How to Keep a Bath Towel Soft?
Towels as soft as those in a grand hotel, you also dream of them at home… But you always ask yourself these questions: how do they do it? What do they put in their laundry…? However, it is not as difficult as you imagine. With a few grandmother’s tips, you too can enjoy a towel softer than ever when you get out of the shower.
1 – CHAMOMILE
While chamomile is a great way to relax when consumed as a herbal tea, it can also be used to make your towels softer than ever, completely naturally.
Boil 1 liter of water, then let a chamomile teabag infuse in it, exactly the same one you use for your herbal teas! Once everything has cooled, pour the infusion into a basin of water and soak your towels in it. Let them marinate in the liquid for about fifteen minutes before wringing them out and hanging them out. Do not expose them to direct sunlight. You will see how soft and pleasant they will be to the touch!
2 – DO NOT OVERLOAD THE DRUM
If the drum is too full, the friction between the towels in the machine damages the textile fibers.
3 – REDUCE DRYER DRYING TIME
Repeated drying can wear out the fabric of towels and make them rougher. To avoid this, set your dryer to a lower temperature and slower speed. It is also a good idea to alternate between line drying and tumble drying. You can partially dry towels on a line drying rack before refreshing them with a quick tumble in the dryer. If you don’t have a dryer, shake your towels to fluff up the fibers before putting them on the line drying rack.
4 – USE WHITE VINEGAR INSTEAD OF SOFTENER
It’s paradoxical, but in the long run, fabric softeners make your towels rougher and less soft! This is because they contain silicone, which forms a film around the fibers and prevents water absorption.
Instead, use white vinegar to make your towels softer. And this goes for your beach towels too.
White vinegar helps remove soap residue that makes towels rough, restoring their softness and absorbency.
Every 6 weeks or so, do a cycle with 250 ml of white vinegar and no detergent. Then, do a second cycle with 150 g of bicarbonate.
5 – ALOE VERA
This succulent plant is known for its many dermatological and culinary virtues. But did you know that aloe vera also helps keep your laundry soft? Simply soak your bath towel in a tub of water and aloe vera gel for two hours. For one liter of water, use one spoonful of gel.
6 – NO TO HEAT
Towels seem like the perfect candidate for the hottest wash, rinse and dry, but Barton Brass, president of the Turkish Towel Co., told the Post that’s a no-no. “Heat is probably the worst thing you can do to a towel in the laundry,” Brass says. “Cotton itself is a very soft, cellulose-based material, and if you burn it or cook it, it’s going to flatten out and it’s never going to get soft again.”