Elevate your laundry routine with essential oils

When chore time rolls around, most people want to get it over and done with as quickly as possible. But for those who like to stop and smell the roses, these simple laundry tips will not only leave your clothes smelling like a walk through the garden but can also turn what was once a tedious chore into a serene sensory moment.

How to add essential oils to laundry

Sprucing up your laundry routine takes only a few simple drops. Follow the guide below to safely add essential oils to your laundry:

Option 1: Use essential oils in your washing machine

To add an essential oil blend to your washing machine, simply add a few drops right into your Thieves® Laundry Soap or your favourite natural fabric softener before adding to the load. Be sure not to drop essential oils directly into the water or onto clothes—you might end up with stains.

Option 2: Add essential oils to a laundry dryer ball

To seal in the scent during drying, add essential oils directly to your wool dryer ball. Before adding your clothes, run the machine with the dryer balls for a minute or two to make sure that the oil is absorbed into the wool and doesn’t stain your clothes. Add your clothes and dry like normal.

Disclaimer: To avoid potential risks, use only 2–3 drops of essential oil and do not leave your dryer unattended when using essential oils with your laundry. Because some oils are not safe to use in a washer and dryer, we highly recommend sticking to the blends provided below.

Essential oil laundry blend recipes

Some luxuries in life are simple, like wrapping yourself up in the warmth of a blanket freshly plucked from the dryer or taking in the scent of lavender fields as you slip on your favourite sweater. Elevate your laundry with these simple essential oil blends that’ll turn a dirty pile of clothes into life’s simplest luxury.

Pure and Simple

Incorporating some of our favourite odour-busting scents, this blend offers a crisp, clean fragrance that’s perfect for everything in your gym bag and beyond. 

• 2 drops Purification®
• 1 drop Lemongrass

Citrus Refresher

When life gives you lemons, put them in your laundry for a fabulously fresh citrusy splash that goes everywhere you do! 

• 2 drops Citrus Fresh™
• 1 drop Peppermint

 Dreamy Drops

Prep your sheets and pajamas for sweet dreams with this whimsical blend of floral and fruit. 

• 2 drops Bergamot
• 1 drop Lavender

Don’t want to create your own blend? Try using 2–3 drops of one of our signature Young Living blends like BLOOM™, Seedlings® Calm or RutaVaLa™.

Make a DIY linen spray

Some weeks, it’s just a struggle to get the laundry done. We’ve all been there! Create your own DIY linen spray to add an irresistible scent that keeps things fresh(ish) until you get around to doing another load.

Essential oils to avoid using with your laundry

While there are tons of essential oils that are great for adding to your laundry, including the ones listed above, there are certain ones you should avoid.

Essential oils that stain: Some essential oils can leave stains on your laundry due to a naturally occurring dark or yellow colouring from the original aromatic plants. Instead of risking coloured oil stains on your laundry, it is best to avoid using these oils on your clothes and other linens.

Oils with a natural dark colour: 

• Blue Tansy
• Jasmine
• German Chamomile

 Oils with a natural yellow colour:*

 *The yellowish colour fades, but you’ll still want to avoid using it around your whites.

• Patchouli
• Vetiver
• Myrrh
• Tangerine

Use a laundry soap free from harsh additives and perfumes

Many people have no idea what kind of harsh chemicals and additives are hiding in their laundry detergent. When selecting a detergent, always check for synthetic ingredients and opt for one that is free of harsh additives and fragrances. The following are common additives that should be avoided:

Optical brighteners

Many popular laundry detergents contain optical brighteners to give clothes the appearance of being clean and white. By reflecting blue light, optical brighteners give the illusion of fabrics that look whiter than they actually are. These chemicals are designed to absorb into fabrics and remain on clothes after washing.

If you’re looking to keep your whites bright without adding synthetic chemicals to the wash, try one of these easy alternatives:  

• If you see stains on your clothes, pretreat them before washing.
• Don’t mix your whites with other colours in the wash. Launder them in an all-white load and use hot water.
• To whiten small items like socks or napkins, fill a pot with water and a few lemon slices, bring to a boil, turn off the heat, then add the linens. Soak for up to an hour, then launder as usual.
• For an extra brightening boost for whites, hang them to dry in the sun for natural bleaching!

Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)

Sodium lauryl sulfate, or SLS, is a cleansing agent widely used in products like soaps, shampoos, toothpastes and laundry detergents. It is used so often because it’s inexpensive and produces lots of foamy lather. Many people are concerned about SLS in their products because it can sometimes cause irritation or itchiness and may have other unknown side effects.

Synthetic perfumes

Some people consider synthetic perfumes, such as parabens, to be problematic because companies aren’t required to disclose the exact ingredients in the fragrances. Some have described that these perfumes can irritate sensitive skin and cause itching.

What makes Thieves Laundry Soap different

Like other products in Young Living’s household cleaner lineup, Thieves Laundry Soap’s purpose is to deliver a true clean provided by a plant-based formula that is free from the harsh additives we just discussed.

Thieves Laundry Soap is free from optical brighteners because you don’t want your clothes to just look clean—you want them to actually be clean! Our plant-based formula uses pure essential oils and natural cleansing enzymes to wash your clothes and keep them fresh.

Our detergent is also free from SLS and other sulfates. The cleaning power behind Thieves Laundry Soap comes from pure essential oils and natural enzymes. Thieves Laundry Soap also relies on the power of oils such as Bergamot, Jade Lemon and the essential oils in our Thieves blend to provide a refreshing scent without any hidden synthetic fragrances.

Other reasons we love Thieves Laundry Soap: 

• One 946 ml bottle of our ultra-concentrated detergent formula can clean 64 loads of laundry.
• This soap is compatible with high-efficiency washing machines and is safe for colours, whites and delicates.
• Thieves Laundry Soap is safe and gentle enough to be poured directly onto clothing as a pretreatment.

How do you like to incorporate essential oils into your laundry day?