A Wash, But So Much More.

 Leading by example.

The other day we bought a wash-ball. Yes, a round plastic ball that gets thrown into each load of washing, instead of washing powder. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant for the environment and wallet.

After seeing it alluded to in one of the BBC's environmental programs, I had to try it. Imagine not having to use washing powder. Imagine not polluting the water with soap suds and chemical by-products. Two to three loads a week could add up to a lot less chemical soap suds flowing into the underground water system, not to mention the massive saving due to not having to buy washing powder. A win-win, that is if the clothes get cleaned.

So, last week I tried out this wash-ball along with a few drops of essential oil (  lemon flavour ) dropped into it for fragrance. The first load went well and as I was hanging the items on the clothes dryer I kept on sniffing them in order to establish that they smelt clean. My sense of smell is almost back to normal and the clothes smelt clean and washed with just a hint of lemon. Nice.

As soon as Bob got home I showed him this new miracle but he didn't seem that interested. Why should he? Anyway, the next day he gave me his black work sweater ( full of dirt ranging from fermented grapes to possible greasy crisp leftovers! ) and told me to see how the wash-ball could deal with it. 

We both couldn't believe how easily these stains had gone without any washing powder and honestly, now I can't wait to do laundry. The only thing that Bob thought we could adjust was the flavour of the essence. Vanilla might be a better choice. Oh well, I'll try to get that.

Yesterday when Bob got home from work he casually mentioned ( typically Bob tends to slip extremely interesting tidbits casually into conversation unlike me, who would be bursting to tell it straightaway ) that he had shown one of his work mates this wash-ball on its website because his wife is also very into preserving the environment and trying to live a greener lifestyle.

When I asked Bob how he came to show his work mate this particular item, he told me how he had told his mate about our new laundry adventure and how clean the sweater had emerged after a bout with this wash-ball! I must say, it amuses me no end to know that men too can talk about this, that and vital domestic chores the same way we women do. If nothing else, Bob converted one more household to stop using washing powder and leave a little bit of a better environmental footprint behind.

The wash-ball. Made in Germany thus it hasn't got a big carbon footprint...

Biggi