The organizing letter “L” has to be for laundry! Who likes to do laundry? I know that I don’t but I think there a few key habits that are important when we tackle our mounds of laundry that mysteriously pile up. I think the hardest part of the laundry process is the habit of finishing the job. We have great intentions of getting to the laundry, but organizing ourselves enough to finish up the loose ends is key to the process. Here are some ideas to think about when tackling those mounds of clothes:
1) First, you must have a clutter free place to start! Make sure that you have to workspace to do your folding and hanging.
2) This may be mundane, but make sure that your laundry detergent and bleach are above your washing machine and your fabric softeners are above your dryer. Your tools need to be within reach for maximum efficiency.
3) Instead of doing marathon sessions once or twice a week–and never getting through the entire pile, because, let’s face it, who wants to wash all of those clothes–designate different days for different kinds of laundry: whites, darks, towels, sheets. If you break it down in to manageable chunks, it is easier to get through the laundry instead of it piling up on you.
4) If you have kids, I like to designate a laundry basket for each child. When you work the laundry, place the pieces in each child’s basket. Make sure that the socks are together, shirts are on hangers and everything is folded like you want it to look in their drawers. Once a week (assuming they are old enough for the job) have the kids put their clothes away, pull the empty hangers out of their closet, put them back into the basket and then the basket comes back to the laundry room for the next round of clothes.
5) For your clothes, make a committment to put your clothes away after you are done with the laundry. There is not a better feeling than walking into your laundry room and it is clear and clutter-free!
Happy Folding! Bridges