Homemade Wool Dryer Balls

Yes or no?

I will say that for a long time I didn't quite understand the need to have any, when I could just throw in a dryer sheet and call it good.  But since I AM trying to switch to as much homemade stuff as I can, I decided that it was as good a time as any, to get into the Wool Ball making.

If you've been using these for a while, you know just how neat they are and if you, like me, have never had them before, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.  Besides, it's a good way to use up those extra balls of yarn you have laying around the house.

So you may be wondering, what are the pros of using these, and that is a very valid question, so here is what I have found:

• They are free of chemicals usually found in dryer sheets and laundry softener
• They help keep items crease free
• They seem to separate the clothes in the dryer quite well, therefore cutting down the time of drying
• They are way less expensive than purchasing some
• Believe it or not, they are pretty sturdy

Here's how you make them.

Grab the yarn you want to use, start wrapping it around two of your fingers several times, then pull it off your fingers and wrap the yarn around the opposite way, in other words you want to hold it in place so it won't fall apart.

And this is the fun part, just continue to wrap the yarn around, going all different directions.  Wrap it tightly, or as tightly as you can manage.  I dropped mine countless times *sigh* LOL

You want it to be around the size of a tennis ball.

Next, you're going to grab either a crochet hook or an upholstery needle, and you're going to weave the end of the yarn into the ball, I actually went one way and then turned and went back another, just wanted to be sure it was not going to fall apart.

Now grab a pair of pantyhose, I actually had a new pair sitting around which I had totally forgotten about and was not going to need.  Cut one of the legs off.

Take one of the yarn balls and stick it into the sock, all the way to the toes.  Take a piece of embroidery thread and tie a knot just above it.

Shove another ball in there and tie another knot after it, continue in that fashion for however many yarn balls you have.

Now you want to throw it in the washer and dryer. You are aiming for the hottest setting both on the wash cycle and the dryer cycle....I just threw mine in with a load I was about to start.

And that's it. They are now ready to use.  Remove them from the stocking and just toss them in whenever you dry a load of clothes :)

The more you use them, the softer they'll become and the more felted they will be. I'm already noticing a difference in my laundry :)

Tomorrow I'll be making a big batch of Homemade Powdered Detergent, and so my journey to using homemade products continues.

I would love to hear from any of you out there who use your own laundry detergent or dryer wool balls.