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list of methods for doing laundry, start to finish

Laundry is a huge task.  It feels like you get all of your family’s clothes washed, dried, folded, and put away; and then you turn around to find more laundry in the hamper.  It can feel like you are drowning in a sea of cotton and denim.  While I don’t admit to having it down perfect, I feel like I am in a good rhythm for doing laundry for my family of 6.  Here are some different methods to try if you struggle with getting the laundry completed.

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  • Do 1 load every morning so it becomes a part of your routine and you have plenty of time to hang on the clothesline or get them in the dryer.
  • Do laundry on set days of the week so you don’t get bogged down in perpetual laundry (say every Monday and Thursday).
  • Fold the laundry right out of the dryer or off the clothesline so that you eliminate the problem of saying you’ll fold the laundry later (and then needing to dig through the basket of wrinkled clothes to find what you need).
  • Enlist the help of everyone to sort clothes into piles out of the basket and onto a clean surface (such as a bed).
  • Put clean clothes on dressers or beds and have children over 2 put their clothes in the right drawer.
  • OR, require each family member to collect their clean piles and deliver to the appropriate drawer or closet.
  • Ask members of the home not to put clothes in the hamper inside out.  Make it a rule. . .if they go into the laundry inside out, they come out of the laundry inside out.
  • Have children strip their beds every Monday morning or even the first Monday of the month (whichever you are more comfortable with) and bring sheets to the laundry room.
  • Place all dirty socks into a large mesh bag so that all socks are kept together (keeps the sock monster at bay).
  • If you don’t have a full load of laundry, don’t do it! It will save you time and money (energy, laundry detergent) to wait until tomorrow.

What are some of your laundry tricks and tips?

Tags: laundrylaundry methods
Jennifer Tankersley:

View Comments (4)

  • One laundry related tip is to buy a front loading washing machine. They use MUCH LESS water. Thus we save money on our water bill, and on our heating bill, since we use gas to heat the water for the washer.
    It is ultra good for the earth to use a front loading washer, plus they are more gentle on your clothes since they don't have that adjitator in the center.
    So when it is time to shop for a washing machine, keep this in mind.

  • *sigh* I love this blog. I love lists. I wish I had tips for laundry efficiency to share. I usually dump the clean laundry on the loveseat upstairs and it stays there for 3 days patiently waiting to be folded. I clearly need to print this list and stick it on the fridge!!!

  • I love making list! It's the only way I can stay organized! lol I'm going to do the wrapped canvas painting for my son's room like you were talking about except I'm using staples. They're going to be on the back side where you cant see them though. Thanks for the comment! Be sure to keep checking back I'm going to have lots of new stuff.