Laundry in the Time of Corona
Laundry in the time of corona
AKA: Why do we have so much laundry!?
Being “Safer at Home” during the lockdown of Covid-19 has changed the way we all live and work in our spaces. Laundry has not been immune to that, at least in our home. How do we have this much laundry to wash? We literally aren’t going anywhere! If you’re looking for a way to clean up your laundry room and make this necessary task a little easier and, dare I say it, a little bit better looking… please look no further. I am sharing tips and tricks for optimizing your laundry room area to maximize this workhorse in the home.
Disclosure about the Amazon links in this article: I used to have an Amazon Associate’s account where I earned a tiny percentage as commissions from qualifying purchases. It is now closed, so purchasing through these links will not do anything to my bottom line one way or another. Just FYI.
Sort that Laundry! Save yourself time by sorting your laundry into a way that makes sense for how you do loads of laundry. Do you wash loads based on Light, Dark, and Colors? Do you wash loads of laundry per person in the household? No matter what your system is, I’m sure you could benefit from pre-sorting your clothes into those categories. Then the items can go from the hamper into the machine with less work on your part. If you’re going to sort by family member, why not label each compartment either on the hamper or on the wall above? Have fun with it, and try and delegate as much of this as possible to the owner of the clothes that are getting washed. Even my 2.5 year old son puts his own clothes in the hamper, y’all. It can be done!
Pro Tip — Get at least one stackable laundry basket per member of the household: If you have at least one laundry basket per person in your home, you’ll be able to fold items (or not) and put them in a basket just for them. If they are old enough (around five years old, ISH, depending on your own kids) they can even participate in putting it away. Unless you do the “get your clean clothes out of the clean laundry basket” thing - which I think is also a valid way to handle things if that floats your collective laundry boats. You do you, honey! I keep my laundry baskets specific to CLEAN clothes only, and use laundry hampers for dirty laundry. But again, your system is your system. If you’re looking for laundry baskets - figure out where you want to store them so you get the right size and shape for YOUR space.
Not-Your-Momma’s Drying Rack(s): Drying racks were a staple of laundering clothes in my home growing up. My mother was born and raised in New Orleans, and drying your clothes on a line or a rack was just what was DONE. Perhaps it was to avoid generating more heat during the summer months, and the clothes dried better inside than outside because of the humidity. Regardless, I have always enjoyed air-drying my clothes, and I hope you’ll consider adding it to your laundry repertoire! Check your tags and remember that if it says to dry flat - you should DO THAT. Don’t hang dry something that wants to dry flat. It will stretch out and look ghastly the next time you try to wear it. If you have side-by-side washer and dryer, or a free counter, you can get stackable drying racks like the ones to the left. Or, a freestanding foldable rack with a top mesh. There are even over-the-door options now! The world is your flat-drying oyster.
Not-Your-Momma’s Clothes Lines: Clothes lines have come a long way from the saggy cotton yarn of yesteryear. I have a couple of these in my own laundry room, and they are a dream to use. The stainless steel lines are strong enough for even heavier items (especially heavy blankets, etc. can be hung across both lines of the double one to spread the weight out better.) You can use clothes pins or even hang items on hangers and hang the items on the line that way. It’s versatile and doesn’t take up a ton of space. If the weight pulls on the line a bit you can just unlock the dial and lock it again and it self-tightens. I use it multiple times a day, everyday. It’s perfect for drying unmentionables, baby bibs, all “delicates” that need to hang dry. I also hang items to dry if there are just a couple of things that need more time to fully dry but I don’t want to keep wasting energy running the dryer. I love these! 10/10 would recommend! And if you’re going to be hanging items to dry - let me whole-heartedly recommend that you get slim, flocked hangers for that purpose (and for your closets, but that’s a different post….) The flock will keep the garment from slipping off the hanger and defeating the purpose of washing and hanging it in the first place!
There are also myriad other solutions to be able to hang-dry your clothes, like pull-out garment rods and even corner closet rods to utilize that space (if you have a free corner in your laundry room). If there is a will, there will be a way to hang dry clothes!
Get your ironing board, iron, and starch Up, Up and AWAY: For the longest time, our ironing board was tossed into the laundry room to the side of our stacking washer and dryer. It wasn’t a BAD place for it, per se, but it was enough of a hassle to get to that we rarely used it. This ironing board holder with shelf has allowed us to get the iron out in a more accessible place, and clear space on a laundry shelf for detergent where the iron used to sit. While I was at it, I got us a new ironing board and it is the best I have ever used! Highly recommend!
Dryer Balls: I was skeptical about these at first, but I can tell you that my laundry actually does dry faster and with fewer wrinkles than when I dry without them! It is such a small change to my laundry system, and I just leave them in the dryer at all times. No storage necessary!
Get some nice mesh laundry bags: Seriously, y’all. Treat your garments right. If you aren’t already separating your delicates into their own bags, let me recommend you start. These impressed me with their tight weave and strong reinforced zippers, that don’t snag and have kept my things looking great. I particularly like the way the two “bra” bags keep their structure and don’t allow the small item(s) inside to be crushed. 10/10 recommend!
I hope that some (or all!) of these tips help you out. Laundry is one of those things that everyone has to deal with, every day. And the more easy we can make it on ourselves, the better! Let me know if you need help figuring out YOUR laundry room. With a quick Facetime or Skype call - I can get you sorted out in no time at all! Sorry. Had to use that laundry pun.
Great design should be for everyone, and beauty should be good for you.
XO, Shana