Practical tips to make laundry less overwhelming (and dreadful)
As much I can relate well with motivational and encouraging posts, I’m also quite practical when it comes to having real solutions that work. As a woman AND a working mom, laundry is one of the many chores that takes up my time (not to mention, least enjoyable). Do you feel the same? Read on.
What can we actually do about it apart from just telling ourselves that ‘we don’t have to do it all’, ‘we are more than our clean, well-pressed laundry’ and ‘don’t let it affect us’...
I mean... how can I NOT let it affect me while looking at the bags of unwashed clothes and pile of clothes that needs to be ironed or folded!!?
And so, I thought about how I’ve been managing my own pile of laundry mess and I’d like to share some practical tips to make laundry less overwhelming for us in order to keep our sanity around the house.
(1) SIMPLIFY YOUR WARDROBE.
For me, I've a preference for solid colours and a certain colour palette that will allow me to mix and match my pieces of clothing easily with one another. For instance, I try to buy only grey, black or dark blue bottoms. By simplifying the wardrobe I reduce the chances of panicking and not being able to find something to wear if I don’t do my laundry on time.
(2) BUY CLOTHES THAT ARE EASY TO MAINTAIN.
Who doesn't love looking good, but looking good doesn't involve buying clothes that require dry-cleaning, hand-wash and other delicate caring instructions. When I shop (not often these days) the questions I ask includes - can it be machine washed, can I put it in my dryer, is it difficult to iron or best if I don't have to iron them. Such deliberate decisions in life will make our lives easier. Trust me.
(3) SCHEDULE LAUNDRY DAYS
It may or may not work depending on how routined your days are. To be honest, putting the clothes in the wash machine is the least effort required amongst all others like folding and ironing. You may even want to consider delegating this small bit of duty to your partner. It doesn't take 5 mins to put the laundry in the machine, pour in the detergent and turn the knob. That being said, if it's way faster doing it yourself, then don't delegate. Schedule maybe two nights in a week to do your laundry and when the day comes, just get to it without procrastinating. You know you can't run away from your laundry.
(4) WATCH YOUR FAV DRAMA/SHOWS WHILE FOLDING/IRONING
Combine an interesting activity with a boring one. At least there's something to look forward to while folding that pile of laundry or ironing those stack clothes. And if you're a toddler mom, I think it's a PERFECT excuse to have your 'me time' as you lock yourself in a room doing chores and watching shows. Some days I wished I had more clothes to fold/iron.
(5) KEEP THEM OUT OF SIGHT (FOR YOUR SANITY), REALLY
If all things fail, at least, find a spot in your house where you can place dirty clothes, unfolded clothes or un-ironed clothes somewhere, without them being an eyesore. Laundry baskets and bags would easily solve the problem of dirty clothes. Personally, I don't have the habit of leaving clothes anywhere else in the house, except my laundry basket. For un-ironed clothes, I quickly hang them up and find a spot in a wardrobe to put them altogether. I iron them when I have time and I feel like it. For clothing that needs folding, I suggest DO NOT place them on sofas, armchairs or any visible spots. This requires a bit of creative thinking. For me I either leave them in the dryer or I place them on my boy's 'discarded' baby cot in a room. You may want to find an empty (large enough) drawer where you could place them all in until you find the time to give them your attention.