Laundry… the never ending chore, need I say more?

Yes I can! I want to share with you my tips on how to love your laundry again (ok maybe that’s taking it a bit far – but your get the idea!)

1. Acknowledge the task at hand

We start our days with great intent, we get our to-do list and write “Laundry” . What does that mean, laundry? It is not just one task so why do we write it as one. We need to acknowledge ALL the steps and be realistic as to what parts we can achieve on today’s to-do list.

The task of laundry is:

• collecting the laundry (from various rooms, off the floor, from baskets, wherever it may be hiding)
• sorting the laundry (lights, darks, delicates and the like)
• soaking heavily stained items
• putting on a load ( I recommend doing this at night – you’re not waiting for the load, its running at off peak and you’ll feel like you have already achieved before your feet hit the floor the next day!)
• take load out
• hang load out
• bring load in
• fold load
• BONUS step: Ironing ( I say bonus cause I manage to avoid this at all costs but know that this is a big step is some households)
• put laundry away

2. Worn ≠ washing

Just because a piece of clothing is worn doesn’t mean its dirty and has to be washed. Clothing companies actually recommend that you dont over wash your clothes – it will wear them out quicker.

So create a system for your space that allows for worn clothes to have a space in the interim. For some people its ok to put back in the wardrobe or drawers, for others they may feel this is sacrilegious. why not try some hooks on the back of the door, a spare drawer, a display ladder or clothing valet to do the trick.

3. Declutter, declutter, declutter

If you have less to wash, you have less to wash.

Many families I visit have a mountain of laundry to do and their drawers are also filled with clothing options.

The pure excess in clothing causes issues on several fronts

1. There is no urgency to complete the task as there many “backups”, and this then just compounds the amount to do and the cycle continues.
2. When all the laundry is caught up there is no where to put it, so it stays in a laundry basket purgatory, waiting in limbo for space to magically become available. The basket then becomes the go-to wardrobe instead of the actual wardrobe space
3. The lounge or dining table seem to be a permanent sorting station and when the space is needed, things are piled back into baskets, and often washed again as no one can remember if they are clean or dirty.

4. Delegate what you hate

Seems strong language but I have a point. Sometimes we need external help for what we don’t like doing, don’t have time to do or don’t have the skill to do.

So if you hate ironing send it out – its like $30 a basket.

Sick of folding? Get the kids to pair the socks and pay them 10c per pair. Get them to roll clothes or use the Sheldon Cooper (aka Big Bang Theory) clothes folder to do the t-shirts.

If you have no idea where to even start when it comes to decluttering your wardrobe so you can have less to wash, hire us. We love decluttering and will get the job done in a fraction of the time you would doing it alone.

Life is too short to be tripping over baskets of laundry and continually feeling overwhelmed and “lacking” in the laundry department. So if laundry isn’t your jam, and doesn’t give you joy – get someone else to help in whatever way possible.

At Decluttering Diva we understand that laundry is more than just “putting a load on” so we hope we have taken a load off with these tips. We’d love to hear how you make less of the laundry load in your home 🙂