Chemical Free Laundry the French Way: Natural, Economical & Outrageously Effective

The French Inspired secrets to natural, effective and effortless laundry.

With fond memories of childhood I remember the exciting and responsible job of shaking the packet of Lux Soap Flakes into the washing up bowl for my mum to do her handwashing. Jump forward 40 years and I'm now too using soap flakes, but not just for handwashing, for machine washing and mopping the floor!

At French Soaps our way of life now revolves around simple French inspired techniques that are not only very economical, they tick the full eco credentials we are all striving to achieve AND work brilliantly well!

If you are looking to deodorise clothes without detergent, do your laundry without chemicals, remove the toughest of stains (for example yellow armpits), brighten your whites or fluff your towels with 100% pure natural ingredients that work, effortlessly, then read on.

The Magic of Pure Soap Flakes: A versatile, eco-friendly way to clean.

Soap Flakes are one of the best eco-friendly laundry products you can buy; not only are they a gentle, chemical free and effective cleaner for your clothes but they can also be used to mop your floor, wash your dishes and clean your dog! 

• 100% natural, good for my fabrics, the environment,  skin AND ridiculously economical. 25-30g of flakes makes 2litres of laundry liquid, that's 15-20 machine loads, all slight trial and error depending upon how hard the water is where you live and the items you are washing. A £15 bag of Pure Soap Flakes from La Corvette will give you 60litre of laundry liquid, that is around 200 machine washes.
  
  
• They clean everything including delicates and taking a solid bar/cube of Traditional Savon de Marseille on holiday with you means you can do a quick handwash when ever required! 
  
  
• Perfect for those with allergies, for babies and young children and those with skin conditions such as dermatitis and ezcma or wanting to avoid toxic chemicals due to cancer treatment and other medical conditions. 

How to choose the best Soap Flakes for you.
Pure, Hypoallergenic, 100% Natural

• Made with Olive Oil, these flakes are very traditional, and have a dense olive scent that is reassuring and naturally repels moths and spiders.
• The 'natural' flakes made with coconut and RSPO Palm are good for delicates and spot cleans, the vegetable oil scent quickly dissipates for those that want a product entirely fragrance free.
• Aleppo Flakes are the oldest recorded laundry soap in the world, 100% pure and renowned for being used by the most intolerant of skins. Dermatologist recommended, use these for the most delicate and fragile of skins.  

Pure, 100% Natural with Fragrance.
Made for us, our fragranced flakes come with benefits too!

• Patchouli, a heady fragrance that has been used for centuries to keep moths and insects away from delicate clothes, these pure coconut oil based soap flakes contain Patchouli Essential Oil.
  
  
• Lavender Essential Oil is naturally anti-bacterial and a natural moth deterrent making this particularly beneficial  for sports wear and for items being stored in drawers and wardrobes for a while. Lavender promotes relaxation so also lovely to use for bed linen. our soap flakes with Provence Lavender Essential Oil provide a traditional and much loved choice for laundry. 
  
  
• Verbena, this fresh citrus fragrance provides a delicate clean healthy fragrance.  Verbena Essential Oil has natural antibacterial properties, allowing it to attack harmful bacteria that may be attached to you clothes. It’s antifungal properties also mean that it can inhibit the growth of fungi and prevent unwanted organisms from thriving on sports wear. 

  Verbena oil has been found to kill mosquitos at the larval stage, and it is also commonly used to repel adult mosquitos.

• Rose Geranium Essential Oil is naturally anti-fungal, antibacterial and anti-viral, additionally, it helps to deodorize stale indoor environments as well as repel insects whilst promoting relaxation. Use for all your laundry year round.

 

How do the French keep their delicate linens so fresh and clean?

Have you ever wandered around the stalls of vintage markets in France? Drooling over the beauty of the antique linens whilst being in awe as to how perfect they still look? The secret is Sodium Percarbonate (not bicarbonate). For delicates or tough stains just pop some in a bowl to dissolve allow the water to cool then leave your items to soak. For delicates rinse thoroughly with clean cool water, for tough stains on let's say a tea towel, pop it in your washing machine for a full wash. 

Can you integrate Sodium Percarbonate in your day to day laundry or is it just for tough stains? 

You can also use a scoop of Sodium Percarbonate in your washing machine draw for your day to day washing: it will make your whites whiter than white, it will brighten your denim and freshen your towels and t-shirts. 
 

Top Eco-Friendly & Economical ways to remove the toughest of Stains from all fabrics and surfaces the Natural Way

 

Sodium Percarbonate

As we mentioned above, Sodium Percarbonate is the magic ingredient for this, known as the green bleach it will solve many cleaning challenges and is always our first choice, however there are alternatives too. 

Bicarbonate of Soda

Bicarbonate of Soda (Baking Powder) is also a natural home cleaner, it de-oderises and cleans making it ideal for trainers, sports wear and even the grout in your bathroom!

How to use

• To remove those pesky yellow stains that appear on the armpits of clothes then mix some white vinegar with Bicarbonate of Soda and apply, then wash as normal. Note that hot water can ingrain stains more so always best to use cool water for jobs like this. 
• For Trainers, use a damp sponge and bicarbonate of soda to rub over your shoes. Allow to dry.
• For Sports wear, add a tablespoon to your laundry liquid and wash as normal.

Ready to use Stain Bars - ideal for travel

Ready to use Stain Bars are a great easy to use product to have on standby at home and perfect for travel, especially with kids or caravans! Solid Savon de Marseille with Baking Soda added or Sommelier Clay, just rub on any stain including carpets and upholstery then wipe with an off dry cloth. 

 Sommieres Clay for Dry Cleaning Items

Sommieres Clay is a fine pure clay powder that can be used on all types of greasy and dry stains, and bad smells. Practical and effective especially for objects that are sensitive to water.and can also be used as a dry cleaner.

Can be used on textiles, even delicate ones, mattresses, sofas, carpets, and more

 

The only 5 (100% Natural and Hypoallergenic) products you need for healthy, toxic & chemical free, economical laundry in 2025

Soap Flakes for Laundry

1) Soap Flakes, dissolve and use for dishwashing and handwashing, add to your mop bucket for cleaning the floor, into a spray bottle for cleaning your worktops and other washable surfaces and if you choose as a shampoo for washing your dog.

Vinegar for Limescale and Odours

2) White Vinegar, this magic ordinary product is a natural limescale remover, rub over where you need to clean or add a glass to your washing machine and run on a cleaning cycle to de-scale and de-orderise. OR, add a glass to the fabric softener compartment whilst washing towels and you will have created your very own natural, and cheap, fabric softener. We don't sell this neat, just pop to your supermarket and you will find plenty of options, we do sell it ready mixed with a Traditional Savon de Marseille solution (soap flakes diluted) Fer a Cheval, or with Lavender Vinegar from La Corvette.

 

 Sodium Percarbonate; The Green Bleach

3) Sodium Percarbonate, Use this to whiten whites, brighten denim, remove stains and more.

Bicarbonate of Soda for general Cleaning

4) Bicarboonate of Soda. use this to de-oderise and clean all washable surfaces.

Sommelier Clay for Dry Cleaning at Home

4) Sommelier Clay - one of the world natural wonders, this clay draws out stains and de-oderises. Use dry and on fabrics you shouldn't wash. 

 

Ready to make the change to eco-friendly, hypo-allergenic laundry?

Explore our range of 100% natural products that will save you money and be more effective than you can imagine!