Does laundry seem like it just piles up and never ends? Check out my best tips and tricks to make laundry easier. Learn how to stay on top of your laundry for good and create a simple laundry routine. No more mountains of dirty clothes! You will be able to set your washing routine on autopilot and can even use my free Ebook to create a laundry schedule that works for your season of life.
1. Don’t Sort Your Laundry!
What, you say, doesn’t this go against laundry rules?! I’m sure it does. But it’s saved me so much time and helped me stay on top of the never ending piles!
But won’t whites and delicates get ruined? Personally I’ve been not sorting mine for over 15 years with only one mishap. Whites, darks, and delicates (even towels sometimes) I wash them all together. My best advice is never wash something new with whites the first time, that was my only mishap. Doing this I personally haven’t had a problem since.
However, I do throw any delicates and whites into mesh laundry bags. My best laundry tip would be just keep the amount of whites and other high maintenance clothing minimal. This will save you time.
2. Get a few mesh laundry bags.
Mesh laundry bags are such a handy trick. I use them to put all those tiny baby socks or things that get lost easily in a load. Put delicates in mesh bags. Whites can go into mesh bags if you’re using my no sort method.
3. Do A Load (at least) Every Day – Start to Finish
This is the biggest and easiest laundry hack that has kept those mountains of dirty clothes away! When I was cloth diapering, washing 1-2 loads a day was a must. I start a load first thing in the morning, but you can do it whenever fits your schedule best.
Doing a load or two a day keeps the pile of washing manageable. It’s not near as overwhelming as doing load after load all in one or two days. Been there done that, didn’t like it.
If you’re starting with a giant pile of dirty clothes, a simple hack is to take it all to the laundry mat to catch up. Then going forward do a load or two a day.
4. Have a laundry routine that fits your schedule
Creating a laundry schedule will help you develop a laundry routine so you can stay on top of it all! This makes it simple and staightforward.
Brainstorm all the types of loads of washing you need to do in a week. Write it down, be specific. Now you can create a weekly laundry schedule.
I’d encourage you to pair the wash, dry, fold/put away with another task that you do daily to help you remember.
For example as a stay at home mama, first thing in the morning I through a load into the wash. Before I eat lunch I put it in the dryer. Then in the afternoon before dinner, my littles and I turn it into a laundry folding and putting away party. Or you may prefer folding in the evening while listening to something, that works too. Though I’d still encourage you do do it with your kids as it teaches them important life skills and can be fun too.
If you’re wanting to create a laundry schedule and don’t know where to start then check out my FREE Ebook: How To Create Your Simple Manageable Cleaning Routines. I’ll link it at the end of this post for you.
The Ebook includes a “Weekly Cleaning Routines Schedule,” with a special laundry section each day labeled: wash, dry, fold. You can write what time of day and what kind of load you will be washing so you can set your laundry on autopilot.
5. Keep the clothing inventory low
Declutter your clothing is one of the best laundry tips I can give you! It makes it never feel overwhelming, even when we come back from a week long camping trip!
Having a highly simplified wardrobe is so freeing and the best laundry tip! I accidentally discovered this.
Before you write this one off hear me out. I used to have a big closet full of clothes, then in a moving transitionary period of life packed a suitcase for a couple of weeks for my family. Or so I though. It turned into 3 months, and then since I had all we needed, I didn’t bother digging out the bins of clothes for almost a year! Only then did I pull them out because I’d decided I really didn’t need so much clothes. Laundry had become so much easier, I wasn’t going back! So to the thrift store I went with car loads full.
Ironically this, “pack a suite case” is actually a decluttering method Dawn, from the minimal mom talks about. And our clothes in storage, where what she calls the “time will tell bins”. I highly recommend you check out her videos on decluttering clothes for adults and kids. She’s highly sensitive to the emotions attached to clothes too in a simple, practical and real way.
If you have older children, bring them along in your decluttering experiment, and of course your man too, don’t surprise them. You wouldn’t want someone else to pack for a trip for you.
6. Only have one laundry basket in the laundry room
Along the note of keeping your clothing inventory low, keep your laundry basket containers low.
Ok, you can have two baskets if you want to keep towels separate. But the idea is to keep the dirty clothes storage container small so it forces you to do laundry daily. That way, no dirty clothes mountains can start forming, without you noticing.
Make sure the laundry basket size will not fit more than two loads of laundry, preferable one and a half.
Family size will make this vary, but try to keep it minimal to avoid those mountains of laundry form piling up. I know a family of 6 who only have 3 laundry baskets. One for regular clothes, one small basket for dad’s super dirty work clothes, and one small basket for towels. That’s it and it works well!
7. Don’t wash clean clothes
Yes, it’s ok to wear something a few times on a few common sense hygiene conditions.
If it isn’t these then don’t wash it.
- if it isn’t physically dirty
- doesn’t stink
- you didn’t sweat in it
If you have a toddler who insists on changing outfits a 100 times a day. My best advice is to keep their clothing inventory very minimal 5-7 tops and 5-7 bottoms. Then, get them involved in the folding process. It can help them realize, changing and throwing everything into the laundry basket doesn’t make it magically reappear in their drawers – folded!
8. Teach your Children to Help – Keep it fun!
Learning how to take care of your things (clothes) is such a great life skill and it teaches children responsibility.
In the moment teaching little children to help with laundry may feel like this will never save you time, but if you stick with it and be patient it totally will. Even a one year old can help, and usually the younger ones are very eager to “help”. Getting them started when they’re young, keep it fun and they’ll be off to a great start.
Teach your children to put their dirty clothes in a designated hamper to avoid searching for misplaced items. And only dirty clothes.
Let them help you load the washer, switch the dryer and unload the clean clothes. If you have littles they love putting thing into and out of places, a bit older love sorting. Make a game out of making a pile for everyones clothes. Or have them go “diving” for all the socks and see if they can match them to bring to you to fold. Have them put their own clothes away, they usually are able to before they can fold them. Make putting away or folding a race, see who can finish first.
Some mom’s skip the folding process all together for their young children. I’m not that person, I like the aspect of teaching how to care for your things, but I do see how it would make laundry easier and save time.
I realize I’m focusing on littles, because that’s my current experience. My mom did this method with my siblings and I when we were young and it worked. I don’t really remember her folding our clothes, but I do remember “helping” her and how fun it was. Since I can remember, I have memories of folding and putting away my own clothes. It’s a great life skill.
What is your best hack for making laundry easier?
What’s your best hack for staying on top of laundry? Is it one of the 8 laundry hacks I shared with you, or maybe something else? I’d love to hear all about it, let us know in the comments below.
Snag your FREE Ebook – How To Create Your Simple Manageable Cleaning Routines
Need help getting started creating a laundry schedule? Then my Ebook is for you. Simple step by steps to create a weekly cleaning – including laundry – routine, plus check out my bonus guide for simple laundry.
Check out my other Posts on Organization
How to Best Meal Plan Properly – Meal Planning That Works
How to Create Manageable, Realistic Cleaning Routines for Your Busy Schedule
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Pin it to keep if laundry mountains reappear
I love this post! I need the mesh bag trick in my life. Thank you!
Totally agree with these! My eldest (11) does his own laundry & his brother helps put it away. My biggest hack is to only have one color & type of sock. No more losing matches!
Love this idea, same colour & type of socks is a fantastic mom hack!
Love this post! I had four children in the house and 8 daycare kids. I had mountains of laundry. I look forward to your next post.