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Using Dryer Sheets in Quilting
Yes, even the used ones!
- Use them a second time, or put the used ones in the next wash. There is just enough softener left in the sheets to treat a small load.
- Prevent thread from tangling. Pun a threaded needle through a dryer sheet to eliminate the static cling on the thread before sewing.
- Use as a facing when doing appliqué. There are more applique tips here. If you get some fusible on your iron, you might be able to remove it by ironing a used dryer sheet.
- Clean baked-on food from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in the pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. This will work with a paintbrush that was wasn’t cleaned after using latex paint, too. Soak it in warm water with a dryer sheet and the paint should lift off.
- A used one makes a great dust cloth as it attracts the dirt. Spilled flour? Use a dryer sheet to clean it up!
- Collect cat hair? Rubbing the area with a dryer sheet will magnetically attract all the loose hairs.
- Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a dryer sheet in your shoes/sneakers. They will smell great in the morning.
- Dissolve soap scum from shower doors and bathtub rings. Clean with a used dryer sheet. Bonus: it leaves enough softening residue to deter future soap scum build up.
- Clean hard waters spots from chrome and other metal fixtures.
- Eliminate odors in wastebaskets, laundry baskets, and hampers. Place a dryer sheet at the bottom.
- Eliminate static electricity from Venetian blinds. Wipe the blinds with a dryer sheet to prevent dust from resettling.
- Eliminate static electricity from your television screen. Since dryer sheets are designed to help eliminate static cling, wipe your television screen with a used one to keep dust from resettling. A used one will work better than a new one.
- If you have static electricity in your sewing room and get zapped now and then, try rubbing your chair with a dryer sheet.
- Eliminate static cling from pantyhose. Rub a damp, used dryer sheet over the pantyhose.
- To prevent static, rub a new dryer sheet on the inside of clothing that is sticking together. This works with hats, to prevent you from getting hat hair.
- If your hair is full of static, rub a new dryer sheet on the bristles of your brush and then brush your hair.
- Freshen the air in your car. Place a dryer sheet under the front seat or in the back window where the sun will warm it.
- Freshen the air in your home. Place a dryer sheet in a drawer or hang one in the closet. This also works on gym bags, etc.
- Put a dryer sheet in the bag or dirt collecting cup of your vacuum cleaner. It will sweeten the smell of the exhaust.
- Keep the shock away. Place a sheet in your coat pocket to avoid the shock you get getting in and out of the car in the winter.
- Prevent musty suitcases. Place a dryer sheet inside empty luggage before storing.
- Put a dryer sheet in your sleeping bag and tent before folding and storing them. It will keep them smelling fresh.
- It takes the odor out of books and photo albums that don’t get opened too often.
- Repel mosquitoes, bees, yellow jackets, gnats, and other bugs. Tie a new dryer sheet through your belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season. (Note from Kris: I have received conflicting E-mails on this. One says it works, the other says it doesn’t. YMMV.)
- Repels deer, particularly when sprayed with a deer repellant. You can also sew them into a pocket containing a bar of soap made with tallow fatty acid or unwashed cut hair from a local hair salon.
- Repel mice and ants. Use in crawl spaces and basements. You can also use them in stored camping trailers and cars.
- Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sandpapering. A used dryer sheet will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.
- Wet a Bounce sheet, hose down your car, and wipe lovebugs off easily with the wet Bounce.
Caution: used dryer sheets can be flammable. (While we are on the subject, so can the lint in your dryer trap, the part that goes outdoors. Make sure that is cleaned regularly.)
Save your money for quilt fabric! Here are great tips for using everyday items in original ways to save time and money in quilting.
Have another tip to offer? Send it to me or reply below and I will add it here.
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