Making your home and family healthier by switching from toxic store-bought cleaners to natural alternatives takes time. A great way to start is with your laundry routine. That’s why today I’m going to show you how to make a simple DIY dryer ball spray.
I use dryer balls as part of my healthier laundry routine instead of dryer sheets.
You are watching: How to Make Dryer Ball Spray {with essential oils}
Not only are store-bought dryer sheets loaded with tons of synthetic fragrances, but conventional dryer sheets are also coasted with bad-for-you ingredients. They can contain carcinogens, upper respiratory irritants, and other toxic chemicals like benzol alcohol, benzol acetate, ethanol, and even chloroform.
Homemade dryer ball spray is made with just a few natural ingredients, and you can customize the scent to whatever you like.
I’ve included 30 dryer ball spray recipes below. There are fresh & clean scents like Clean Cotton and Fresh Linen. There are floral scents like Bohemian Wildflower and Spring Rain. There are woodsy masculine scents like Mountain Air and Fresh Mowed Lawn. There are warm & cozy scents like Vanilla Bean Marshmallow and Sweet Dreams.
You pick your favorite. They’re all super easy to make and smell amazing!
What Are Dryer Balls?
Dryer balls are an eco-friendly and healthier alternative to dryer sheets.
They’re felted wool balls a little larger than tennis balls.
You add them to the dryer along with your wet clothes. The balls bounce around in the dryer with your clothes which helps laundry dry faster and reduce static cling.
Why Should You Switch to Wool Dryer Balls?
- Unlike dryer sheets, wool dryer balls soften clothes naturally without chemicals or synthetics, perfect for people with sensitive skin.
- Dryer balls are also better for the environment than store-bought dryer sheets. You use conventional dryer sheets once and throw them out, but dryer balls can be reused for 1,000 or more loads!
- And you save $$$. As the wool dryer balls bounce around in the dryer with your clothes, they create pockets of air between clothes which helps clothes dry up to 25% faster. Faster drying times means that you save energy, money, and time.
- Your clothes get less wrinkled. More movement and more space between items means clothes don’t get pressed against each other or the sides of the dryer as often. That means fewer wrinkles.
- Additionally, dryer balls smooth rough fibers on fabrics. This means you get noticeably softer clothes.
- And when you add essential oils to dryer balls, they also lightly scent clothes. Which means that you can ditch toxic, chemical-laden dryer sheets.
- And lastly, when used properly, dryer balls can also help reduce static cling. More on that later.
How Do You Scent Wool Dryer Balls?
You can simply add a couple drops of essential oil to each dryer ball before putting them in the dryer. But this uses a lot of essential oil. If you use just 2 drops of essential oil per ball, that’s 12 drops for a large load of laundry. If you do 2 loads of laundry a day, over the course of a month, you’d use more than two 15ml bottles of essential oil — just on your dryer balls.
That’s too much for me.
So instead, I make a simple DIY spray to scent my wool dryer balls.
What Is Dryer Ball Spray?
It’s a simple nontoxic blend of water, witch hazel, and essential oil.
That mixture is then sprayed on wool dryer balls before they’re added with the laundry to the dryer.
The dampened dryer balls add moisture to the dryer which helps to reduce static cling and wrinkles.
Why Use Dryer Ball Spray?
There are several benefits for using dryer ball spray:
- The dampened dryer balls add moisture to the dryer which helps to reduce static cling and wrinkles.
- Because it’s diluted, dryer ball spray is a more economical way to scent wool dryer balls than just using straight drops of essential oil from a bottle.
- You can easily combine several essential oils to customize the scent to exactly what you want.
What You’ll Need for Homemade Dryer Ball Spray
- spray bottle — I use a 4 oz size for dryer ball spray because I find that makes enough for my family for a month or two. Then I can easily make up another bottle and switch up the scent if I want to.
- small funnel — This isn’t required, but a small funnel can help make it easier to pour ingredients into the small neck of the spray bottle.
- witch hazel — This helps the essential oils mix with the water. If you don’t have witch hazel, you can substitute with an equal amount of Epsom salt.
- essential oil — This can be a single essential oil that you love the scent of or a blend of several essential oils. Below, I share recipes for 30 essential oil blends perfect for dryer ball spray. There are fresh & clean scents like Clean Cotton and Fresh Linen. There are floral scents like Bohemian Wildflower and Spring Rain. There are woodsy masculine scents like Mountain Air and Fresh Mowed Lawn. There are warm & cozy scents like Vanilla Bean Marshmallow and Sweet Dreams. You pick your favorite. They’re all super easy to make and smell amazing!
- distilled water — This dilutes the essential oils, makes the dryer ball spray more cost effective, and add humidity to the dryer to help reduce static cling and wrinkles.
How to Make Wool Dryer Ball Spray {with essential oils}
step 1: add 2 tablespoons of witch hazel to 4 oz spray bottle
tip: Choose a spray bottle that’s made from materials safe to use with diluted essential oils. Glass, stainless steel, and certain types of plastic (plastic #1 HDPE or plastic #2 PET) work well.
tip: Use a small funnel to make it easy to pour in the narrow bottle opening without any spills or mess.
step 2: add 20-25 drops of essential oil
See below for my favorite essential oils and blends for dryer ball spray.
You’ll find 30 recipes for all kind of dryer ball scents. I’ve grouped them by the type of scent to make it easy for you to find your favorites: 1) fresh & clean, 2) floral, 3) woodsy masculine scents, and 4) warm & cozy.
step 3: fill bottle with distilled water
tip: Instead of distilled water, you can substitute boiled and cooled filtered water.
tip: Don’t fill it all the way to the top. Leave a little room so that it won’t overflow when you add the sprayer.
step 4: put spray top on and shake to mix
step 5 (optional): add a label
get free printable label and all the dryer spray recipes here
Read more : Using Hydrogen Peroxide for Cleaning
tip: You can print this label on full-sheet label paper, or do what I do and print the label on regular printer paper and attach it to the spray bottle with packing tape. It’s cheap and easy to do. Plus, I find that the labels stay on better using packing tape than with regular label paper, and the packing tape protects the label really well, which keeps the labels looking great for a long time.
Best Essential Oils for Dryer Balls
You can use can be any essential oils that you love the scent of on your dryer balls. You can choose fresh & clean scents, floral scents, woodsy scents, or warm & cozy — they all work. Here are some of my favorites. Choose one single essential oil or use a combination of several essential oils from the recipes in the next section to make your dryer ball spray.
fresh & clean (like clean cotton and fresh laundry on the line)
- sweet orange
- lemon
- lime
- grapefruit
- bergamot
- peppermint
- spearmint
- tea tree
floral
- lavender
- rose
- patchouli
- geranium
- ylang ylang
woodsy & grassy (mountain fresh)
- cypress
- juniper berry
- cedarwood
- spruce
- pine
- eucalyptus
- fir
- rosemary
warm & cozy
- vanilla
- cinnamon
- ginger
Wool Dryer Ball Essential Oil Recipes
There are 30 variations below. Choose the one that you like best for your dryer ball spray.
Start with 4 oz spray bottle, add 2 tablespoons witch hazel, then add the essential oils from one of the recipes below. Finish by filling spray bottle with distilled water and shaking to mix.
Fresh & Clean
clean scents – for that just-off-the-line feel
1. Laundry on the Line
10 drops lavender + 6 drops fir + 4 drops bergamot + 2 drops wintergreen
2. Just Washed
6 drops lavender + 6 drops bergamot + 6 drops lemon + 3 drops geranium
3. Lemony Fresh
14 drops lemon + 3 drops basil + 3 drops spearmint
4. Bright Linens
9 drops eucalyptus + 9 drops lemon + 6 drops spearmint
5. Ocean Mist
8 drops lavender + 8 drops lime + 4 drops spearmint
6. Clean Cotton
5 drops eucalyptus + 5 drops peppermint + 5 drops lemon + 4 drops lavender + 3 drops tea tree + 3 drops rosemary
7. Fresh Linen
8 drops lemon + 7 drops spearmint + 5 drops geranium
8. Citrus Fresh
8 drops lemongrass + 8 drops orange + 5 drops rosemary
9. Fresh Air
8 drops lemon + 6 drops lavender + 6 drops eucalyptus
10. Happy Vibes
10 drops tangerine + 6 drops lavender + 4 drops lime + 4 drops spearmint
11. Clean Linen
9 drops eucalyptus + 6 drops lavender + 6 drops tea tree + 3 drops peppermint
12. Anthropology Volcano
6 drops grapefruit + 6 drops tangerine + 4 drops lime + 3 drops geranium + 3 drops spruce
13. Bliss
8 drops orange + 8 drops grapefruit + 8 drops bergamot
Floral
Refreshing, soothing scents reminiscent of clothes gently drying in a warm spring or summer breeze. Many evoke the scents of sunshine and fresh rain.
14. Summer Sunset
6 ylang ylang + 6 drops orange + 5 drops sandalwood + 3 drops patchouli
15. Spring Blossom
15 drops lemon + 10 drops lavender
16. Island Vibes
9 drops vanilla oleoresin + 9 drops ylang ylang + 6 drops sandalwood
17. Once Upon a Time
8 drops vanilla oleoresin + 6 drops rose + 5 drops clary sage + 2 drops vetiver + 2 drops ylang ylang
18. End of the Rainbow
10 drops lavender + 8 drops orange + 4 drops vanilla oleoresin + 2 drops spruce
19. Bohemian Wildflower
8 drops bergamot + 4 drops jasmine + 3 drops patchouli + 2 drops myrrh
20. Spring Rain
14 drops lemon + 10 drops vetiver
Woodsy & Grassy
Read more : How to make stamina elixirs in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
warm, masculine scents with the essence of the fresh outdoors
21. Mountain Air
12 drops cedarwood + 6 drops pine + 6 drops orange
22. Lake House
6 drops juniper + 6 drops cypress + 6 drops spruce + 3 drops peppermint + 2 drops vetiver
23. Into the Woods
10 drops frankincense + 7 drops cedarwood + 5 drops fir + 3 drops bergamot
24. Freshly Mowed Lawn
drops basil + drops spruce + drops orange + drops grapefruit + drops lemon + drops spearmint
25. Every Man
10 drops sandalwood + 5 drops vetiver + 5 drops amber + 5 drops vanilla oleoresin
Warm & Cozy
fresh, warm, soothing scents — perfect for laundering clothes in cooler months and washing bedding all year round
26. Sweet Dreams
12 drops lavender + 12 drops vanilla oleoresin
27. Vanilla Bean Marshmallow
14 drops vanilla oleoresin + 7 drops cypress + 7 drops spruce
28. Cuddly Comfort
8 drops orange + 4 drops frankincense + 2 drops cinnamon + 4 drops copaiba + 4 drops peppermint
29. Vacation Dreams
8 drops orange + 6 drops vanilla oleoresin + 6 drops lime + 3 drops cedarwood
30. Vanilla Mint
16 drops vanilla oleoresin + 8 drops peppermint
How to Use Wool Dryer Balls
- optional: If you live in a dry climate (or it’s winter), to help with static cling, start by soaking dryer balls in water and squeeze out excess water. This will help keep enough humidity in your dryer to prevent static without increasing drying time. If humidity is not low in your home, then you can skip this step. It’s only needed in dry climates.
- Put wet clothes into the dryer.
- Pin a safety pin to a couple of the wool dryer balls. This will help discharge electricity in the dryer and reduce static cling.
- Spray wool dryer balls several times with mixture.
- Add dryer balls to the laundry in the dryer.
- small load= 2 balls
- average size load= 4 balls
- large load= 6 balls
- Take clothes out of the dryer when they are still slightly damp or just barely dry. You don’t want to over dry laundry; this leads to static cling.
How to Reduce Static Cling Naturally
Dryer balls help reduce static cling, but they likely won’t entirely eliminate static cling on their own. Here are some additional things that can help reduce static cling:
- Use vinegar as a fabric softener to keep clothes soft. Soft clothing creates less friction. Less friction means less static cling. Make your own fabric softener using vinegar and essential oils. Get the recipe here.
- Use wool dryer balls. They help maintain a more humid environment in the dryer. This helps to soft the fibers of clothes (which helps reduce static) and reduces drying time (which also helps eliminate static).
- Soak dryer balls in water and squeeze out excess water. This will help keep enough humidity in your dryer to prevent static without increasing drying time.
- Pin a safety pin to a couple of the wool dryer balls. This will help discharge electricity in the dryer and reduce static cling.
- If you opted to not soak the dryer balls in water before using them, then try adding a damp rag to the dryer about 5 minutes before the cycle ends.
- Reduce time in the dryer. A common cause of static cling is over drying. When clothes are completely dry and there’s no moisture left, then static electricity is much more likely to develop.
- The fiber of clothes plays a role in creating static electricity. Synthetic materials, like nylon and polyester, tend to be more of an issue in creating static than cotton, for example. So try to run clothes made from synthetic fabrics through the dryer in a different load from cottons and other natural fibers. And if you can, skip the dryer all together for synthetic clothes; hang or lay them flat to dry instead.
- As a last resort, if you have certain pieces of clothing that are especially vulnerable to static cling, then hang those to dry instead of putting them in the dryer. While this isn’t always practical, if there are just a few items that always create static no matter what you do, this can be a good solution.
If already washed-and-dried clothes have static cling, then here are a few things to do to get rid of (or at least lessen) the static:
- Spray clothes lightly with water. The added moisture should help lessen the static.
- Use a humidifier in your home to make the air less dry.
- Moisturize your skin. Rub some homemade whipped body butter (recipe here) on your arms and legs before getting dressed. This will help break the charge and cut the static cling.
Where to get supplies?
This website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.
4 oz glass spray bottle
small funnel
witch hazel
distilled water – find it in grocery stores, pharmacies, or Target/Walmart in the bottled water aisle.
free printable label
wool dryer balls
click here for free printable of all 30 dryer ball spray recipes and label
Looking for more? Click here for the 11 Best Essential Oil Recipes for Laundry – – includes detergent, stain treatment, natural bleach alternative, fabric softener, and more
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Disclaimer: Please know that this website contains affiliate links. This means that should you click on certain links, and then subsequently purchase a product, I will receive a small commission. The price is exactly the same for you as it would be without the affiliate link.
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Categories: Recipe
