One element that’s often left out of the sustainable fashion conversation is the caring for our clothes part.
Turns out, washing and drying our garments can have a massive impact on energy and water use. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation estimates that that washing and drying clothing accounts for 120 million tons of CO2 annually.
Plus, washing and drying our clothes less means they’ll last longer.
And according to WRAP, extending the life of a garment by an extra 9 months reduces its carbon, water, and waste footprints by about 20-30% each.
Okay so maybe you’re convinced that you’re going to wash and dry your clothing less. ‘But what about smelly clothes?’ you might ask!
Well, my friend, there are lots of ways to get smells out (including musty odors and sweat) without sticking your garment in the washer. Most of these hacks use supplies that you probably already have at home, but I do put in a few recommendations here that are affiliates. If you purchase through one of these links, we earn a small commission which helps us continue creating resources like this one for our site!
Here are my favorite strategies for getting rid of odors so that you can extend the amount of time in between washes.
[For more tips, check out my post + podcast episode on sustainable clothing care!]
1. Hang Them Out
The easiest way to address faint smells is to hang your clothes outside of your closet right after you’ve worn them to air them out. I typically air out my clothes and shoes for a day before hanging them up back inside my closet. Often, faint smells will fade out within a day, though stronger smells may take a few days to air out.
Even better? Hang your clothes outside in fresh air, whether that’s in your backyard, on your balcony, or by an open window. The sunlight and a light breeze can help remove odors. Just be careful not to hang a colorful garment in direct sunlight too long to avoid color-fading.
2. Steam Your Garments
You knew a steamer could get rid of wrinkles and make your garment look fresh, but it turns out it can also make your clothing smell fresher, too!
The high heat from the steamed water kills odor-causing bacteria.
And, steamers are also known to help remove (relatively new) stains! The heat can reportedly loosen fibers, making it easier to remove stains. I haven’t tried this hack yet since I recently learned about it, some sources suggest to hold the steamer for around half a minute on the stained area to release the fibers and make the stain easier to remove
Certain delicates like suede cannot be steamed, though. And others may not be able to be steamed for such a long period of time. For garments with delicate embellishments, it’s highly recommended to turn them inside out before steaming so you’ll have to try other strategies for any stain removal.
Check out The Steamery for aesthetically *on point* steamers. The Steamery also has other clothing care products like lint brushes and fabric shavers to keep your clothes in great condition!
Want some extra scent boost to your steamed garments? You might want to try Clothes Doctor’s Steamer Water scented with blue lily and bergamot.
Don’t have a steamer? No problem. Hanging wrinkly garments in your bathroom during a hot shower is an often shared hack that can sometimes do the trick — though, admittedly, doesn’t work as well as a steamer.
3. Spray With Vodka
If the smell persists after a few days or it’s an extra-strong odor, spraying the garment with straight clear vodka works surprisingly well.
Before you knock it, hear me out! It’s a pretty simple strategy.
All you have to do is fill a spray bottle with plain unflavored vodka (you might want to label it so you don’t accidentally use this bottle for something else and get a bad surprise later!) and spray your garment.
This has been a not-so-secret hack the performance world has used to get smells out of costumes that can’t be washed or don’t have time to be washed between shows.
I’ve personally used it to remove some pretty strong odors out (or at least mostly out) of ballet costumes.
I’m talking dancing-for-two-hours-under-hot-lights-sweat-level smells everyone!
In my personal experience, this strategy is usually most effective when used in specific areas (like the underarms).
Though, as I mentioned, I’ve also used it to spray entire costumes that are too fragile to wash.
I will just turn my garment inside out, and spray the vodka directly in the underarm area. I’ll then hang dry it inside-out for a day or so.
4. Spray With White Vinegar
Don’t feel comfortable spraying vodka or don’t have any in your pantry? No worries!
You could also spray your garment using a bottle of half white vinegar and half water.
To ensure vinegar won’t impact the fabric, you can turn your garment inside out and spray a small inconspicuous spot to test it out. Once it’s good to go, spray your garment!
If you don’t want any faint vinegary smell, you could drop in a few drops of essential oil to the mix. (Again, test any mixture on the inside of your garment before spraying the outside. Can’t stress that point enough!)
Similar to the vodka approach, air out the garment inside-out for a day or so before putting it back into your closet or re-wearing it. You can also combine with hack #1 and air dry your sprayed garment outside in the fresh air to really make sure the vinegar smell is gone.
5. Natural Clothing or Fabric Freshener Sprays
Don’t feel comfortable spraying vodka or white vinegar or it’s not working for you? There are also clothing freshener sprays, like the ones from Clothes Doctor.
They have a clothing spritz (which they call a dry shampoo, but for your clothes) and a knitwear spritz, which can also act as a natural moth repellent.
All of Clothes Doctor’s sprays are packaged in an infinitely recyclable aluminum bottle!
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Fabric fresheners are another effective way to remove odors from your clothes without washing them. But you might not want to be spraying potentially toxic air fresheners. (Personally most air fresheners give me a headache.)
Thankfully there are more natural solutions for odor removing sprays now, such as Fresh Wave. Fresh wave is free of parabens, phthalates, harmful Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and other toxic chemicals.
6. Spray or Spot With Lemon Juice
No vodka, white vinegar, or fabric freshener in the house?
Try mixing a tablespoon of lemon juice per cup of water in a spray bottle and spray your garments!
Similar to the approaches above, if the smell is just coming from ONE area (like the underarms) of your garment, try to just dab or spray that part.
If the smell is coming mostly from the underarms, it’s best to spray the inside of the garment since that’s where the source of the smell is. And it will also further de-risk doing any damage to the garment.
If you are spraying the outside of the piece, make sure to test your mixture on the inside of your garment first to ensure it won’t cause any discoloration on the outside of your garment. (Do I sound like a broken record yet?)
7. Spray with Essential Oils
I would typically suggest combining essential oils in combination with one of the other tricks in here (like vodka or vinegar) for best results, but if it’s all you’ve got, it can still do the trick for a short period of time. It doesn’t really kill any odor-causing bacteria, but if you’re really in a pinch it can help! (Perfume of course can do the same thing.)
As with every other tip, experiment with a hidden spot of your garment or the inside part of your garment (if it’s a similar material) to make sure it would cause staining or discoloration!
8. Use Baking Soda
I often use baking soda to reduce smells and absorb sweat and in shoes. I used this hack a LOT when I was dancing and had sweaty ballet, tap, and jazz shoes.
So it makes sense that baking soda can also be used to remove odors and sweat from clothing.
Essentially you put the garment in a bag and put in some baking soda, giving it a good shake. Then you remove the garment from the bag and brush off the baking soda.
You’ll just have to be mindful of the fabric with this hack. Using baking soda on silk or leather, for example, may harm your clothing.
9. Freeze ’em up!
This method takes longer and doesn’t work quite as well as a steamer or some of the other approaches in my experience, but if you don’t have a steamer, try putting a garment, like your denim, in the freezer!
I like to put mine in a bag before putting them in the freezer (perhaps that’s why it doesn’t work as well for me, though.)
Just be sure to remove them in enough time before you plan to wear again — since they will be cold and stiff from their time in the freezing temperature.
10. One Final Option: The Dryer
If you’re trying to get smells out of your clothes without washing, but you have a drying machine, you can throw your clothes into the dryer for a short amount of time with a scented dryer sheet.
However if you’re trying to avoid the washer to save energy or preserve your clothes, this isn’t your best bet. Machine drying expedites the wear and tear of your garments and is an energy-intensive process. But it can be used if you’re just in a crunch and you need something convenient.
Nothing Working?
You can still wash your clothes while minimizing your costs and impact by:
1) Washing using the cold/cool setting on your washing machine OR hand-washing
2) Using natural and low waste laundry detergent
3) Skipping the machine dryer and air-drying or hang-drying instead
Hope these tips were useful and can help you save time, money, and your clothes — not to mention resources!
Check out this post for more sustainable clothing care tips.
You May Also Want to Check Out:
What is Sustainable Fashion and Why Does it Matter?
Fast Fashion, Microfiber Pollution, and What We Can Do About It
Are Your Clothes Toxic? Here’s How You Can Find Out
