I got a new laundry basket for my master bedroom.
The one I’d been using had cracked, the handle was gone and clothes were getting snagged.
So I replaced it.
Replaced. Because I didn’t need another laundry basket in there, just a different one.
Actually, at the time, it was the only laundry basket in the entire house. The others had been used as donatable Donate Boxes (leaving the house along with the stuff inside them) or sleds (breaking into pieces while sliding down a hill).
That’s a big deal, y’all. After years of believing all my Slob Problems would be solved if only I had enough laundry baskets, I was down to one.
Laundry baskets are good things, but my pre-blog home was proof that you can totally have too much of a good thing.
I did get another one, though, for my daughter’s room. We’d had a talk recently about her need for her own laundry hamper/basket since her clothes rarely made it to the one in the bathroom she shares with her brothers. I get that. I also need a place to throw clothes in the moment they leave my body.
So far, her new laundry basket is helping her keep her room much neater.
How were these laundry basket purchases different from the way I used to shop for housekeeping solutions?
Once upon a time, I felt overwhelmed at the state of my home, overwhelmed at the volume of laundry forever covering my floors. I stood in the laundry basket aisle, hoping these magical containers would solve all my problems. And since I had innumerable problems, I figured I needed as many baskets as my budget and my Suburban could handle.
But those baskets did nothing to actually solve my problems.
This time, though, I knew exactly what I needed. I wasn’t guessing or dreaming because I now have a routine and I know exactly how my routine works.
I’ve been having Laundry Day (almost) every week for more than five years, and I know exactly what we need to make it happen.
Yay for knowing so I don’t have to spend so much money on hope.
I also love love love the laundry hamper (it’s a hamper if there’s a lid, right?) we’ve had in the kids’ bathroom for several years. It rolls, so they can easily bring it to the laundry room for sorting. You can go through my affiliate link to find it here on Amazon, but I really don’t think I paid that much when I got it at Walmart.
*FYI, Laundry Day probably won’t work for you if you’re on a septic system, as it may overload your system. Sorry!
Note: Yes, I said I have had that rolling hamper for several years. Yes, I am also surprised (and a little dismayed) that the sticker is still on it. Yes, I see that star. Yes, it’s part of a forgotten Christmas decoration which was invisible to me until I saw it in this picture. Yes, I have issues.
Posts that explain how I got laundry under control:
My Laundry Metamorphosis (explains all the failed systems I tried and what finally worked)
Laundry Conquered (a podcast in case you want to listen while you do laundry)
The Laundry Day Club (stories from people who’ve given Laundry Day a try and found it worked for them too, usually to their own surprise!)
--Nony
I don’t know if you ever read Jen Hatmaker’s blog but you should today. She had a mini laundry meltdown and her husband went out and bought 24 baskets! A clean and dirty basket for each person in the laundry room and a clean and dirty basket for each person in their room. Well, I pretty much just summed it up. She needs to come read this blog!
I have that same rolling hamper! My friend had one when we were living in the same apartment complex and I bought one immediately after I saw hers. So nice for dragging clothes to and from the communal laundry room. I’ve had it for several years, too and also never took off the sticker. But I kind of purposely leave those on (especially on those big plastic totes) because I like to know how big they are.)
Hi Nony! You’ve inspired me to do many small cleaning projects over the last few months. I’m proud to tell you that my dishes are done & counters are wiped down. My kitchen table has (gasp) nothing on it! Laundry got wayyyyy better too. I narrowed it down to 12 favorite outfits per twin (2yr olds) and 8 outfits plus school clothes for my 5yr old daughter. I also let go of lots of my own folded clothes – things that don’t fit or don’t get worn & shirts with oil stains, since I never seem to remember to wear an apron. This inspired my hisband to declutter his clothing too. Then we just finished the garage! I can breathe! And most things have a home now, which is really cutting down on the time it takes to tidy for company. I still have many more decluttering projects to go, but you’ve totally changed my perspective on what can be done in 5-10min.
So, back to laundry, I have TEN laundry baskets. They are the good quality square ones with gray handles from Walmart. There is one in each child’s room (I’d put them in their closets, but then we’d have clothes all over their floors.) There is a stack of them in the corner of my bedroom, for when it is time to wash sheets and towels (which I generally do in one day.) And there is one in the master closet for me. I love the feeling of stacking them all up when laundry is done. I also love that there are enough baskets to pull kid laundry out, throw it in a hamper, and set it by their door. Then that night, I take 5min to hang everything and that basket becomes their hamper again. Fonally found my system that works for me. I think the big key is that they are all the same. I don’t stress about which basket goes where anymore. And I have trained myself to put things in their baskets, so if I go to put something in it and it has clean laundry, well I HAVE TO take the 5min to hang clean stuff. No more living out of laundry baskets.
Believe me, the sticker still being on the basket is nothing to worry about. Unless you plan to put it in the dishwasher or washing machine. The gummy mess from peeling stickers is not worth it.
Laundry is one of the few things I have fairly well handled – for clothes at least. The oddball items are another story.
Oldest daughter lives at college most of the time now and handles all her own laundry even when she’s at home. She sometimes has to be reminded to go move it along. I just give her one day a week to do her laundry so that it doesn’t interfere with my schedule when she’s home.
Youngest daughter is still at home. Including sheets – she only has 3 loads of wash a week. 1) sheets, 2) dark colors, and 3) colors/whites. I wash these on Sundays so she starts the week with clean everything for school. She has a laundry sorter in the upstairs hallway just outside her bedroom, hung on a hook on the wall. She puts items in it daily when she bathes or changes. On Sunday morning she brings it downstairs and I wash everything. She puts it away as I pull it from the dryer.
Husband has a hamper in the downstairs bathroom as that’s where he showers. I wash his laundry weekly and he puts it in the office closet since he dresses there.
My laundry was another story. But, I just re-arranged my master bedroom closet. There is now room on the floor just inside the doorway for a laundry basket. When it’s full, I take it downstairs. When I bring clean clothes upstairs and put them away, I put the empty basket back in the closet. Easy peasy.
Now, if I could just figure out how to stay on top of the stray items. Sleeping bags, random stuff I have no idea what to do with even after I wash it, etc.
I have one basket and that’s enough for me 🙂 I put in dirty clothes, towels etc. Clean things go to wardrobe when they are dry. Usually 😉
I have the same rolling laundry hamper. I got it freshman year of college so I could easily get to the landromat. That was 15 years ago and mine also still has the sticker, if that makes you feel any better.
Oh that makes me laugh!!! And yes, it totally makes me feel better!
Love you, Dana! I’m the TYHB course and it’s changing my life! On your note about septic systems, I grew up in a rural home that used a septic tank. My mom did laundry for our family of 4 every Weds and it never overloaded the system. The key with septic tanks is simply getting them pumped out before they back up into your drains. My dad never let that happen. Hope that helps someone!