean our laundry (clothing) by hand, too. I am taking this challenge not only to help spread awareness of how you can cloth diaper with no washer on a low budget, but also to prove to myself that I can do this if our situation with the washer goes down hill.

I am using all store bought flats and covers. Some people are using T-shirts, but I have a handful of flats and plenty of covers. Bobble only wears a diaper at night time now (and even then it is usually dry... last night was 4 dry diapers in a row!), and Squiggle is not a newborn, so she doesn't go through a million diapers a day. Still, I only have 15 flats, total. I don't have much of a choice but to do laundry daily, I'm assuming! We'll find out as the challenge progresses!

Morning 1!

Are YOU taking the Flats and Handwashing challenge? Why or why not? What holds/held you back from taking it?

I'm taking the Flats & Handwashing Challenge!

I'm not going to lie, I'm a bit nervous about this... I've never really used flats more than a handful of times, much less ONLY flats for an entire week! Oh, and handwashing? I've never handwashed anything before! There's a first for everything though, right?

To read up on the rules for the Flats & Handwashing challenge (or to sign up), check out this post on Dirty Diaper Laundry's blog.

For the eve of, Squiggle is wearing a Rump-a-rooz Charlie cover, and Bobble (legs seen above) is wearing a Thirsties PolkaDance Cover.

Let's do this!

LooHoo Wool Dryer Balls Review

When I first started cloth diapering, I knew I wasn't supposed to use dryer sheets. In fact, I stopped using those well before even getting pregnant since I found out some of the nasty things they had in them. When I found out, however, that fabric softener wasn't safe for the cloth diapers, I was at a loss. What would I do?

I decided to test some things out with our regular laundry. I wasn't about to use something in our washer that couldn't be used with my fluff, too. Residue, etc etc. If it wasn't good for the diapers, it probably wasn't good for us, right? I ran a load without softener and dried it in the dryer. Not too pleasant feeling, and lots of static. I then ran a load of wash sans fabric softener and hung it out on the line. No static, but boy if I dropped something from the line I swear it was going to shatter like glass. Stiff as can be!

After this, my husband said there was no way we would NOT use fabric softener... but then I heard about LooHoo wool dryer balls (then known as Wooly Rounds). I decided to purchase 8 of them and try them out. I got 8 since all the reading and researching I did said the more you have, the better.

Our next load of laundry tested (after receiving the wool balls) was impressive. The laundry wasn't full of static, and it was soft as can be. My husband grabbed something out of the dryer and said something about how we just have to have fabric softener because of the huge difference in softness.... he thought I had used fabric softener on that load! Well, that was a win in my book!

I've used my dryer balls every time since they arrived. Sure, sometimes there are less than 8 because one sneaks into the laundry basket (and then into Bobble's hands!), but they are always being used.

LooHoo Wool Dryer Balls are HANDMADE in Maine with 100% domestic wool. Each one is approximately the size of a baseball, ~9 inches in circumference and weighs ~ 2oz. They are sold individually or in packs, so you can get as many or as few as you like! Being all-natural, there are no harmful chemicals or toxins, so you don't have to worry about what you are drying them with. They are safe for everything! Another perk? They cut down on the drying time! The more you have in the dryer the better!

Worried about how noisy they would be in the dryer? Don't be! They aren't noisy at all! Yes, you can hear something is in the dryer with your laundry, but it is nowhere near as loud as, say, shoes. I was worried about how loud they would be at first, but my washer makes more noise when it is running than my dryer with the wool dryer balls in it!



Have a wool sensitivity? I don't, but I have read that even people with wool sensitivities are fine using wool dryer balls. How fantastic is that?!

LooHoo Dryer Balls have a life span of approximately 1-2 years. That's a LOT of laundry! We have had our Wooly Rounds Dryer Balls (that's how long ago I got them!) for about 2 years now, and they show signs of wear, but still work great.

You can purchase LooHoo Wool Dryer Balls from various retailers both in store and online. Some natural parenting stores carry them (which is how I first learned about them!), or you can get them directly from LooHoo on their website store!

Disclosure: The product mentioned above was purchased by me. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.