Keeping up with the washing for the family is a never ending task. It seems as soon as one load is dry, the washing basket is full again. And this occurs all year round.
However, I don’t mind doing the laundry, but I’m probably in the minority. In my family we wear our clothes more than once before washing, we wash regularly, we fold it and put it away before the next load is hung out. But the system we use may not suit everyone, so I’ve put together a list of tips that may help make keeping up with the washing easier. Pick and choose from the lists below and set up your own system.
Tips to make household laundering easier:
Wash each item of clothing less frequently
- Wash clothes that are dirty (this is different to have been worn). Clothing can often be worn numerous times before they need washing. (Clothes only need to be washed if they have an odour, or have had something spilt down the front of it).
- Encourage the kids to change out of their school uniform when they get home from school.
- Arrange a place to air clothes in between wears if they do not need washing (my kids put their clothes on the end of their bed).
Collecting dirty clothes
- Use a laundry basket in each bedroom the same size as the washing machine. When the basket is full of dirty clothes, put them in the wash.
- “Create a clean-clothes sorting station. You already have a handful of baskets for pre-sorting, right? When clothes come out of the drier, line those baskets up again and toss each family member’s freshly washed clothes inside — then everyone in your crew can grab his or her own bin and fold and put away whatever’s inside. Teamwork!” (goodhousekeeping.com)
- Keep socks together by hanging a laundry bag by the basket and throw them straight in there. Wash the socks in the bag then peg them up together. (Thanks Catherine Hurley).
- Hang socks in pairs using one peg for each. When dry, simply roll them into balls as you bring them in.
- Have a separate washing basket for socks and undies so you always wash them together (hack courtesy of kidspot.com.au).
Washing the clothes
- Allocate a day to wash: eg: Monday wash the sheets, Wednesday wash the towels Saturday and Sunday washed the clothes (thank you Sharon Siacci).
- Put clothes on hangers straight from the washing machine and dry them like this on the line to prevent creases and make hanging out easier.
- Use the timer on the washing machine to finish just as you’re getting out of bed in the morning so the damp clothes are not sitting in the machine for too long.
Drying clothes
- Hang out clothes in groups by owner and in groups of articles of clothing: pair socks, undies together so taking the clothes off the line is easier.
- Dry on the line whenever possible for lower electricity bills
- Set up an undercover area for a clothes airer or buy a cover for your clothesline
- Clothes dry quicker on a clothes airer over a heating vent if you put a fitted sheet over the whole lot to trap in the warm air.
Ironing
- Buy clothes that do not need ironing
- Don’t iron! Personally, I don’t iron anything. I find it’s a waste of time. As soon as you’ve sat in the garment for 5 minutes, it often looks like it neeeds ironing again!
- Iron clothes straight off the line to prevent them from getting more wrinkled from being thrown in a pile.
- Teach the kids (and husband) at an early age so they can do their own ironing.
Folding the clothes
- Fold washing straight after it has dried
- Get the kids to learn how to fold at an early age and put their own clothes away.
- There are some great techniques of folding various articles of clothing here.
- Put on a podcast or audiobook, listen to music, or catch up on a favourite show while you you’re folding.
Putting the clothes away
- Make a pledge to put the washing away before the next load is hung out.
- Have a permanent home for each type of clothing.
- Label drawers to remind the kids’ where things go
In summary
Having a regular routine for laundering clothes will make the whole process easier. There are lots of ideas above to choose from and I’d love to hear from you as to which tips work for you and your family in the comments below. Or leave a comment below if you have other tips that are not included in the above list.
If you need a hand setting up a routine that includes keeping up with the washing, contact me here.