One of my favourite products and something I’m really proud of are my wool dryer balls. These neat little bundles are awesome alternatives to dryer sheets for a few reasons. They can:
- Cut drying time by up to 30%,
- Reduce static,
- Soften your clothes, and
- Be indefinitely re-used
I’ve been making these as part of my natural green cleaning products for the home for a little over a year now, and they are great! Have had great reviews from customers and it’s one of my best sellers at craft shows & markets.
So why change my product & process if everything is going well?
I’m constantly striving to make my products as sustainable as possible. Sourcing out local ingredients and supporting local farms and businesses is a key component of my philosophy. Previously, I had been using yarn from a Canadian wool mill and roving from a local wool shop, but the roving was from a variety of sources including the UK and New Zealand. While I loved the quality of the roving that came from overseas, I still wanted to find a completely local source to reduce my carbon footprint and help support local Alberta businesses and industries. An interesting tidbit of knowledge passed on to me recently was that Alberta wool used to be so undervalued that farmers often burned it rather than get it processed, because it just wasn’t worth it. Crazy eh?! Is the Alberta wool of lesser quality? I don’t think so. I was very impressed with the quality of the roving from Alberta and found it among the softest roving I have ever come across. Definitely, not something that should be burned!
My dryer balls are now either 95% or 100% made from Alberta roving wool!
The next step was more more sustainable packaging. I had been packing my dryer balls originally in cellophane packaging, then more recently in stainless steel tins. The tins were meant to offer customers a reusable container that is long lasting and great for storing the dryer balls in between uses. While this is great, I decided that after reading the Story of Stuff (they have a neat video too), I could not longer encourage the use of stainless steel packaging for my product strictly for the purpose of offering a fancy looking package that would last a long time. The amount of energy, mining, and environmental degradation that goes in to the production of stainless steel is mind boggling! I instead have opted for kraft cardboard made from 100% recycled paper. If customers don’t want the package after they get home, they can recycle it or compost it. A simple, sustainable package that I think is much better for the planet than what I was offering before. The other good news is that the boxes can hold up to 4 balls in each. Sweet!
Check out the variety of colours and natural, un-dyed wool dryer balls that are now part of my collection!
PS. My wool dryer balls are available on my etsy store in set of 3, 4 or 6. You can request a custom number and colour set on my etsy store too by sending me a message there. You can also buy them in person from me at my next event: Mercer Collective, March 16, at the Mercer Building on 104th & 104th, 10am-4pm.
