Natural ingredients for perfect laundry (without a washing machine)
Before the invention of the washing machine and modern detergents, people used a variety of natural and homemade products to wash their clothes.
Homemade soap
Soap was often homemade using animal fat or vegetable oil mixed with lye (an alkaline solution made from wood ash). This soap was effective at removing dirt and stains from fabrics.
Lye
Lye, made from wood ash, was one of the most common detergents. Mixing the ash with water produced a solution that was used to clean clothes, especially white ones. Lye was especially useful for bleaching fabrics and removing stubborn stains .
Clay or earth
It may seem counterintuitive, but to clean laundry, especially for the most stubborn stains, earth was used. Clay or fine earth was in fact used to absorb grease from fabrics: the clothes were rubbed with clay and then rinsed to remove the dirt.
Plant
In different parts of the world, people used soap plants , such as soapwort ( Saponaria officinalis ) or the fruit of the soap tree ( Sapindus mukorossi ), which contain saponins, which are natural substances that produce foam and can cleanse.
Marseille soap
This particular natural soap has always been used for laundry. It is a soap, originally from the French city from which it takes its name, made mainly with olive oil and is known for being gentle but effective. It has been used for centuries to wash clothes but also for cleansing the body.
Bicarbonate
Baking soda is perhaps one of the most used natural ingredients in sustainable household cleaning, still and especially today. However, this too is part of the old « grandmothers’ remedies », which were used mainly to soften water.
