I have never had a good system for doing laundry.
It has always been my Achilles heel.
I dread laundry....especially folding it'1
Folding laundry is my least favorite household chore (along with unloading the dishwasher)
I've never had a good system for laundry....I love doing meal plans every Sunday, I love cooking (and cook 6 nights a week), I love throwing parties and all the planning & prep that goes into parties, but laundry? Laundry is were I fail. I don't like doing it, so I avoid it!
Avoiding it is never a good idea because then the next thing you know, I have 5-6 loads of laundry that needs to get done on the weekend because no one has any clean clothes to wear.
So that has been my laundry "system" for the past 10 years....I save all the laundry up for the weekend and then I end up doing a ton of loads at a time.
We only have a couple more days of school left (YES!!!), so this summer (starting next week) I want to figure out a laundry system & I would LOVE your advice!
I would love to hear how you manage your laundry.
Do you do a load everyday?
Do you make your kids help you fold (I have started having the girls help me fold but they don't like to fold either) I do make the girls put away their clean laundry. We've been doing that since they were 5 and 7
Do you start your laundry in the morning and then fold at night?
Leave your tips and suggestions in the comments below.
Or are you like me and are a laundry avoider?
What works/doesn't work for you?
I'm coming back to read these tips!! I was going to talk about this on Friday...such a problem!
ReplyDeleteWe have a family of 6, so we have TONS of laundry! A couple of years ago, I opted to have a few big hampers in our house, rather than each of our kids having their own. Each of the hampers is designated for a certain kind of clothes. We have one for jeans, dance clothes, etc. The kids are responsible for getting their clothes into the correct hamper. That way, when I go to do laundry, it's already presorted. When one of the baskets gets full, I can pop it in the washer. At this point, I don't have the kiddos put laundry away. I like their drawers and closets to be very organized and have things folded a certain way. I also keep a donate basket in our laundry room. I put items that the kids out grown in there right away, so that it doesn't go back into the laundry cycle. I donate the clothes when the basket gets full. Hope this helps.
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DeleteLove the idea of having a donate basket in your laundry room - that is a great tip!
DeleteI don't have kids yet, so my "system" might be easier to tackle... but it kind of works.
ReplyDeleteSince you meal plan, you have to "laundry plan"!!
I sort everything in my laundry room and do a load a day. I do whites one day, lights one day, socks/underwear/pajamas one day, jeans/pants/shorts one day, Tshirts/work shirts one day, towels one day etc. If I'm feeling ambitious, I do two loads in one day. But I commit my self to doing (FULLY doing, washing/drying/folding AND putting away) one load a day. On Sunday regardless of where I am with my little system, I wash the bedding. It seems to work. :)
I have a family of 4. My husband and I have a hamper (3 slots) in our room, and both the kiddos have one in their own rooms. I also have a hamper by the washer and dryer. Our laundry is sorted as: whites/husbands work clothes (he is a farmer and he gets really dusty/dirty) and my clothes. I sort the kiddos clothes in their hampers before I do loads. I do start one load each morning so that when I get home and get the kids snacks (around 3:00) I switch the load to the dryer. If I need, I start another load at that time. Sundays are designated for bedding in our house. Saturday I usually only have to do a couple of loads because I have been doing laundry all week. I LOVE Downy Unstoppables for sheets and bedding. I also use a Bounce Dryer Bar and one dryer sheet. I love the smell of clean laundry :) During my summer break, I just do laundry throughout the day. It never ends :)
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I do to make folding and putting away a little easier is, I only wash the kids clothes together, Brandon's work clothes get their own load, and then my clothes pretty much get washed separately. Whites are just thrown together. This way, as I am folding the clothes/loads I can separate them into little piles (t-shirts/underwear/pants) so that the kiddos can put their own clothes away in drawers, and when I put my own clothes away, or Brandon's I can just grab the already sorted folded piles and put them where they go. I am a little OCD, but this makes putting away quick.
DeleteIt's been helpful to me to do my kids clothes individually. That way when I told them, they all go in one basket and to one room...where my kids out their own clothes away. (After I ask ten times!) that way at least you cut out the sorting time!
ReplyDeleteI do this too. I fold the clothes right out of the dryer and organize everything back into the basket to put away in that persons room. It makes putting away much quicker!
DeleteI am also terrible about this! I read a book recently about a woman with several young children who would pay teenagers to come fold and out up her laundry during the summer. I am down for that- I'll just fold hubby's unmentionables myself.
ReplyDeleteI hate folding and putting away laundry too - but we live on a cattle ranch so I have my fair share to do. :) My friend taught me this system and I've used it for the past 7 years. Each morning, after everyone in the house has showered (and before I leave for work), I put a load in the washer. Then when I get home after work sometime that night, I put it in the dryer. The load that was in the dryer from the day before (and is now dry) I *immediately fold as each piece comes out of the dryer on a small table I keep by the dryer* (or you can use the top of your dryer). I don't use any baskets - which means I have to take the stack of now folded clothes straight to our bedroom to put it away. Then it's done. And I don't have to fold anything or put anything away for another day because the load I put in the dryer will be there for me tomorrow. :) The whole process probably takes 5 minutes. I also sort my laundry before it goes in - jeans in a load, work clothes in a separate load, whites, my husband's work clothes in another load. That helps minimize the time spent putting stuff away too, because one load is all going to the same place. Anyway, works for me - looking forward to reading other's tips. :)
ReplyDeleteDarcy @ www.sexsoncharolais.com
I typically do one load a night. I get home from work, throw them in the washer and when that's done, usually right after supper, I put them in dryer. Then I really try to fold them before bed while watching TV. If I do that most nights, I usually don't have a ton on the weekend. Works for me. The boys put their own laundry away (even though it gets wrinkled and I'm still working on being ok with that!).
ReplyDeleteI am so in your shoes......I have done two ways and both seem to work. (when i follow them. ha) I have kids similar in ages to your kids (except yours are a year younger). First method: I do massive loads on the weekends and then plop the towels and the kids clothes on their floor in their rooms. The older girls fold and put away their clothes and the towels. Our little guy folds the wash cloths, and i do everything else. The second way is do a load a night....this one doesn't work as well since we have so many kids activities on weeknights. Hope you find something that works for you. Good luck! (to the both of us :)
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness! I think I would triple my free time if I didn't have laundry to do, especially Mike's (sorry, Mike). I wash a couple of loads every couple of days. I have one hamper at the top of the stairs and dirty laundry goes in it. I then have 3 hampers in our laundry room downstairs. One for me, one for Mike, and one for the kids. I bring the laundry from the top of the stairs down each night and put the clothes in the appropriate hamper. I tend to start a load in the morning, then dry later in the day and fold. The kids' clothes get washed together and sometimes in with Mike's. I keep mine separate bc I like to wash mine on cold and I'm more high maintenance about keeping them looking nice longer. Putting away is the hardest part. Amanda and I are pretty good about it, the boys, not so much. I would love tips on that one.
ReplyDeleteI do at least one load of laundry a day, and I make myself put whatever's in the dryer away at night. It isn't fun but honestly, loads and loads at a time is a nightmare. I'm really disciplined w/ laundry around here (three little kids plus my husband who wears a long sleeved shirt at night, gets hot and changes to a tee shirt, then gets cold and gets a different long sleeved shirt out ... AKA he's the hardest to keep up w/ laundry-wise! At least I control when the kids change :)) and it makes a huge difference. Piles of laundry makes me too anxious!
ReplyDeleteEat that frog first! Have you ever read that book? It talks about doing the thing you are most likely going to put off (laundry) FIRST thing in the morning. How about waking up and doing laundry. Wash the night before. Wake up. Put it in the dryer. Make your coffee and/or get ready for the day. Fold that load. At least you have one load done for the day. I prefer to binge wash/dry/fold laundry. I'll choose a day I'm home for the most part (or dedicate an evening of interrupted laundry folding) and do about 3 loads washed, dried, folded. You could do 2 or more nights a week with this depending on how many clothes you had. I do not let kids help with folding laundry as that would be more work (but mine are really young). For older kids, I would at least make them put their laundry in the baskets and/or take the folded laundry to their room. Or do sock sorting...since that's the worst part :) Just some thoughts. I always fold laundry in the living room where my kids are playing so I can keep an eye on them (not that you really need to do that with your kids' ages).
ReplyDeleteI've got our laundry system down pretty well. Don't get me wrong - there are weeks where I can't keep up. The easiest way for me is for everyone to have their own laundry basket. I do one load a day. The kids know that when they are down to only 1 pair of pajamas left, they need to let me know and carry their basket to the washing machine. I really only do their laundry when they're out of pajamas. I do the sheets 1x a week and the towels 1x a week. Usually the towels on Thursday and the sheets on Saturday. I either put the load in the washing machine at night before I go to bed, or as soon as I wake up in the morning while I'm waiting for the Keurig to be ready. If I ran the clothes at night, I move them to the dryer as soon as I wake up. Usually I have a load in the washer or dryer by the time my coffee is ready to drink! When I get home from work (or before work if it's ready) I dump the clothes onto my made bed so I have to fold it and put it away before bed. Don't get me wrong - some days I scoop it right up and put it back in the basket and go to bed. But for the most part, I just deal with it quickly. My older 2 put away their own clothes. Another huge help to me was asking my husband to do his own laundry. Not having to be responsible for his laundry in addition to mine, the kids, the sheets, and the towels, really helped. Hope it helps!
ReplyDeleteClearly we are not alike here. Laundry is my favorite chore!
ReplyDeleteI'm a teacher and used to save everything for the weekend. I looked around Pinterest for different cleaning schedules and the one that has worked out really well for us is to put a load in the wash before you leave in the AM, put in dryer when you get home, and fold/put away as your kids do a ten minute cleanup of the house- they cam do that as part of it or do something separate like putting away all toys and colors.
ReplyDeleteI have three kids too. I have them all help and they started at 2.5 and 3. To make life easier, we hang all shirts and dresses. This is an easy task for little hands. We do not fold underwear and they can choose to fold or not fold their PJs. All other items are folded and put in drawers. I sort the laundry and help them fold items, they hang all of their hangables and put all their clothes away (unless they are too short then I help them :-) To make it more fun we try and have a dance party at the same time.
ReplyDeleteFollow Becky of CleanMama at cleanmama.net. I was a member of her Homekeeping Society (fabulous, but not currently paying), have her book, and love all of her free printables and resources. While I've got days where I am "off" and the house is a complete tornado along with the laundry, for the most part, I am so much better after having found her website! Go to her search field and type in laundry. You'll come to her post on laundry every day vs. a laundry specific day. I also follow Toni at A Bowl Full of Lemons at abowlfulloflemons.net. Both know each other and both have FB accounts as well as IG accounts to follow for daily tips. LOVE them.
ReplyDeleteI spread out all the household chores over a week and (usually) do the laundry that 'fits' for that day. On Mondays we clean the bedrooms and change sheets so we also wash sheets that day. My boys strip their beds and throw everything straight in the washer usually right after breakfast, that way they are dry by mid day for naps/rest time and we just take them from the dryer to their rooms. Wednesdays we clean the bathrooms and the boys take all the towels and throw them in the wash. Wednedsay I do all towels. Friday I do clothes and one more load of towels. The baby's clothes are done when she runs out of pajamas ;) My boys are (almost) 7 and 5 and they flip the dryer (move all the clothes to the den), fold towels, their own clothes (they just learned how to do shirts, Amen!) and also help with our clothes. They can put away thier own clothes, most of the towels and can help with our clothes too. They have been helping for 2-3 years now. By having them help it makes it so much more efficiant and their future wives will thank me. haha!
ReplyDeleteHere is my biggest secret. I don't fold socks, undershirts or underwear. I take them out of the dryer and toss them into the correct drawer. No one knows if they are wrinkled because they are under clothes.
ReplyDelete2 things that have helped me. 1. Accepting that it just has to be done so I might as well not hate it. 2. I have started doing 1 or 2 loads everyday. Completely. Wash. Dry. Fold. Put away. But my trick to make sure that that happens is I fold them on the kitchen table. Then when both loads are done I put them away. Because we eat dinner together every night at the table it can't just sit there. So as soon as one load is done drying I take it to the table and fold it right away. My kids are 6 & 4 & 1 and I have them help put away their clothes. Sometimes they help fold but not often. I used to be so bad at letting it all pile up and we would dig through baskets and baskets of clean clothes. Now we don't need all the extra laundry baskets (I've even gotten rid of most of them so I can't pile hem up!) also, my husband last week told me how much he really appreciates having clean underwear in his drawer in the mornings and doesn't have to dig for them in the dark to get ready for work. It's the little things! Good luck! I love staying up on it and no longer dread it. Now if I could just figure out the meal planning and cooking thing!!!
ReplyDeleteI don't love it, but I'm not minding it now that my kids are getting older and can help.
ReplyDeleteIf the kids are around when I pull a load out of the dryer, I tell everybody to grab what is theirs. They take it with them, fold it hang it and put it away.
Otherwise, someone once recommended washing each persons laundry separately. That way when it's ready to be put away the whole basket just goes to one persons room verses putting it away in 4 different rooms.
Good luck! :)
I would say have the girls help! Maybe they can sort their own clothes and you can supervise the loading and detergent steps.
ReplyDeleteWith 4 kids (ages 2-10), I do laundry. A LOT. I always pop a load in right after showering in the morning and make sure to rotate it over and add a second load just as soon as that one is done. I like getting laundry out of the way in the morning, so I don't have to think about it. Our laundry room is on the main floor, so I dump everything on our front living room couch to fold. I'm forced to take it upstairs right away so people don't see a heaping pile right when they walk in my front door. As for sorting, my oldest two are boys and my younger two are girls. I combine their laundry and it helps immensely. Every other day or so, I grab their hamper and throw it all in together. No sorting. My boys don't wear anything other than basketball shorts and t-shirts so it's not a big deal. I just grab the delicates out of my girls' laundry and will do a separate load of those if needed. I wash my hubby and I together as well, just pulling out the delicates. I do at least 2 loads of towels a week (I throw hand towels and washcloths in with my daily loads of clothes), and sheets on Sundays (I rotate these, they don't all get done every week). It's a constant battle, but simplifying and eliminating a lot of sorting, has made it easier. I have a couple bins in our laundry room, so anything left on the main floor, goes straight in there, rather than up in the rooms. One final tip...my 3 year old daughter is AMAZING at folding! She loves it and is a great helper. We sit and fold together and chat....and it's actually become one of my favorite times with her each day. Kids are capable of so much more than we give them credit for, I think! Now, my almost-2 year old daughter, on the other hand, just likes to mess up piles, so we try to distract her while we fold, or we end up re-folding so much of what we started! ;-)
ReplyDeleteI do 1-2 loads a day. My 13 year old is completely responsible for all of her own laundry, as is my husband. My husband does three loads on Sunday (the only day I don't do any!). He does his whites, his colors, and our master bedroom sheets and our bathroom towels. I split my loads up throughout the week. Mine, Jocelyn's plus kid bathroom towels, Jayce's, another load of towels, and kid bedsheets.
ReplyDeleteI've started using the KonMari method and highly recommend it! http://renovatinglpa.blogspot.ie/2015/02/life-changing-tidying-konmari-method.html
ReplyDeleteI have no method for laundry other than to start a load once a day depending on who's hamper is the fullest. Looking forward to hearing if you come up with a system that works.
ReplyDeleteI have 3 kids, same ages as yours, and after the third my laundry situation got out of hand. And then my mom suggested I sort the laundry into baskets as I take it out of the dryer. So … I have a basket for mine and my husband, and basket for my tw boys, and a basket for my daughter. When I take the clean laundry out of the dryer, I sort it into these baskets. Then, when I finally get around to folding, I fold all my daughter's clothes at once, then all my sons', etc et
ReplyDeleteI also have a basket for clean towels, sheets, etc. it has been much easier folding all the laundry of one kind together so I don't have a million piles and the thing I love the most is that if my kids or husband are looking for something specific, they can go to their clean clothes basket and find it super easily instead of sorting through piles and piles of clean laundry 😁
ReplyDeleteHey Mel, hope you've found some good tips here...I was just reading through and there are some really great ideas. My biggest problem by far in keeping up with laundry is that I'm slightly (maybe a lot) anal about the whole process and don't really delegate this chore to anyone else. I like to have a clear beginning and end to a task, otherwise my mental reserves are just gone in two seconds flat, so I keep laundry assigned to days of the week. Mondays are for my three boys' clothes, Tuesdays for my husband's, my daughter's and my stuff, Wednesdays for sheets and towels- in the summer and fall I wash sheets on Saturday mornings and hang them out on the line, but I do not want to be stuck with piles of laundry to take care of on the weekends. When our new daughter arrives, I'll certainly have more to wash, but baby stuff is so cute to fold, ha! On clothes washing days, I dump everything onto my bed after dinner and hide in my room watching TV while folding everything. Then everyone grabs their respective piles to put their clothes away. There are certainly times when I have to toss in a load at the end of the week because the boys have no shorts left or something, but I don't mind that as much- it forces them to wear more of their clothes anyway rather than just wearing the same few things day after day. Best of luck! =)
ReplyDeleteYou have to accept that laundry will always be an ongoing process. This is one of the chores that is a cycle of handing rather than one with a beginning and end. Our laundry room is upstairs with our 4 bedrooms, which I love. I carry any kitchen laundry upstairs, but that is minimal. We wash towels separately and everything else as lights, darks, or whites. We have 3 children and they, over the years, loved sorting the colors, spraying stains, and measuring out detergent and so on. I fold when things come out of the dryer and that may be right away but is usually later. I'm a teacher, so unless it's summer, this is a morning/evening deal. Kids know to get their folded stack of clothes or hanging clothes just before bedtime. I have folded stacks on top of the dryer. Our laundry room is small! This works for us! So many moms feel like they can't get ahead of laundry but it's a point of seeing it as a cycle - it won't ever end, but it can be managed!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the beautiful image and Tips of laundry. keep sharing more an more.
ReplyDeleteI think that while washing the clothes you need to consider the fabric of the clothes as each and every clothes has different fabric so it is prefer to use the cleaning agents and detergent according to the fabric and even you can use dry baking soda to wipe out the dark spots from the clothes besides this you can hire the uniform laundry service to get the fabric back in the original state.
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