Whitening Linens with Lemons

Did you use lemons as a holiday centerpiece? Are you now wondering what to do with an enormous pile of the fruit? You could eat an ocean of fish, drink lethal amounts of espresso, or you could usher in the new year with this natural whitening tip from Martha Stewart Living:

To whiten cloth napkins, linens, and even socks, fill a large pot with water, and drop in several slices of lemon. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat. Add the linens, and let them soak for about an hour. Then launder as usual.

Have you experimented with this citrus trick? Jump down to share your results and to find out one of our concerns...

Socks are one thing but we're wondering if the boiling water might be too harsh for some of our more delicate linens. Obviously, we haven't tested this method yet but we're always curious about ways to brighten our dingies that don't involve bleach. So...?

Comments (6)

Not sure how this would work on delicates but I'm totally going to give it a try with all of my dingy dish towels. I'll let you know how it works!

Boiling water isn't likely to hurt anything but delicate antiques--unless the tag says to wash in cold water. And besides, the linens aren't being boiled.

Still seems like a lot of work.

But think of how nice it would make the kitchen smell in the meantime :)

I wouldn't use this on fine linens

http://www.chemicalfreecleaningbook.com/chemical_free_cleaning_laundry.shtml

If it was a textile I want to have for a long time, I'd be concerned about how the acid in the lemon might damage the fabric in ways that might not be apparent for years.

Do you thin I could add lemon juice to the washing machine and wash the whites on the highest temperature (90°c) ?

@Taureg - the link you provided suggests vinegar instead of lemon juice. I fail to see how that would be any less acidic than diluted lemon juice. I doubt there is enough acid in either method to do permanent damage unless you went overboard with the lemon slices.