I received this decluttering question yesterday:
“I have tons of clothes that need to be decluttered that are dirty. How do you justify/handle washing cluttered clothes? It just doesn’t seem to be a time justified task but is causing chaos in the bedroom.”
First of all, I understand. Completely. So much that I’ve written about my own frustration with this exact thing before here.
Really. I get it.
So here’s my answer:
I TOTALLY understand that feeling!! Honestly, if they’re going to be donated, I’d just wash them all together, not sorting. That is HARD for me, but I know there are people who NEVER sort. Ever. And they swear by this laundry tactic. So I tell myself it’s better to get the clothes out of my house than to try to wash them perfectly.
And honestly, old clothes likely won’t bleed in the washer anyway.
As a load finishes drying, just bag it up straight out of the dryer and stick it in the car to drop it by a donation place. Even if you did one big load of laundry a week, without worrying about doing it ALL at once, that would help.
Just go load up the washer with the first layer of clothing clutter and start it. Don’t worry about all the other laundry that “needs” to be done first because it’s clothing your family wears. Think of this as a separate task.
I tend to think there’s no point in doing ANYthing if I can’t truly conquer the WHOLE problem, but the whole problem is too overwhelming to even start. But that thinking gets me nowhere. When I let myself do SOMEthing, even though I can’t imagine it’s going to make a dent in the overall problem, I’m always amazed that it does make a difference.
There is a visual difference (because there are fewer clothes in the pile) and a mental difference (because I know an entire load of clothes left my house).
In your question, you already identified what is easy. You have clothes that need to be decluttered. Go ahead and do what’s easy and get those clothes out of your home. I think you’ll be amazed at the difference, and the difference will give you the momentum to do more.
Here’s an Amazon affiliate link that might help you get over your mental block. Shout Color Catcher But honestly, I don’t think they’re necessary for this purpose. Just wash everything in cold. Remember that most donation places want clothes that ARE stained or torn because they sell them by the pound to rug makers, so if something gets ruined it’s not the end of the world. (And those Color Catchers are significantly more expensive than I imagined, even though I linked to the cheapest ones I could find.)
Posts that might help:
How to Start Cleaning Up When You Don’t Know Where to Start
How to Get Rid of Stained or Torn Clothing
Sometimes I Wish I Could Donate Dirty Clothes
--Nony
If this makes your reader feel better, I do a “whites” load about once a month. Otherwise, I just wash everything together. We’re still alive. The world didn’t spin off its axis. My point is (and this is a point that Nony has made), you need to get it done in real life. Just begin. Plug away at it as often as you can.
Hmmm.. if I had that much stuff, I would stop at the laundromat, dump it in several washers/dryers and be done with it. Yes, it costs a bit of cash, but the time savings (and larger machines) would be worth it to me.
I would do the same thing!
I would too! Take it in, bring it out and drive it to the donation center, never to darken your floor again!
This may sound awful, but how dirty is “dirty” in your stuff? ‘Cause I’m pretty sure thrift places wash everything that comes in, anyway. If it’s just “it was worn one day” dirty, I’d throw it in the bag and ship it off. Bad stains, smells, etc, sure just throw in the wash in a big pile, but the minor stuff I would let slide.
Many thrift stores don’t wash…not even Goodwill with -at least our area- high than what -should be prices for second hand items. It’s not just clothes. People can and do send dirty dishes and clothes so dirty it’s going to take several washings to get body odor out. I’ve been in thrift stores and have seen it first hand. A couple won’t take dirty items…they check and it is a big deal because of germs, (though not as big of an issue in the clothes that could get transported and make others sicks. I’m sure many of the employees are quite disgusted by people that send on filth. The least I can do a quick wash before I send it on, even if I know the receipient is going to and should wash….no big deal.
I work at a Pregnancy Care Center where we give donated clothing and other items to families in need. With just 4 of us working (volunteer) at sorting and putting away the donations, I can tell you there is no way we could wash everything that comes in. We do a ‘smell test’ and look for stains for tears. Smelly stuff gets washed, torn stuff we can’t give out so we donate somewhere else, same with lightly stained. Really badly stained items go in the trash. You would be surprised at some things we get…one shoe or sock, badly stained items or even with crusty food on them. But mostly the donations are clean, nice things which we really appreciate.
We do suggest that anyone receiving donations wash them before using.
Thrift stores in our area don’t wash or repair items.
I picked up a $1 pop up hamper (Dollar Tree) that I keep in the laundry room. I toss donation items in there as I find them and when it’s full I simply call for a pick up (Lupus, United War Veterans, Big Brother/Big Sister – whomever will come and pick it up first). I no longer bother separating clothing, toys, shoes, etc. If it fits in that hamper without shattering then that is where it goes. The upside to it being located in my laundry room is that I can address donation items that are dirty- they get washed one last time and then tossed in the bin. Mismatched socks? Tossed! Ripped items? Tossed! It’s the easiest method I’ve used and because the hamper size is so small, it forces you to empty it sooner rather than later. The space required is minimal and everyone in the house knows that is the donation hamper. Done!
Love it!!
We do the same thing here! I have a tote in my laundry room and as I pull a load from the dryer and know it’s getting donated it gets put straight in the tote. Then as the guys get their clothes we do the whole “does this fit” and if it doesn’t or they don’t like it, then it goes into the basket to get carried back to the laundry room right away and before I get the next load out of the dryer, those go into the tote. When it’s full, it get bagged up and put in the trunk right away so I don’t forget it.
This is such a good idea!
The way I sort clothes – Jeans……. Towels………. & Everything else. Every once in a great while when I notice my husband’s work t-shirts (that are usually white with something printed on them) I are looking dingy then I’ll do a white load that I bleach.
This is pure genius….
they actually make a “no sort” detergent. I fell WAY behind a few months ago and happened to come across this detergent in the store. now I only sort out jeans because they take up more space/heat.
I only separate whites and use Shout Color Catchers with new clothes for the first few washes. Amazon price is inflated.
color catchers run $3-$4 a box at the grocery store. no clue why they’re so expensive on amazon, unless it’s because it’s not worth their while to ship them. if you buy the bundle of 12 boxes, it averages out to about what you’d pay at Wal-mart.
http://www.amazon.com/Shout-Color-Catcher-Count-Pack/dp/B000FDX0U4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1412965330&sr=8-3&keywords=shout+color+catcher
I was just going to post this same comment. I buy that exact bundle of Color Catcher’s from Amazon. I love Color Catchers; they’re great!
I second the laundromat but one other thing: If you’re going to pack clothes in plastic bags, make SURE they’re dry before you do. Nothing like mouldy donations to ruin a volunteer unpacker’s day.
Very true!
That’s a good idea. I haven’t really gotten to the point where I’m that behind on laundry (mostly beause I’m single), but it makes sense to me. If I were that far behind on laundry and knew that some of them were going to be decluttered, this method would be one I’d try.
I would be tempted to not wash but just bag the clothes up. I mean, if they are covered in bodily functions, I would def wash, but just dirty from one wearing, I would just bag them up. I always wash hand me downs before wearing and some of my kid’s new clothes (like jeans) anyway.
Just make a start on de-cluttering them and it might fuel you to go on.
It helps me to stay motivated (usually) with keeping on my donations because for us they are more like trades. I take our stuff (and stuff from other members of the family) to a place in a local town, a trading post. They take the donated items, if it’s a lot I get a receipt and when I go back I get their trading post “money”. I turn around and use that to get what we need. With four children and all…this is an awesome money-saving system. Since this is my way of getting “new” clothes for the family, I’ve found it doesn’t bother me much in the time-and-effort thought department because it benefits everyone so greatly.
Actually I went there today, on a shopping trip with a friend. It was a blast, I didn’t have the children with us. Got myself some new clothes for a change (lol) But seriously, I’ve lost crazy amounts of weight it became necessary when the children learned to play the “Mommy’s clothes will fall if I…” game. Today I got some new shirts, skirts, suit set, and realized I have no clue what size I really am in pants…haha. Winter boots for one child. Pair of boots for me. Some babies clothes… total was $26 and they were all in excellent condition. Most I had to do was take some polish to two scuffs on the my boots.
Next week I will take my trash bag full of clothes up there, and the grocery bag of shoes! We only buy clothes from the places we donate, except certain undergarments. Anyway, when you benefit in multiple ways from donating it seems to help keep that motivation around.
I really love the hamper idea above, I think I have an extra one so I will start doing that! Thanks.
Oh. As for the laundry mat, I’ve once heard of this person (grape-vine story) who would take their clothes for donation and leave them in a box or something with a note/sign that they are free for whoever wants them. I guess the idea is if someone comes along and decides, “hey, I need some kids pants in this size” they can grab them, toss them in with their laundry and be done with it.
That is a wonderful idea!
Everyone washes stuff after they’ve bought second hand. Just get them out of your house. If it’s too overwhelming to face laundering them you need to get them out as the priority. If they are really too dirty then consider throwing them out instead. In the future when it’s not so overwhelming anymore because you’ve got things more under control then worry about washing them first. I’ve stopped worrying about trying to get pet fur off otherwise clean clothes before donating. If they have that been in storage for ages smell they go straight in the donate box too. Dog slobber? I’ll wash that then donate it. That’s my 2 cents anyway.
I use Carbona brand color catchers they are cheaper than Shout & do a much better job. I read on another site that you can even cut them in half but I’m not sure I want to do that. The Carbona brand is inexpensive enough that I’ll just use a whole sheet. I love that it even catches the dirt &!grime that could get re-deposited on the clothes. You’ll be surprised by how much color still bleeds out of even older clothes.
I did a serious purge a few years ago, and I threw away a lot of things that would have been in good enough condition to donate had they been clean. But they weren’t, so out they went, and I didn’t feel one bit guilty about it. I would never buy anything at a second-hand store or garage sale that isn’t clean, and therefore I won’t donate anything that isn’t clean. But I had too much clutter and stress and not enough time or energy to clean everything that I needed to get rid of, so anything that wasn’t clean and in donatable condition right then, I tossed.
Truth be told, a lot of the reason I had that much clutter to begin with is because of the guilt that throwing away serviceable items is wasteful. “These items should be donated, but they need to be washed, so put it in a pile.” Problem was that I never got around to washing them — I barely kept up with cleaning the things that we DID wear and use — so the piles just grew. “This item is worth something, so keep it for a garage sale.” Well, garage sales are a ton of work and never happened, so again, things just piled up.
At that time in my life I really needed to get the clutter out of my house more than I needed to be concerned about where it went. So I let go of the guilt, and the stuff.
Nowadays I’m not so buried and overwhelmed, so if it much easier to donate. I keep a cardboard box handy, and if something won’t be worn or used again and is in good enough condition to donate, I put it in the box. If it’s dirty, I clean it first. My habit is very much like Tam’s comment above, only instead of a tote I use a cardboard box that I can just get rid of without having to move items from a tote that I’d keep to another bag or box. When the box is full, it goes to car, and I drop it off at my earliest convenience.
Go you! And I love how you shared that it’s so much easier to donate now that you’re not overwhelmed. Very true!
Incredible tips! I myself have a lot of clothes ready to be donated but first of all I should clean them. Really very good advices!Thanks a lot!!!
A close friend of mine runs a clothing donation non-profit in our area and accepts dirty clothes. She washes everything. Just an option, if you happen to live near me. 🙂
The story is here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Opas-Closet/279230555568391
Very cool! Thanks for sharing!!
I only sort out clothes that are new for the first few washes when they tend to fade. With everything else, I have 2 hampers: a white one for whites and a dark one for brights and darks. We tend to buy only 100% cotton, so as long as I keep an eye out for swimming suits and foundation garments, they all have the same washing instructions anyway.
Great idea!
My local thrift stores don’t wash clothes either (Columbus Ohio area) – that being said whenever I’ve bought any thing from them I always wash things first before I wear them – I can’t imagine people not doing that. Most of my clothes that I donate aren’t dirty – they just have been in bags that have been cluttering my bedroom for quite a while. I’ll go through them just to make sure there isn’t anything I really want to keep and then I just re-bag and take to the store. I have taken several loads to a local laundromat but I question my sanity of paying $15.00 to wash items that I’m giving away for free (so I’ve pretty much stopped doing that)
Your response was so far off base it almost brought me to tears. As the operations director of a local food bank which relies on sales from our thrift store to help feed thousands in our area, this struck a nerve! Clothing that is deemed unsalable is impossible to rid ourselves of. We receive up to 3 commercial dumpster loads of nasty filthy smelly wet clothing daily. We have searched high and low for anyone interested in this gargantuan pile of crap, to no avail. For god sake, use your forum to educate people to donate nice clean modern clothing and pitch the rest themselves. What we are adding to our land fill kills me
I encourage you to reread the post. It seems your reaction is to the last sentence, which is in fact referring to whether it is necessary to use Shout Color Catchers, and is in no way encouraging anyone to donate “nasty filthy smelly wet clothing” at all. The entire point of the post is to help people go about donating clean clothing. I completely agree that it is horrific to donate “nasty filthy smelly wet clothing.”
I have been personally told by every single donation place in my area that they want ripped or stained (which is very different from “nasty filthy smelly wet”) clothing and to please -they all said please- send it in.
https://goodwillnne.org/articles/9-things-you-didnt-know-you-could-donate-to-goodwill/ And as for cleaning the clothing first, yes, do it. But don’t bother separating as above posts suggest to save your sanity.
What about stuff that needs to be drycleaned? I can’t wash it now because it’s been drycleaned ever since purchase and the fibers probably won’t stand up to that. (Not to mention pleats, etc.) But to dryclean a nice women’s career suit or dress with jacket will cost almost as much as the IRS donation value. I hate to throw my late mother’s perfectly beautiful, well-maintained wardrobe in the trash. But I would also hate to take the time and trouble to have it drycleaned, spend $100 to do it, then turn around and donate it for a $100 tax deduction. Thoughts? (P.S. She passed away 2 years ago and I have washed and donated the things that can be washed. It’s the dry clean only stuff that is bogging me down.)
Have you tried the dry clean at home kits? Not expensive and work well, you do them in the dryer. Also, a church or homeless shelter may take them as is.
Just throw clothes in the dryer with dryer sheets. It’s the heat from the dryer that kills germs. Most people will wash what they buy before they wear it.
I think many of our loci thrift stores use a steamer method. Because they all tend to have a very smell, that actually smells like something was done to it. Plus I’ve seen some of the steamers set up in the work areas.
But yes, throw it all in a single load & donate right away.
There are probably even people who would take slightly dirty clothes, as an individual, and wash them, if it’s the size they are looking for & know to wash first 🙂