Have You Ever Heard of Soap Nuts?

When I got my copy of Knitting Green by Ann Budd, I fell in love with the pattern for a "soap nut vessel," a lace cotton pouch to use when adding soap nuts to your laundry. Soap nuts? I had never heard of them! I did a little investigation because I was so intrigued.

Soap nuts are actually dried fruit of the "Soapberry" tree (sapindus mukorrosi). They are dried berries and not nuts. Years and years ago, humans found that when the soap nuts get wet, they release saponin, a natural cleaner. They clean and soften your clothes with no chemicals.

The advantages to using soap nuts seem to be many:

Using them instead of commercial detergent cuts down on the dumping of toxic chemicals in our ecosystem.They are a natural product and can be used on those with sensitive skin or detergent allergies.Using them cuts down on your grocery bill by decreasing your use of fabric softener.They are biodegradable and reusable up to 5 times.They can be used as a stain remover and general household cleaner.The purchase of them supports fair trade workers in India and Indonesia where the trees grow.

I had to try them. I am always looking for "green" products, especially for special treatment of the dog clothing I knit! The ones I bought smell like vinegar. Apparently, that's the natural smell, but it did not transfer into my laundry. They came with their own little sack to use with the washing machine. I used them with white, dark and colored clothes. To my surprise, the clothes I washed with them came out very clean and soft. I must admit that I do add a clothes brightener to the whites, but that's probably not necessary. I hang most of my clothes on drying racks in the basement instead of using my clothes dryer, and I can't see any difference when I use them without adding liquid softener. I reused the same set of nuts 3 times and got excellent results.

Here are some other hints I found out about soap nuts:

To test if the nuts are still reusable, put them in a jar of water with a lid and shake them up. If they still suds, they are still good for another load. Add the water to the load.For household cleaning, add some to water in a spray bottle.You can simmer them on your stove with water to make "soap nut liquid." Use the liquid to clean windows, jewelry and even your pets!

Melissa Bailey shares her love of all things knitting at http://essentialdogclothing.com/ and http://knittedgiftideas.com/

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