Cleaning Naturally 5

How to Make Dryer Balls

Reblogged from The Seasoned HomeMaker

 

Want to save the planet, money, AND time.  There is an easy way to do this.  Make a set of Dryer Balls. Specifially, Felted Wool Dryer Balls.

Once you do, you will never have to buy over-scented dryer sheets or bulky bottles of fabric softener again.

Dryer Balls will also reduce static cling and cut your clothes drying time significantly {25-50%}.

These nifty little felted wool dryer balls will do all of these things while happily bouncing around in your dryer.

How to Make Dryer Balls

Things You Will Need:

100% Wool Yarn (mine had 223 yds.)
Panty Hose
Dental Floss 
Crochet Needle with blunt tip
Lavender, lemon, rosemary, or grapefruit essential oil (optional)

Begin by wrapped several strands of yarn around your fingers 10-20 times.

Pull the yarn off your fingers and pinch together in the center. 

Tightly wrap yarn around the middle.

Start wrapping until the yarn takes on the shape of a ball.

Continue wrapping the yarn around the small wool ball. 

Optional:  When it reaches about half the size of a tennis ball, sprinkle a 2-4 drops of lavender oil on the wool.

Keep wrapping until your wool ball is about the size of a tennis ball.

Cut a short yarn tail and thread it through a crochet needle.

Push the blunt end of the needle into the center of the wool ball and pull through.  Clip the yarn tail.

Repeat the above steps until you have 4-6 yarn balls.

My skein of yarn was 223 yards and it made 4 dryer balls.

 

Now, you are ready to begin the felting process.

Push the first wool ball down into the toe of the panty hose leg.  Tie a square knot using a piece of dental floss.

Note:  Do not use any of your left over wool yarn or it will felt during the washing process.

To felt your dryer balls, wash on your machine’s hottest setting.  If you have a front loader, add in some towels to help muffle the noise of the balls flinging around.

Once the wash cycle is complete, dry on the hottest dryer setting.

Notice the difference in size before and after.  The felting process took place in the washer.  The dryer balls did not continue to shrink after drying.