My Nana Swears By This 1 Ingredient in the Wash to Soften Towels and Bed Sheets

How to Use It in Your Laundry

Using vinegar in the wash is super simple:

1. Add ½ to 1 cup of distilled white vinegar to the fabric softener compartment of your washing machine.
2. Wash your towels or bed sheets as usual, using your regular detergent.
3. Dry as you normally would—either in the dryer or hung up to air dry.

Bonus tip: If your towels are feeling especially stiff, try running a wash cycle with just hot water and vinegar—no detergent—to reset the fibers.

But Won’t My Laundry Smell Like Vinegar?

It’s a fair question—and the answer is no. Once your laundry is dry, the vinegar smell completely disappears. You’ll be left with fresh, clean, neutral-smelling fabric that just feels better.

A Simple, Affordable Swap

In a world full of high-priced, heavily scented laundry products, it’s refreshing to go back to basics. My Nana’s vinegar trick is proof that simple solutions are often the best ones—and usually the ones that stand the test of time.