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WFMW: Cutting Down On Laundry
Well, here we are...back to WFMW hosted by Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer! You can always find great tips at WFMW, so be sure to click the link and check out what other pearls of wisdom people are offering today!
My tip for this week is how to cut down on your large piles of laundry. Do you ever think back to in the 1800s when most people only had a couple of outfits? For example they would wear one of two dresses during the week and another on Sunday. Of course, washing was a lot more difficult back then too. So between not having a lot of income and the difficulty of the chore, they kept their clothing to a minimum.
Nowadays, we have tons of clothes. I have two dressers and one nightstand full of clothing. I have clothes in the closet and probable a few other places too. My kids have lots of clothing, my husband has lots of clothes. And for the older ones of us, there are the skinny clothes and the fat clothes... but I digress.
So, to cut down on the laundry you are doing, my suggestion is to only wash clothes that are dirty.
Think about it:
1. When you go to work and sit at a desk all day...how dirty are your clothes getting (assuming of course you didn't spill mustard on yourself)?
2. When you are hanging out at home, particularly in the winter, how dirty are your clothes getting?
3. When you wear your Sunday clothes, how dirty do they get in those two hours?
4. Just how dirty are your pajamas when you sleep in them a night?
5. How dirty are the towels when you use them to dry off your clean body!?
Okay, now that I have you thinking a bit, here are some things I do:
1. In general, I will wear a pair of jeans two days before washing them.
2. When I was working 9-5, I would come home at night, take off my work clothes and put on a pair of jeans and a shirt. I would wear that pair of jeans and shirt all week, after all, I was only wearing them for a few hours each evening.
3. Wash towels once a week as long as you are only using them to dry your clean body.
4. Wear pajamas two or three or four nights before washing them.
5. Do you have a dress up queen/princess in your house? Encourage her to put away her dress up clothes when she is done and not leave them strewn about the floor until they must be washed.
And don't forget the benefits:
- less time spent doing laundry
- conserve water
- save on electricity
- extend the life of your clothing
So those are a few ways that I cut back on the stacks of laundry in my home. I would love to hear if you have any other pointers.
You can visit my previous WFMW posts by clicking here
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Hi, I just wanted you to know that I received the lovely book. Thank you for sending it.
Great suggestions! My husband wears 2 undershirts and two boxers a day and steadfastly refuses to cut back! On top of all the extra work the water in our small town is crazy expensive. I try to compensate but I too am a clean freak. Of course getting my princess to keep clean clothes out of the laundry would be a feat in itself!
Laundry is my nemesis and bane.
Thanks for the reminders. It would be great to cut back the amount I have to do.
I totally agree! I wear my weekend and summer clothes at least 2x before washing. The problem is that my work clothes get pretty gross (spit and other things you don't want to know about LOL!) so my laundry goes up a lot during the week :(
Oh, yes , when it comes to laundry, less is definitely best!
Oh, we're re-wearers too. I've finally gotten my daughter (11 yo) to understand the clothes check idea. The Boy? Well, I'd rather that he just put everything in the laundry at this point. He's eight and his clothes usually look every bit of it!
The only thing I wouldn't wear twice without washing is undies. Sometimes socks, too--if I've had a long day in shoes. But unless I can see or smell the dirt, I'll wear something at least twice and maybe even more times. As far as towels, I'll use those twice (personally, not shared) before washing. You may be drying a clean body...but don't forget you're exfoliating, too! (I couldn't think of a genteel way to put that, LOL!)
Great suggestions! I'm always amazed by the amount of laundry that 3 people can produce in my house!
Great tips!!!!
http://blog.handmadebycole.com/
As soon as I saw the words "Less Laundry" I rushed over.
I will do ANYTHING to have less laundry. How about homeschooling in the nude? haha --that will raise a few eyebrows ;)
Love your ideas. I just bought a set of hooks to hang in my closet for jeans and things I can wear twice. In the past that's how they aired clothing to wear over and over--on a hook.
Now that you made me think about this more I'm going to get more hooks for my sons to hang their jeans and PJs on. Its silly to wash PJs after one wear. Thanks.
If you visit my site be sure to peek at my laundry posts.
You have been tagged for the "What’s On Your Refrigerator?" meme. It is a Meme and a contest! I'll be giving away two free home organization books. Read all about it at http://heartofwisdom.com/heartathome
Very good ideas...
I need to get my daughter to stop changing her clothes 5 times a day! Or at least putting them back in the drawer instead of the hamper.
Stacy
http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/AussieinAmerica/484373/
Good tips! This will help cut down on the mountain of laundry. Thanks!
I will wear my jeans until they walk to the laundry on their own. I probably wear them 5 times before they get washed, unless something gets spilled on them or there is obvious dirt.
I think you're right on. Great post!
Great tips! My biggest challenge will definitely be my dress-up princess.
I was constantly telling my kids that they could wear things more than once before putting them in the laundry hamper. Now that they're older- I cured them by teaching them to do their own laundry! Amazing how suddenly they can wear a pair of jeans two or three times before washing- now that they are the ones washing them!
I do an embarrassing-ly small amount of laundry for a large family. Why? I have taught my family how to "spot clean" their pants, skirts, and shirts. Why launder it when it only has a quarter-sized smudge on it? Get out a tea-towel, a drop of detergent and spot clean it!
I learned this when I was a single working gal and didn't want to pay $$$ for all my dry cleanables. Spot cleaning allows garments to be re-worn many times before needing laundering.
Since most of us bathe every day and use deoderant and powders, only socks and undies need to be changed daily. Most clothes, pajamas, and bedsheets can go weeks without laundering. Personally, I launder my towels more often.
We have outfits for exercise, laundering them once a week. Church clothes are hung up immediately after church. Wearing an apron when cooking or doing crafts also helps. And I put big art bibs on all my kids under 10 whenever they eat. No more food stains!
We often get compliments on our clothes. Why? Because washing items causes them to fade, shrink, and look frumpy. We always look like we're wearing newer clothes. Spot cleaning is the answer.
Here I thought you were going to tell me to sell one of my children to cut down on laundry, lol.
Those are great tips...but my boys can really dirty an outfit whether it's summer or winter. I need to teach dh this...as it is, I am the one that has the least amount of clothing everytime I do laundry.
Another thing I've found, is that if you cut down on the amount of clothing that your kids wear...it'll be much harder to get backed up on laundry.
I'm a bit of a laundry snob, I must admit. Also, admittedly, it's my least favorite chore. I have heard too many medical reports about the microscopic stuff on material, though...I MUST wash often!!! Towels are especially bad. I grew up using a towel several times to dry off..because, as you said, I was clean. You'd be amazed all the dead skin cells that are sloughed off, though...then, as it hangs, dust mites are attracted to the skin cells...so, by the second use, you're rubbing mites all over your body. Gross. Dust mites cause lots of problems...allergies, itchiness, breathing problems such as asthma, skin conditions, etc.
Okay..didn't mean to go off on a tangent. :) I almost wish I didn't know those things because I HATE laundry!
Okay.... I found this again! I'm printing it off so I can get my clothes loving 9 year old to understand. And maybe my hubby will learn a bit, too. We live in an apartment. They just raised the price from $1.25 to $1.50. We are going to HAVE to cut back on laundry, cause our budget is already stretched super thin. Thanks for the tips and hints.
Hugs,
Melinda