One most common complaints for homemakers when it comes to household chores, is laundry. I get it, it’s that one chore that seems to never end! But what if we can make it more efficient?
Laundry is the the chore that could be defined as an endless pit or the “gift that keeps on giving!” (ahem, sarcasm?) But more seriously, it really is that chore that just when you finished up the last of the folding and putting away, there is one new dirty item in the hamper. It just sits there letting you that a new load of laundry will soon have be done. This cycle just repeats itself for the rest of your life!
Now, it’s easy to look at that and get all depressed. We wonder, why even bother trying then? I’m just going to always be drowning in piles of laundry that either needs to be done, needs to be folded, or needs to be put away! Instead, let’s look as some simple ways you can change up your laundry routine (and yes, this is with kids!) to make it more efficient and not let it pile up.
This is a post all about an efficient laundry routine.
5 Tips for an Efficient Laundry Routine
#1 Get smaller hampers or baskets
This might sound random. You might be thinking, my hampers are already overflowing and you want me to have SMALLER ones?? But hear me out. Using hampers that fit either a small load or a medium load, will actually cause you to do your laundry more often without giving you piles of laundry. When your hamper gets full, you go and do ONE load of laundry. Let me give you an example of how we make it work for our family of four.
I have two smaller wicker baskets for each of my children. Each one, when full, is a small load for half of a medium size load. So when both girls have a full hamper, that’s only one load of laundry! My husband and I also have a small hamper but a little larger than the kids baskets. Our hamper, when full, is a medium size load of laundry. I then have a regular large hamper that I use for my “extra dirty” laundry. This includes things like, work clothes, rags, towels, etc. This hamper usually has a load once a week, the girls typically have a load once a week (depending on the stage! Potty training…) and my husband and I have a load once a week.
This system keeps things moving through while also keeping us with clean clothes!
#2 A load A Day Keeps the Pile Away
Doing a load a day, or every other day, really doesn’t take a lot of time yet helps keep laundry manageable. It is easier to motivate yourself to do one load of laundry, rather than four or five loads of laundry. It also means you’ll be able to do so much more through out the day!
#3 It’s OK to Rest in Between
I want to preface this by saying that this could be more of personality thing. But I wanted to share, in case someone is like me and can benefit from it!
I used to have this idea that to be disciplined and get my work done through out the day, I had to crank it all out at one time. I have found that doing it in chunks helps me to keep going and get it done more efficiently! For example, if I have laundry to do, I will start the load in the washer in the morning, move it to the dryer sometime throughout the day, and I typically fold it in the evening when my husband is home and playing with the kids. This has actually turned folding and putting away laundry into a relaxing activity and a way to unwind in the evening!
If you are the person who needs to fold and put away the minute the dryer beeps, that’s great too!
#4 Setting a Schedule (or not!)
This tip has two different options. You may be someone who does better having an exact schedule. For example, doing laundry loads on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. This is a great way to keep you on track and give you a set schedule to follow.
However, if you’re like me and you like more of a routine than a schedule, the next version is for you! I like to load laundry or switch from washer to dryer, whenever I have a minute. Basically, as I see the hamper getting full, I just throw a load in. If I see it’s done washing, I’ll switch it to the dryer. These steps only take a minute or two and are so easy to do as you’re passing through.
I don’t typically fold the laundry the same way. Sometimes, I just put a pile of laundry on the counter and get to it later. Or sometimes, I’ll fold the laundry but put it away later. (this depends on the kids naps typically when I can’t put their clothes in their room) But I just try to do at least one step of the process throughout my day.
#5 When it Does Pile Up
Sometimes, even if we try our best to stay on top of the laundry, it does pile up. This can happen when you have sick kids, or maybe you are sick, after a trip, after hosting people for a weekend, as some examples. These are all times when you have extra laundry that just comes in all at once whether you stay on top of it or not. For example, I can have my hampers and laundry completely empty. But after guests leave from being here over the weekend, I now have a few loads of sheets and towels to wash regardless of whether or not our clothes are washed! Coming home from traveling can usually have a bunch of built of laundry too! Sometimes these things happen.
When this happens, I will take the time and dedicate a day where laundry is one of my top house chores and get it all caught up. Sometimes these things happen, but in general I try to stay on top of it and not let pile. This is turn makes laundry not so overwhelming when it is time to do it!
Final Notes
At the end of the day, you need to do what works best for you and your family. But if you have been frustrated with your current laundry routine and are looking for things to try to maybe improve it, these tips can be a starting point! I’ve definitely had times of feeling very overwhelmed by laundry and honestly just dreading it! These changes and tips are what improved things for me. Laundry is now just a part of rhythm and genuinely a pleasant one!
This has been a post all efficient laundry routines.
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