Laundry Bluing is Green and Brightens Whites

Origin of laundry bluing….

In the 1870’s, Al Stewart, a traveling salesman, produced bluing solution at his home, then peddled it on his sales trips. Al’s formula utilized a concentrated blue iron-powder suspended in liquid and was sold as a laundry aid to brighten whites.

Origin of laundry bluing….

Sweet story: Al named his bluing solution after his wife, Nancy Taylor-Stewart. Funnily enough, his wife didn’t offer her photograph for the bottle, so Al used an image of his wife’s mother instead. Al’s mother-in-law remains the face of the company even today, even though Al sold the formula rights to Luther Ford in 1883. Ford, and later his sons, took the formula to a higher level by developing large scale manufacturing and distribution.

Bluing for whites is actually “green”…

Laundry bluing utilizes a blue dye diluted in water. This dilution is added to the load of whites in your washer, either during the wash or rinse cycle. This essentially adds a blue hue to the laundry that is exposed to the concentrated liquid bluing. When this happens, the human eye perceives a heightened degree of whiteness.

How do I blue my laundry?

How do I blue my laundry?

1. nce your load has gone through the wash cycle, drained, and filled back up for the rinse, it’s time to add the diluted bluing solution. 2. For a large load of top-loader laundry, dilute 1/8 teaspoon bluing in a quart of water. 3. A small load requires only a few drops diluted in a quart of water.

How do I blue my laundry?

How do I blue my laundry?

4. Push textiles down and make space to add bluing into the water, rather than straight onto fabric. If too much bluing gets directly onto an item, it could cause staining (see bottle for reversal tips). 5. Let laundry finish the cycle, then dry as directed per garment laundering tags.

Pro Tip:

– It may be tempting to add more bluing. Resist! If your whites aren’t as bright as you desire, repeat the process, rather than add extra solution. – If you choose to add bluing during the wash cycle, increase the amount of bluing. If it is a large load you will need ¼ tsp diluted into a few quarts of water.