Laurel in the washing machine, you will be surprised as soon as you see the clothes: impeccable laundry

Did you know that putting bay leaves in the washing machine has benefits for your clothes? Here we explain how to give new life to our garments.

In the past, especially in the Middle Ages, many plants were used to soothe ailments or cure certain diseases and were also used for certain household tasks when hygiene products did not yet exist.

Many of these also had something magical about them and many times, plants, spices and anything else were used by wizards, witches and alchemists in literary tales where they would reduce them to pulp and use them for their purposes.

Laurel: this is how to use it to wash our clothes

Evidently some of these plants really do have beneficial purposes and some of them have become over the centuries a symbol of something very important, just think of how the olive tree was a symbol of  Athena  .

This is because according to legend, the goddess gave birth to the first olive tree by sticking her spear into a rock and causing the beautiful tree to sprout, which later became her symbol.

Or again, the olive tree is also a symbol of  peace  , of regeneration, this is because at the end of the flood a  dove appeared  carrying an olive branch in its beak, signifying the reconciliation of  God  with men.

Another very important plant, a symbol of peace and victory, is  Laurus nobilis  , better known as  laurel  or  bay laurel  , an aromatic medicinal plant belonging to the  Lauraceae family  .

Laurel as recognition

Widespread throughout the Mediterranean basin, it is one of the oldest plants present in ancient  Greece  and ancient  Rome  and symbolized victory in both sporting competitions and in the military field.

For this reason, its branches were intertwined to create a crown that was placed on the heads of the winners of the games and on the most esteemed and grateful people in the community.

The crown symbolized the highest honor and this tradition has been kept alive throughout the centuries, even today, when a university student manages to obtain the  title of bachelor  and is crowned as a doctor.

This is because, as happened to the poets who won the writing and composition competitions and became poet  laureates  , the name of the  Degree  derives precisely from this plant and from placing the  laureus  on the head.

Popular beliefs

Laurel is also the protagonist of some popular beliefs, such as that if you put some laurel leaves under your pillow before going to bed and falling asleep you can have prophetic dreams  .

Or also having some leaves in the house would help to have well-being and prosperity since it invites to have the protection of the sun god and it is also said that the laurel is never struck by lightning and therefore protects the houses built around it.

Symbol of immortality, laurel  is also  widely used in the food sector, in fact it is used to season the dishes and dishes that we like the most, giving them a very captivating and unmistakable flavor.

It pairs very well with  tomato sauce  , chickpeas,  fish  and  meats  , but  in particular together with  thyme  and  parsley  it is one of the most commonly used aromatic plants to season  roasted  ,  stewed  or  boiled meats.

An infusion called canario is also obtained from laurel, which is used, once the leaves have been boiled, to aid digestion and relieve the feeling of heaviness after a heavy meal.

How to use the laurel plant to make our clothes shine

Adopted as the logo for  Fred Perry clothing  , the bay leaf is also used to liven up clothes when used alongside another ingredient in the washing machine during laundry.

In fact, it often happens that when we use products marketed by large industries to clean and disinfect our clothes, wash after wash they become duller, despite what advertising says to the contrary.

That’s why we always try to find a method that can save the bright colors of our clothes and preserve them over the years almost as if they had been recently purchased without deteriorating over time.

This is possible simply by using bay leaves. To do this, just use a little of this aromatic plant for your clothes along with a little  bicarbonate  and your clothes will be as vibrant as before.

However, there is a way to use the plant during washing, you certainly cannot put the leaves as they are in the washing machine because, in addition to having a different effect, you would also run the risk of destroying the appliance.

What do we need

First we need to have with us some  bay leaves  and a little  baking soda  . As a rule, to prepare a balanced mixture it is advisable to use  10 bay leaves  and  4 teaspoons of baking soda  .

Once you have these ingredients, put a saucepan on to boil and put in the  bay leaves  and  baking soda  and bring everything to the boil after a few minutes.

In this way, during the boiling process the  bicarbonate  will tend to dissolve slowly while the  bay leaves  , in addition to giving off a pleasant fragrance, will release properties that will be useful for washing our clothes.

Once the right temperature has been reached and boiled for a few minutes, remove the mixture from the heat and drain the liquid into a container or sink, being careful not to burn yourself.

Once this operation is done, immerse the clothes in the liquid and let them soak for a whole day without adding anything else or removing some clothes or adding others, this could cause problems for the final objective.

After the indicated time has passed, remove the clothes and rinse them in the washing machine or by hand with a normal wash. This way all our clothes will shine again and have the same vigor as before, recovering the shine lost in previous washes.

Beyond the laurel

The result will be surprising and this happens because laurel  has  many properties, including bleaching and revitalizing color, and that is why this homemade method known by our grandmothers is one of the most effective.

Among others, there are also other methods that use two other completely natural products: salt  and  apple cider vinegar  .

For salt, simply immerse a glass of  salt  in a container full of water and leave it for a whole day and proceed as explained for the use of bay leaves, and also with apple cider vinegar  proceed  in the same way using at least a full cup immersed in water.

Finally, black tea  also seems to be a perfect ally to counteract the faded colors of our clothes. Seeing is believing.