Shout seemed to strike gold when they came up with their Color Catchers to stop dye from bleeding into fabrics in the wash. However, it’s actually pretty darn simple to create these on your own (and for a lot less money).

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 10-12 white washcloths, 12 squares of white felt, or a yard of white fabric
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tbsp of washing soda

Here’s what you do:

1. Cut squares into 6″ X 12″ pieces
2. Heat the cup of water in a big bowl in the microwave for about a minute. Then stir in the washing soda until it’s fully dissolved.
3. Put the fabric in the mixture and stir it with a wooden spoon
   

   They should all be just a bit moist, not dripping wet. If you need to, add a few more pieces of fabric to soak up the rest of the water.

4. Hang pieces to dry, then stack them near your washing machine.
5. When you’re ready to use, throw one into any mixed laundry load. Use regular detergent and any other additives you’d like (i.e. fabric softener) and let your machine go to work. If any clothing dye bleeds into the water, your color catcher will “trap” the dye to keep it from bleeding onto lighter fabrics.

To read more about washing soda and where to find it, head over to Baby Savers’ How to Make Shout Color Catchers Laundry Dye Catching Sheets: DIY.