With so much emphasis placed on knowing where our food comes from, it’s easy to forget that sustainability can apply to the laundry room, as well as the kitchen. Felted wool dryer balls are an easy way to reduce your household’s carbon footprint, keeping harmful chemicals away from your clothes and dryer sheets out of the landfill. Plus, they’re a simple project that can be made in less than an hour. Here’s how.
Step 1: Pick the Right Wool for Your Felted Dryer Balls
Pick up a couple of skeins of 100-percent wool yarn. The colors don’t matter (so have fun with them), but your fiber content does. Yarns with non-wool fibers will not felt well. If possible, source your yarn from a local fiber artist. Each skein yields about two baseball-sized yarn balls, and I typically use four balls.
Step 2: Wrap Yarn to Start Your Felted Dryer Balls
Start off your yarn balls by wrapping the yarn about 10 to 20 times around three fingers.
Step 3: Secure the Loop and Shape Your Felted Dryer Balls
Slip the yarn off your fingers, then continue wrapping the yarn several times around the center of the loop.
Step 4: Form Golf-Ball-Sized Yarn Balls
Continue wrapping the yarn into to form a ball, and stop when it is about the size of a golf ball. Trim the yarn, and carefully insert the string into the ball so that it won’t unravel. This can be done with your fingers, but a needle or crochet hook might be helpful.
Step 5: Felt the Yarn Balls in Hot Water and Dryer Heat
Repeat steps 2 through 4 to make two to four golf-ball-sized yarn balls. Place the balls in a nylon sock or pantyhose (do not use wool), and secure each ball with a piece of string or twine. (Make sure the balls aren’t touching to avoid felting them together.) To felt, wash the balls in hot water, then transfer them to a hot dryer.
Step 6: Expand and Felt Again for Baseball-Sized Dryer Balls
Continue wrapping the felted yarn balls with more yarn until they reach the size of baseballs. Repeat step 5 to felt the larger-sized balls.
Step 7 (Optional): Add Essential Oils
If desired, add 25 to 30 drops of your favorite essential oil to each ball to scent your laundry. I like to use bergamot essential oil, but other scents you might find pleasing include lavender, rosemary and eucalyptus. Note: You’ll have to periodically recharge your balls with essential oil when the scent dissipates.
This article about making felted dryer balls was written for Hobby Farms magazine. Click here to subscribe.
