The Lowdown on Laundry

Do you have piles of laundry needing attention, clothes thrown everywhere? Can't find that certain shirt or pants? You've got the laundry woes. Turn your woes into WOWs...


There are two schools of thought on this, either you wait until everything is dirty and take an entire day or more to do your laundry OR you do your laundry a little at a time. If you have laundry woes, then just take a minute to MAKE A PLAN on how you are going to tackle your laundry in future and you'll save many minutes and lots of grief in return.


If you don't own a washer and dryer, or don't have a shared one in your appartment/dorm you are pretty much stuck with a special day devoted to laundry. You can cut down on trips and piles buy washing your delicates by hand in the sink. It really doen't take much time and your clothes will last longer. Think about using a Dry Cleaner for certain items to cut your laundry trips as well.

If you do have your own washer and dryer, I recommend doing your laundry a little at a time.

Do one load a day. Put them in when you get up in the morning and they'll be done before you leave for your day. That is what my grandmother and my mother told me. Can you image not worrying about your laundry? When you do it this way, you feel done with it for the whole day. They were right! If you are not a morning person, then associate your laundry time with another activity, like while watching TV or checking your emails at night. Your laundry will be ready for you in the morning to wear. I actually have a two-loads-per-day rule, anymore for me and I feel like I'm overloaded for that day. Check out the Woes to Wow Laundry List for more tips.


Woes to Wows Laundry List

1. Do a load everyday, or do two a day and take one day a week off.

2. When grouping items, don't be afraid to wash rags, towels or sheets with socks and underwear. EVERYTHING IS GOING INTO SOAPY WATER - it will get clean. These items can all go in the dryer together, too. This saves time, your energy and the environment.

3. Wash what is dirty, walk the house and go on a clothing hunt. Wash large loads, smaller ones are less economical. Example - not enough darks, then wait until tomorrow. Need to wash sheets - throw in your towels and socks/underwear too.

4. Check out your washing machine cycle times. You may not need to wait 30-45 mins for a load to wash on regular setting, use the gentle or light cycle to cut down on time, even if it's not an item that needs the gentle cycle.

5. Provide a hamper or hampers for all clothes-wearing people in your house and MAKE THEM USE IT. If you are doing the laundry by yourself it is NOT TO MUCH TO ASK to have those lucky others put their clothes in the hamper. If you have kids and you expect them to put up their toys, they can put up their dirty clothes (even 2-3 yr olds). Ask yourself, is this enough hamper space for all the clothes and towels we use over a 3-4 day span? You may need to have a separate kid's hamper or towel hamper to cut down on piles.

6. Only have washing time, but not enough time to wait for the dryer and grab them before they wrinkle? Wet shirts and pants can be hung up on hangers or directly on a shower curtain rod. Leave the bathroom door open and they can dry all day or overnight. Add a fan to your room and they'll dry faster.

7. MOST IMPORTANT RULE - Clothes belong either in the hamper or put away. Don't fall into the messy piles and lost clothes routine anymore. ALWAYS put things away and make everyone else do the same with their clothes. We want to train the next generation so they don't have the laundry woes.

Hope you got a WOW out of this! - Beth