Dryer BALLS

BALLS! I love that word. I think BALLS should be my next swear word. It's not really dirty, and when you say it you feel kind of racy and British.

Except in this case, I'm really talking about dryer balls.

You see, sometime before Christmas I wrote (on my other blog, so confusing) about visiting this darling new children's shop in Saint Louis called Cotton Babies. Among other things, I bought these cooky little nuggets called Nellie's Dryer Balls.

The box said that they fluff fabrics without chemicals, they speed drying time, and they're cute (the box didn't say that, that's just me saying that). I figured if I don't like them the boys can play with them, right? They're almost twenty bucks, so kind of a laundry investment.

You know what??!! THE BOX WAS RIGHT! These little bubbies seriously shorten drying time. So much so that I've had to reduce the dial a little so I don't try to burn up our clothes! Which is great, because I can get more laundry done in a shorter amount of time. And then there's the added bonus of reduced electricity costs and a smaller carbon footprint or whatever the hell that means.

So I have to say, I highly recommend them. I have three down-filled puffer vests and jackets, and each time I wash them I throw these little balls in the dryer and they come out fluffy as the first day I wore them, plus they can dry all the way on low heat. I used to use Binnie's old tennis balls but they would come out smelling like old rubber tennis balls, too, because I had to use regular heat.

It's too bad they've misspelled the word "separate" on their website. Such an easy misspelling! Happens to me all the time.

Now, I have to tell you this...these balls don't work if they aren't in the dryer. When your kids find them and carry them around, they don't speed drying time. If you find one in your car, it hasn't cut down on your carbon footprint or your electric bill. But if you can make a conscious effort to keep them in the dryer, they'll help you out a lot. I even put them in my carousel of Favorite Things (look to the right), I love them that much.