Yet again, Notes from Home have provided me with something to natter about for their Friday Club. This time the topic is ‘Organised home’ something which I’ve blogged about before regarding Birthday Party Invites.

This time, I’ve gone for Laundry. It’s a dull and depressing topic but it has to be done, especially with three kids under 6 who get through an unbelievable amount of clothes. I have to keep on top of it otherwise I’d be completely snowed under, so here’s my top tips:

Does it really need washing?

Eldest son seems to think that the laundry basket is where he puts all clothes that are on his bedroom floor when he’s asked to tidy up – whether they’re clean or dirty.  We have a two day rule – unless it’s obviously dirty it can be worn for two days - H’s shirts are the exception!

Separate Laundry baskets for Darks and Lights

Our laundry basket has two separate bags for darks and lights so you can immediately see if you have enough for a wash load of either type.

Timing is everything….

I always put my wash on first thing in the morning, so that I can get it hung up to dry before the school / nursery run / work.  Because we have so much washing I used to do a load every day, but changed that recently when I bought an additional indoor drying line and I’ve changed my routine slightly so that I’m doing two loads at a time, for example:

• Thursday evening: Put no1 washload on, take down Tuesday washing loads & fold
• Friday Morning: Put no 2 washload on, Hang no1 washload, Put away folded clothes from previous evening, hang no 2 washload when complete
• Saturday evening – repeat Thursday
• Sunday – repeat Friday

The devil is in the detail

I am ever so slightly anal when it comes to folding clean clothes and have actually stopped my Mum from ‘helping’ me because she just folds everything and sorts it by child and puts it in the basket to take upstairs.  Good in theory but you then have to spend twice as long putting it away because you’ re going from drawer to drawer.  What I like to do is to fold the item and then place it in that person’s pile, but within the pile in ‘drawer order’.  So socks and pants on top, PJ’s next, tops and t-shirts after than and jumpers / jeans / skirts at the bottom.  See, told you I was anal…

Ironing

I do possess an iron, but it only ever sees the light of day on a Sunday evening when I iron H’s shirts while watching ‘Come Dine with Me’.  Aside from that I don’t think anything else really needs ironed (and I don’t think I look particularly wrinkled / scruffy?)

Here are the other entries in this Organising Tips for the Home Carnival:

Make Do Mum posts Organising for Magpies

Maggy at Red Ted Art posts How to… make your own Scrapbook/ Artwork Calendar

Cass at The Diary of a Frugal Family posts How To Be An Organised Mum

Jax at Making It Up posts her tips in A place for everything and everything in its place

Jules at I Need Curtains for the Window in my Head posts her tips for organising post

Angela at Mum’s Survival Guide posts The Organised Side of Me: Paperwork.

Ella at Notes From Home posts her laundry tips.