May 26, 2021
Keeping Your Whites White
I love the look of white in my home, from fluffy white towels in the bathroom to a classic white shirt hanging in the closet. White is such a fresh, clean and crisp color that I can’t help but have a lot of it in my home. We have primarily white towels in all our bathrooms to keep laundering and sorting simple and most of our sheets follow suit.
I am often asked how I keep our towels and bedding from looking dingy and less than ideal, so I thought a post was in order. You will note that there is no chlorine bleach involved, just a solid cleaning method and some excellent laundry tips.
Ready to brighten up your whites?
1. Wash your whites on HOT with detergent and no fabric softener.
While many people love the scent that softener lends to their laundry, in actuality it is doing more harm than good. The residue from traditional fabric softener leaves behind actually coats the fibers, causing the dirt to adhere and leaving them less than clean. If you like a hint of extra scent, try my DIY laundry booster which uses essential oils instead of artificial scents.
2. For towels, add between 1/4 to 1/2 cup of traditional white vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser.
Vinegar serves to actually soften the fibers as well as add a little cleaning power to your laundry routine. I like to buy a jug of white distilled vinegar at our Costco. At under $5.00 for an economy sized container, you can’t beat the price. No need to worry about any residual scent from the vinegar either as you won’t be able to detect it on your clean laundry at this dilution rate.
3. If you need a little extra help whitening and brightening, try adding in an oxygen-safe bleach alternative.
Check out my favorite Oxygen Whitener! It adds that whitening effect without using traditional bleach in the process. I also use this on stains or loads of laundry that need some extra cleaning oomph.
If your whites are looking a little more grey than white or if they are feeling less than clean, try out these three tips to clean and brighten your whites! Not only will your towels feel fluffier and whites look brighter, you won’t need any harsh chemicals or artificial scents to get the job done.
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Donna Says
Pinned for reference! I have used white vinegar for quite a while and occasionally add some lavender essential oil to it.
WannaBe clean Says
How do you get woolen or cashmere white sweaters white again? Most of the ivory sweaters look really dingy after they have been washed. Is it safe to use vinegar on those too?
Tal Weiss Says
Hello
Loved your post
I use viniger in avrey load i make
And also once a month i put acup of viniger and run the machine on drum clean – its importent and helps the machine To live longer
But i dont have an option of whites, so on wich option shuld i put the machine when im washing my towels
Becky Says
Post authorHOT 🙂
Jen Says
I love The laundress bleach alternative! It has such a subtle beautiful scent. I don’t like any overpowering scent on my linens. Here in Canada we also have Nellie’s. They have a really good bleach alternative but it is missing that amazing scent. 🙁 A bit cheaper though. Great post. I am working towards all white linens.
ss Says
Do you make your own laundry detergent? I have followed you forever, but I can’t seem to remember if you do. We use white vinegar for everything! We also use hydrogen peroxide to brighten whites, but something else would also be nice.
Becky Says
Post authorHere’s my recipe:
http://www.cleanmama.net/2013/05/diy-homemade-cleaners-laundry-detergent.html
A girl Says
Can you use vinegar on colored towels?
Becky Says
Post authoryes
Jessica Oswell Says
Do you still use your alternate bleach recipe in your book to whiten your loads?
Becky Says
Post authorBoth work great!
C M Says
What about white dress shirts? Any tips on those?
Becky Says
Post authorAdd a capful of the bleach alternative and launder as usual 🙂
Anna Nab Says
This thing about the fabric softener was a real aha-moment for me :O
Ashley Says
Hi Becky! Huge fan of your site…while we are on the topic of laundry, what machines do you use? We are moving to a new house and are looking for a new washer and dryer…curious what you use! Thanks!
Priscilla Says
He much bleach alternative should be used?
Becky Says
Post authorIt depends on the load size – typically it’s about a capful 🙂
Mathilde Says
Thanks for this post! If i want to wash and try to refresh white sheets that look grey/yellowish, would you recommend detergent + capful of bleach alternative ? Everything put all together in the detergent hole, or otherwise? No white vinegar? Many thanks 🙂
b r Says
Post authorYes! Bleach alternative – soak for a few hours and wash as usual!
Lavues Says
Great tips. Love white, but can be a real nightmare too. But, thanks!
Marge Sweigart Says
Hi Becky! I love your site – so much helpful information!
Another reason to not use fabric softener on your towels is that it makes them less absorbent. Although the vinegar rinse doesn’t make my towels smell like pickles, it would be nice to give them a nice fragrance. So I really like the idea of making scented vinegar. Do you think it would work to use essential oils instead of citrus peels?
Definitely going to pin this post. Thanks!
Becky Says
Post authorThanks Marge! Yes, I have a recipe for scented vinegar with essential oils in my book – it works great as well. Simply put about 50 drops of EO in a 16 oz. container of white vinegar and use 1/4 cup/load 🙂
Chelle Fuller Says
I have two additional tips….I load the washer with my whites at night as the last load of the day and let the washer fill until the load of whites are just covered with hot water; I then turn the washer off and let the clothes soak overnight. (I have a super-sized top loader; I’m not sure what you can do with a front loader.) In the morning I let the washer fill up the rest of the way with hot water and then do its wash cycle. I found that letting the clothes soak worked really well. My grandmother taught me this trick when I asked how she kept my grandfather’s t-shirts so white all the time. She said that “back in the day” she kept an empty pail that she would pour boiling water in with the clothes. The second tip is the addition of a small scoop of dishwashing powder – the kind that you can put into a dishwasher – along with your regular laundry detergents and vinegar. I personally use the Cascade brand. I have been able to use these two tips along with the ones above to return dingier items to nearly new white and bright. I purchase a lot of antique linens and this is how I turn them from a stale yellow or dingy gray to looking great.
Nancy Says
How much is a “scoop”??
Morgan McRory Says
Here’s something I haven’t seen on your blog before: hand washing intimates.
My bras are always “hand wash only” and I never feel like I can (1) – get them clean – especially if they get stained (sweat, food drips that leak through, etc) and (2) get them wrung out well enough so they start to mildew before they dry.
Especially with White Bras…I can never get it to look nice again after a few washes.
How do you do it?
Jenn Says
Do you have a suggestion for alternatives to fabric softener? I love that my towels are softer and fluffier but I’m worried about static in the winter.
Love your blog!
Becky Says
Post authorWhite vinegar – I’ll be doing a post on some alternatives soon – stay tuned!
Rachel Says
Ok, this may sound bad, but why not use bleach? I love the smell of bleach on my white towels. I guess it reminds me of being by a pool somewhere!
Martha Says
I wash my whites cold first using oxi. Then I wash them in hot water with tide and bleach, no softener! They come out bright white!
Nancy Says
Best way to bring back dingy white sheets???
Becky Says
Post authorSoak them in a bleach alternative and launder as usual – that soak should remove the dinginess 🙂
Kathryn Says
What section of the dispenser do you add the bleach alernative to please? (Front loader)
Becky Says
Post authorI put it with the detergent 🙂
Milly Ellis Says
How can I get my lace /net curtains white again?
Becky Says
Post authorSoak them in a bleach alternative and launder on gentle – that soak should remove the dinginess.
Joe Says
Hi,
Do you do bulk sales as a wholesale?
If you do that, I really want to know how we can work.
Please let us know.
Thanks.
Best,
Joe
Becky Says
Post authorI do, email me at clean.mama@yahoo.com if you’re interested.
cat1moma Says
I have just recently started to use vinegar to wash my sheets (flannel now that its cooler) and towels. I just never thought of using vinegar in the wash; I have used it for years when I wash my cats because I always wanted to make sure no soap residue remained on their fur. I also dry my sheets and towels with the wool drying balls. I love the way my flannel sheets feel now.
Lisa Bignell Says
So If I clean counters with vegetable juice stains or the gas stove top with grease stains and follow this method without any pre-treating of the stains, they should come out in the wash? OR would I need to de-grease, etc. first?
Becky Says
Post authorOr you can soak first and then wash as usual 🙂
Annastasia Says
I just purchased The Laundress Alternative for my wash, I see you said add it into where the regular Laundry detergent would be dispensed, So is this the only cap full of cleaning detergent going in to clean the wash or am I supposed to also put in my regular detergent with it? I see also to put Vinegar in the softener dispenser, Just checking if I read this correctly. Thank you
b r Says
Post authorI put it right on top of the liquid detergent and vinegar in the softener dispenser 🙂
Becky henry Says
Is this ok for HE machines?
b r Says
Post authorYes!
Lesia Wood Says
I purchased The Laundress bleach alternative, but it only dissolves in HOT water and even then I am having trouble with the tiny balls not dissolving. The washing instructions on the labels of my white clothing all say to wash in cold or a few say warm. Suggestions?
Clean Mama Says
Post authorI use my Oxygen Whitener – it dissolves in any and all temperatures:
https://shop.cleanmama.com/collections/laundry