In many areas of our everyday life, we try to act as sustainably as possible. But what about laundry? How can I wash my textiles in the most environmentally friendly way possible? Here you will find some easy-to-implement tips on how you can act more sustainably in the area of textile care.
TIP 1: Wash little
Textiles should only be washed if they are really dirty. When it comes to clothing, it is often sufficient to air it out well after wearing it, for example if it was only worn for a short time and smells of deodorant or perfume. When you fill up the washing machine, fill it up to make washing worthwhile and avoid washing unnecessarily.
TIP 2: Wash cold
Low temperature wash cycles such as 30° or 40° use less Electricity and water. The detergents that are currently on the market clean the laundry sufficiently even at low temperatures, and the laundry becomes just as clean as in high-temperature washing processes. Nevertheless, a wash cycle with a higher temperature such as 60° or 90° should be carried out from time to time to clean the washing machine. This is important to remove limescale, bacteria and other deposits and thus extend the life of the washing machine.
We also recommend washing our muslin products at 30° or 40° degrees so that you can enjoy them for as long as possible products and to prevent color fading.
TIP 3: Eco-friendly detergent
Another tip for making the wash cycle sustainable is to use a biodegradable detergent. The correct dosage of detergents should also be observed in order to wash in an environmentally friendly manner. Often more detergent is used than necessary. How much is actually needed can be read on the detergent packaging. Detergents are now also available as refill packs to reduce packaging and plastic waste.
TIP 4: Avoid fabric softener
Although fabric softener makes textiles pleasantly soft, it is unfortunately very bad for our environment. Conventional fabric softeners contain some ingredients, such as fragrances, which are not biodegradable and therefore harm our environment. Therefore, if possible, you should avoid fabric softener and if you do use it, use it sparingly. In addition to conventional fabric softeners, there are now also biodegradable fabric softeners. These can be used as a sustainable alternative to conventional fabric softeners.
By the way, you can completely do without fabric softener for our muslin products! This is because muslin is naturally very soft and will only get softer with repeated washing.
TIP 5: Air dry
Washed laundry that is tumble dried uses a lot of energy. Instead of throwing your clothes in the dryer, you can hang them on a clothesline outside or on a drying rack indoors and let them air dry.
Due to their nature, our muslin products dry particularly quickly! No need to iron afterwards as the crinkled texture is typical of muslin.
TIP 6: Textiles made from natural raw materials
Textiles made of synthetic fabrics lose the smallest microplastic fibers during washing, which end up in natural waters. These microplastic fibers cannot be removed from nature and do not decompose by themselves. They end up in our water bodies and can be eaten by aquatic life. To avoid this, you can wash textiles made of synthetic fabrics in special laundry bags that prevent the microplastic fibers from being released into the water. Another possibilityThe best way to avoid the release of microplastics when washing is to buy textiles made from natural raw materials such as organic cotton.
Our muslin products are made from 100% organic cotton, so no microplastic fibers are released into the water during washing.
Author: Hannah Ziesel
