Anyway, weeks before we went I started planning stuff that needed to be packed. I wanted to pack lighter than we normally pack because I knew we would have access to laundry at both the in-law's and the hotel, so I searched online for some ideas on how to minimize our bulk.
In the midst of my packing search I found some other great DIY (do-it-yourself) travel ideas that I took advantage of and wanted to share!
The first one I'd like to share was super easy to make and turned out to be very convienent... Reusable Dirty Laundry Bags! I got the idea from HERE, but she did way more work than I wanted to so I ran with the idea and did my own thing! It was so easy and I finished all three in less than 10min.
My Dirty Laundry Pillowcase Bags -- I went to ARC and purchased 3 pillowcases (at $1 a piece) so we could each have one in our suitcase. I hate the smell of thrift stores, so I washed mine first before doing anything, but you don't have to! I flipped the cases inside out, took my seam ripper and undid the stitching at the top of the pillow where the fabric is folded over. This will be your casing. Flip it right side out, grab a string or shoe lace (I bought some at Dollar Tree for another project, so I had extra on-hand) and feed it through the casing and tie the string together at the end. And you're done! Super easy, right?! And best part is I made 3 for $5 and we can use them over and over!
The next one is one that I'd like to think I came up with myself, since I haven't seen the idea anywhere before.... Reusable Laundry Detergent Sheets!
As I've mentioned in other posts... at least I think I have... I have been interested in the whole DIY homemade cleaning supplies amongst other things. I've made homemade laundry detergent and love it! One of the things I've been wanting to make is the homemade fabric softener.. the kind where you dip your rag in the liquid then throw it in the dryer with your wet laundry. My problem is that right before finding the idea I had just purchased a huge box of dryer sheets so I've been waiting to use them up.
Anyway when I was getting ready to pack toiletries, one thing I knew I needed was laundry soap. And that's when the thought came to me! Why not use the rags for laundry detergent instead of fabric softener? So I went and grabbed one of the many baby washcloths I had in the closet to test my idea out. First I poured my 1/4 cup detergent in a bowl and stuck my washcloth in to see if it was big enough to soak it all up... it was! I had a load in the washer ready to be started, so I threw it in and waited. The rsults were just as good as if I had just thrown in my cup of detergent.
So when I packed I dipped my washcloths in the detergent, put them a ziplock bag, then to make sure they wouldn't leak, I threw them in my mini-wet bag. This made doing laundry on our trip so much easier! No more worrying about a container of laundry detergent spilling on our trips, because we will be doing this every trip from now on!
*If you try this, I'd love to hear how it goes for you!
