Putting away the laundry is the worst part of the whole “washing clothes” job, right?
It is to me.
And judging from the emails I receive, it’s the worst part for y’all too.
I’ve said many times here at Mama’s that a load of laundry is not complete until it is folded and put in its correct place.
And most days? That piece of it is hard.
We won’t go into the fact that I don’t want to put the laundry away. Or I’m waiting on someone besides me to actually do it. Or that I’m dreaming of the day we live in a house with a family closet so I don’t have to walk all over creation to 4 different sets of dresser drawers.
My Secret to Getting the Laundry Put Away
My solution?
I sabotage myself.
I usually fold clothes on my bed. My room is right down the hall from the washer and dryer, so it’s a natural place to dump the basket and fold.
Also, my bed is a little higher so my back doesn’t hurt quite as much from bending over as I fold.
But my real reason is to force myself to actually put the clothes away.
I can’t get into my bed if it’s piled high with folded laundry.
And to prevent my dresser from looking like a nightmare, I can’t possibly put those folded clothes on top of it.
My favorite chair is in our room and that is really the only other spot to clutter up put anything. I can’t do that because then I can’t sit in my favorite spot for 2.5 minutes of peace.
So putting them away it is.
A helpful read: Here’s What to Do When You Don’t Have Time to Fold a Load of Clothes
Why I Never Put Folded Laundry in a Basket
If our folded laundry ever ends up in a basket, it will be days before it is ever put away.
And I’m being dead serious when I say ‘days’. As in 6 or 7.
I won’t tell you that the laundry in that basket in the picture was sitting there for 2 weeks.
So why torture myself with the guilt of looking at laundry baskets full of folded clothes every day? I have a million other things I can (and do) feel guilty about.
I don’t need laundry to be one of those things.
Mama’s Method to Putting Up Laundry
I round up everyone that can walk and point them to their particular piles on my bed. I have them put everything away that they are capable of, reminding them to keep it folded to the best of their ability.
And I try not to cringe knowing that the clothes I have just folded so nicely are now being thrown and shoved into drawers.
But the result?
It’s so worth it.
After they are put away, I can lie down in my bed (that’s been calling my name since I left it early that morning) feeling guilt-free about my Laundry Life.
So what are your tricks for getting the laundry put away?
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I got about half of our laundry done yesterday, and I’m hoping to finish today. The best strategy that I’ve found is to fold/hang laundry as it comes out of the dryer. If I don’t do that, it stays in the basket/atop the dryer/on the guest bed for days. Lots of days. I have hanging space in the laundry room, and folded items are stacked into neat piles on the shelves – one pile per family member. After a couple of loads completed, I take each person’s clothes to their closet, and put each person’s folded pile on their bed. Usually, I have to remind my kids at bedtime to put away their items (and try not to cringe as they shove them into the drawer). And IF I can keep up this good rhythm, laundry is done – and put away – in no time!
I’d love to give my kids more responsibility, but for now I’m doing the laundry weekdays while they are in school.
RLR, you always have such good things to say! I love it when you chime in.
This method is extra useful if your laundry is in the basement, because it eliminates carrying huge, heavy laundry baskets up steep, rickety stairs.
I moon over those canvas closet-shelf boxes — they would be perfect for carrying the individual piles. BUT I’m afraid they would find permanent homes on the floor and I’d have to buy more.
For me I have back problems so I can’t fold laundry! Woo Hoo kind of, back pain aint fun but because of it I only put mine away. My kids are 7 and 8. So when there laundry is done and I get around to bringing it upstairs lol, it gets dumped on one of their beds and they sort it and put it in there drawers. I don’t watch them put their cloths away that would drive me crazy. I know they don’t fold it. I have taught them how but they just stuff. I am just glad Its done. For me I can’t seem to get mine put away that often. I just leave it in the laundry basket in the laundry room. Which is right outside my door. Every now and then it drives me nuts and I go laundry crazy and put it all away. I don’t know why I can’t be motivated to put it away.
so my friend Malisa (http://malisaprice.com) just shared this post and I have to tell you, I literally have a massive pile of folded laundry in the basket and it’s been sitting there for days. haha! I love these suggestions…I think I’ll sabotage myself on the next load. 🙂
Thank you for visiting, Jodi! Go sabotage yourself! tee hee 🙂
-Lauren
The kids fold and put away the laundry (with occasional help from me). They set my husband’s and my laundry on our bed for us to put away.
Totally agree – the washing isn’t so much the problem, I have a hard time putting it away. Recently I found an option that worked for us. We very rarely watch TV – but the last two Sunday nights we’ve rewarded the kids with a TV show snuggled in our bedroom. The only rule was that all laundry had to be put away. I dumped all of the clean laundry on the bed and said “we can start the show as soon as everything is put away”. No threats needed and it empowered them to be in control of how fast things got done (which was lightning speed compared to some other house-cleaning requests that involved dragging feet and eye-rolling).
Michelle, this just made me laugh out loud – literally. I can so relate to the dragging feet and eye rolling! The kids, not me. (well, sometimes me…)
Isn’t it interesting the vast amount of work that can be accomplished when the rarely watched TV is the ‘reward’? Works great at our house too. 😉
What I do is well I have twins. What they do is the set up the Laundry Games. They put the stuff that goes in the closet in the basket and behind their footboard. They put the stuff that goes in the drawers on the floor. What they have to do is fold it then it goes to the sorting pile which is on the bed. Then they have race to drawers. Whoever wins fishes first. Fishing is taking a hanger and fishing clothes out of the basket