Method Brand Fabric Softener: To Buy or Not to Buy?

Method brand fabric softener was one of my most recent purchases of Method brand products. I'm still on my mini-crusade to try different organic, natural, or plant-derived cleaning products to test their effectiveness. Whatever your beliefs about the origins of our climate problems, I figure it certainly couldn't hurt to run my home as earth-conscious as possible. The more I decrease my carbon footprint, the better. Couldn't hurt, right? So let's get down to brass tax. Does this fabric softener work as well as others and what's the difference between Method brand and other leading brands?

For starters, let's talk about what's so earth friendly about it? Method brand fabric softener is made of "renewable natural plant oils" according to the packaging. That's different than many other brands of fabric softeners, which the packaging also claims are typically made of animal-by products, which surprised me. It makes me wonder what else is made with animal by-products. (Shocker, Jell-O is made of materials from animal bones. Eek!) What else makes it different? It's not tested on animals, it's biodegradable, and it's phosphate free. To check their claims and for more information, head to their website at methodhome.com

The Method fabric softener that I bought is "fresh air scent". It is quite possibly the best smelling fabric softener that I have ever used. It has a new spin on that typical fabric softener scent. It reminds me of the scent of pears. That may sound odd, but it's actually very pleasant. It's also a very strong scent. It works so well that I typically only use a half a capful of softener, even for the largest loads of laundry.

So how does it work? It works great. All of my laundry comes out not only smelling good, but very soft. It's safe to use in all kinds of loads, whether that's colors, whites, bed sheets, jackets, hats, etc. It works just fine in concert with bleach and any kind of detergent that I use.

Here's the thing I'm learning about Method products, they're definitely more expensive than the kind of products that I typically buy, generic or value brands at large stores like Wal-Mart or Target. I'd like to see Method branch out into some more value-conscious packaging. That's pretty much my only complaint regarding the Method fabric softener. As with all Method brand products, the packaging is recyclable, and there is nothing actually written on the plastic bottle. It's all label based.

One bottle says it does about 32 loads, but because of its potency and the fact that I only use a half a capful for every load of laundry, it ends up being about 64 loads of laundry that I can do with one little bottle of earth-friendly Method brand fabric softener. That's one of the best qualities about products that use natural plant-based derivatives; natural scents are actually much stronger and more effective than chemically reproduced scents.

Think of it like this, in regards to food which of the following tastes better? Fresh ripe grapes that have just been washed or a grape lollipop that's been flavored artificially and sitting in a wrapper for an unknown number of months? Well, what I'm learning on my little quest is that the smaller the list of ingredients on any product, the better they seem to work. (Funny, huh?) Method brand fabric softener has impressed me just as much as all the other Method brand products. Yes, it's more expensive, but because of its potency, it ends up being a far better value. I highly recommend it, especially to anyone with trash guilt or an urge to be greener. So don't overlook this fabric softener because of its price or size. It just may surprise you.