Laundry Hack

Having clean laundry all folded, hung up and put away is a wonderful feeling.

Almost euphoric! Well, for me it is anyways.

I don’t always have clean laundry but I do have a Laundry Hack.

Do you need a laundry hack? Have you tried everyone else’s 3 step program to an organized laundry room only to fail and then feel miserable?

Forget all that, I’ve got an idea I want you to try.

Once upon a time, I never had clean clothes in my closet. No socks in my dresser drawer and no towels in my bathroom. Why? Because the mere thought of trying to tackle the huge, never-ending mountain of dirty clothes turned me into a sobbing mess.

I would peek at what was waiting on me and just walk off.

This laundry disaster caused me tremendous anxiety. I was so busy being overwhelmed with dirty clothes that I just stopped dealing with the problem instead of looking for a system that worked for me.

There’s a ton of solutions for whatever’s wrong, they are plastered all over Pinterest. My laundry dilemma happened before the birth of Pinterest. I was on my own to figure out something and get back in control of this one household chore.

Chore was an understatement in my book.

One day, I’d had enough. I didn’t want a giant pile of clothes staring at me anymore. I wanted to implement a laundry hack that I knew I would actually do. So I looked around to identify what my biggest obstacle was.

My hangup was hangers.

It finally dawned on me that washing and drying my clothes was never the issue, but folding and hanging them up was. I was a busy mom with a job, housework was one the back burner for me. How could I take care of laundry when there was so many other things that needed my attention too.

I needed a system just for me so I can stop feeling guilty about my laundry problem. Sometimes it was all I could do to get supper on the table, so I wanted the easiest laundry hack I could think of. While picking up toys and throwing them into a plastic tub, an idea came to me.

How mandatory is it to hang up my clothes?

That evening, I went to my local dollar store and bought us each two laundry baskets. One big and one small size for each family member. I also bought one for towels and for miscellaneous items. I already owned one laundry basket for dirty stuff, so I was all set. This idea would either work or not. That part was to be ermined.

I paired each basket with a partner, one big and one small. My method to this madness would be: socks and undies in the small basket and pants or shirts in the large basket. I lined them all up near my washer and dryer to await the results.

Family members could retrieve their laundry out of their respective baskets on their own. If they wanted to put away their laundry, it was all located in their own baskets which I soon labeled with their names.

Towels had their own basket too. Odds and ends such as sheets, pot holders or rugs had their Miscellaneous basket. At a glance, I knew who’s clothes went to what basket.

Over time, I noticed that the laundry didn’t upset me anymore. Slowly, I would put things on a hanger or fold up the towels. But for a long time, just knowing I didn’t have to hang up my clothes was the only way I could cope with doing the laundry.

How you do your laundry is not a contest with your mother, sister or friends. Cross this one thing off your list if it makes you feel overwhelmed by trying my idea of the laundry baskets.

There are so many things that need our attention at home. Our family, dinner, shopping, cleaning, yard work… Geez! The list goes on and on. Take it easy on yourself and do the laundry basket method like I did.

This isn’t supposed to be a permanent solution to getting the laundry done or even completely under control. This is a simple step to calm the anxiety of taking care of clean clothes when you’re busy, exhausted or just can’t stand doing one more chore. Relieve the stress and go get some laundry baskets.