Sorry you had to deal with that...I can't stand the smell either. Just clean. If the clothes are fresh what more can they need....

I don't know what is was my neighbor was using in her laundry for a while but when she would dry clothes in her clothes dryer vented to the outdoors and I would walk through the side yard between our houses, I'd hold my breath. The smell/scent was overpowering even outside.

Morz, I have the same here in my neighborhood. I can smell fabric softener or scented laundry detergent while walking through my neighborhood. I can't stand near someone with all that scent and then some use cologne on top of it!!! I get a headache just thinking about it!

Moni, I use unscented detergent and hang clothes to dry, year round. I don't know when I last used my dryer.

I line dry most clothes I can, cause I love the fresh air smell.

Do as my mother, line dry sheets and sleep so well. I'm lucky I have a private back deck that I can do so.

So THAT's the odor in my closet. Also noticed it on some clothing. I suspected it but wasn't sure. I use 1/2 sheet of Bounce per load in the winter only to cut down/eliminate the static 'shocks'. If anyone has an alternative for that I'm all ears.

dees I went a step further, I sold my dryer. More space in the garage this way. ;)

wantoretire, I don't use any fabric softener at all. Line drying doesn't cause static. ;)

Moni

I agree with everything that's been posted. We despise the smell of perfumed clothes, etc. Both of our eyes burn when we walk down the laundry aisle.......and same with the baby aisles! Thankfully we don't have to do that often. We did it 2 years ago and we couldn't believe the stench and burn.

We hate following someone who smells like Bounce, or perfume.

Line drying here as long as the weather is good, and on an indoor clothes dryer in the winter, which sits out on the balcony. Love frozen clothes that thaw. LOL

"Retire" try using vinegar in your rinse cycle.

Every person who uses fabric softeners should do a little research on the toxicity of those products.

When I 'de-toxified' my home several years ago, fabric softeners were one of the first things to go. I also reduced the amount of detergent I used by third. It took a few wash cycles with a vinegar rinse (about half a cup per load) for the gummy softener residue to go away, but I've really not noticed an increase in static.

Can't stand the smell either. I haven't used it in years because of my asthma, never noticed any static either.

Clothes washed with Tide then softened with Bounce smell like urine to me. Old pee washed into the clothes.

I have two nieces whose clothes make my eyes water and my throat sore because of the smell. Stinky detergent and stinky softener and my sister constantly has different scentsy blocks going in every room. Add on the highly scented teenager deoderant and body spray and a few spritzes of perfume. Talk about sensory overload!

Dances.

Love hearing that I'm not the only one who is completely *gagged* by all the perfumed crap and people around us!

There are certain people I dread seeing coming at me because I know they will hug and kiss me and I know that their "scents" will stick on me and my clothing and linger in my sinuses for hours and hours. sob. If the only contact was through a handshake I could at least stand a chance of being able to wash it off before I was fully contaminated! :p

Party, I feel the same way!!!! There are certain people that I hate to hug, and they insist on it. I don't do a full body hug, for sure. I smell their perfume, hair gel/spray whatever on me the rest of the day. Gag

I would take one lady on an errand and the perfume would linger in the passenger seat. Yuck!!

I went so far as to order a stackable unit installed upstairs just for me. I use all scent free and green products but my husband likes the others so he washes and dries his own on our lower level laundry. I still fold and put away his laundry as he's horrible at it and I like uniformity. Works for us.lol.

I'm so glad that scents don't bother me. We live in a world full of scents so being allergic to smells would be quite the disability if you ask me!

I agree with you all. I even made my sons and DH change their deodorants to unscented because I couldn't stand the scent of the scented ones. Actually I can't find true unscented mens deodorants unlike for women, so I stand at the deodorant section sniffing them all to get the most innocuous ones. If they want to use a scented body wash that's fine - but scented deodorants- nope.

No fabric softeners are used in our laundry. The only detergent that I like is Tide Free and Gentle because not only is it scent free but it doesn't make my skin itch either. It's hard to find in the HE version.

bifenton, I'm like you. I only want my husband to wear unscented deodorant. I sniff them at the store too. LOL

re: men't deodorant. I remember years ago when Right Guard was popular. It's such a strong scent, I could smell it on a guy yards away.

A few years ago I made felted wool dryer balls. They are a little noisy but I don't have any static.

Here is a link that might be useful: heres a page that tells you how to make

Really? I love the smell, and I love it when I'm outside walking and know someone's doing laundry. I also wear bath and body works scented lotions. You all would probably avoid me, lol.

Just got in from BB&B and Pier 1 - oh, my poor eyes. Itch, itch, itch. BB&B is usually pretty good but I went down the wrong aisle today. Actually I think it was the laundry aisle.

I love fabric softener. I live in Calgary, one of the driest cities in the world....... trust me, we would all look like prunes if it wasn't for lotions and creams. And our clothes would stick to us like saran wrap if it wasn't for fabric softener because of all the static in the winter. We can't hang our clothes out to dry when it's -40. I would much rather smell fabric softener and perfume than people's bad BO, bad breath and stale cigarette smoke. And yes, I do have perfume allergies. But I won't ask someone not to wear something they enjoy because it bothers me. I own about 50 bottles of perfume. I just take a pill and suffer through it. :)

Debby, I'm positive you know how much perfume to put on when you wear it :-)

Too often people put far too much on, there are signs clearly posted in doctors offices and clinics yet the air is rife with perfume. Or being the next patient in the doctors office which still reeks of perfume from the previous patient. We had that with hubby's follow-up. The assistant closed the door when she ushered us in, and I re-opened it to air it out.

I try NOT to be that strongly affected/offended....by anything. People that smoke...I'm only going to be around them for a minute....or people with too much perfume....I'd like to say "IF I can smell it then you have too much on".

Interesting - I never am aware of any smell from dryer sheets or detergent - my own or others'. Never. There was only once when I was visiting my DB and DSIL and she brought nice warm towels from the dryer to me, and they smelled wonderful as I held them up to my face, warm and cozy. She said it was just a dryer sheet. But other than that, never ever have I been aware of it.

Now scented deodorant or scented kitty litter? GAG! Awful, simply awful.

When I was married shaving cologne and deodorant made me so sick I made my husband keep them in his car and put them on there.

I do use dryer sheets,, always Bounce Outdoor fresh. I wear a lot of Tee shirts or sweat shirts, and I like the feel that Bounce gives them. I am not aware of any "fragrance" from it. Maybe I should ask a couple friends if they notice it. Oh,no, that wouldn't work because some of them are so steeped in perfume! That is what bothers me.... too much perfume!

The scents in the grocery aisles don't bother me, maybe because I buy the biggest box of Cheer and Bounce they have, which means I don't go down that aisle often.

I could always tell when my neighbor was doing laundry because of the heavy perfumy dryer exhaust smell. She has passed on and I never notice any scents now that I have a new neighbor.