Laundry Tips for Beginners

Tips on how to improve your laundry skills

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Is laundry stressing you out? Maybe it just seems like it never gets done.

Here are some tips and tricks that I have learned along the way that have helped me to wash laundry more efficiently and not worry about my clothes getting messed up.

Know your washing machine.

There are so many different types of washing machines and as a newbie without much experience or as someone who has only used one or two types of washing machines it can be intimidating to do that first load. Some things come with time though make it a habit to understand how your machine works. What are the best settings? What are the quickest settings? Even just trying to turn it on can be difficult. When we moved into our new house, it came with a machine that had buttons instead of knobs. I couldn’t even get it to start without some help because I didn’t know that you had to hold the start button down until it beeped. There are so many different things that you just don’t know. You don’t know what you don’t know.

Once you figure out the settings that you like, you will also have an estimate of how long it will take a load to wash. This will come in handy when you are trying to figure out if you have time to do a load of laundry or not.

Wash laundry frequently.

Make a plan to wash small little loads more frequently instead of waiting to do all the laundry in one day. This will also help you stay on top of the laundry because when it comes out of the dryer there will be less to put away.

Only have one hamper for dirty clothes.

If you want to save time when it comes down to doing laundry then only have one hamper.This way you don’t have to go to several places to find laundry. Also, if there is only one hamper then it will be much easier to keep an eye on how much dirty clothes there are. When the hamper starts getting full, you will know that it is time to do a load.

Limit your clothes.

This is a new concept that I just came across. It has helped me stay on top of the laundry. If there are less clothes to wear, then there will be less clothes to wash and you will have to wash clothes more frequently in order to have something clean to wear. If you are really struggling to stay on top of this chore, consider only keeping out five to seven days worth of your favorite outfits. Not only can this help you get the laundry done, but it will make getting dressed easier in the morning. Check out this pin if you are interested in more minimalist wardrobe suggestions.

Hang your clothes up.

If you have the closet space, hanging your clothes up can keep them from being wrinkled which will cut out having to iron or fold them.

Air dry dress clothes.

Washing laundry frequently can cause wear and tear on your nice clothing. To help your clothes last longer, try hanging up your nice clothes to air dry instead of sending them through the dryer (The shower curtain rod is a great place for this). Also, did you know that you can wash some dry clean only garments at home and hang them up to dry instead of sending them to the dry cleaners? Think of all the money you could save!

Check your pockets.

Before you throw clothes in the wash you should check the pockets. You never know what hidden treasures you will find that your family has forgotten to take out like that cash your hubby forgot to put in his wallet. You don’t want paper or gum wrappers getting washed and falling apart in your washer or even worse getting put into the dryer after that.

Take care of stains ASAP.

Wipe off stains or rinse out the garment right away if possible to prevent a permanent stain. If you forget to do so you can always spray a bit of stain remover like Shout or OxiClean. If you would much rather use a natural solution, a bar of Fels Naphtha soap like this one works great too. It works on baby clothes, too.

Zip the zippers.

Make sure you check to make sure that your jeans and jackets, etc. are all zipped up. Washing unzipped zippers can damage the zipper, and potentially damage your clothes because the teeth on the zipper can get caught on them. This goes for clasps as well. I have had clasps get stuck in the side of the dryer and get all bent out of shape. Then I couldn’t wear it any more because I had to through it away.

Hang up hot clothes.

As soon as the dryer goes off, it is good idea to hang up dress clothes. If you hang them up while they are still warm or hot from the dryer, they usually don’t need to be ironed. They will still be a little wrinkled when they first come out, but hanging them up right away will allow most of those wrinkles to fall out.

Use natural deodorant.

No, we did not randomly switch to discussing personal hygiene.. Have you ever noticed that your shirts have white residue on them? This is from chemicals in your deodorant. Not only did I have this problem, but my shirts would also still smell sweaty after being washed. I have been using natural deodorant for the last two years and I haven’t had this problem once since I switched! (Check out this brand! They have a lot of scents to choose from and are always adding new ones with each season.)

Wash towels and blankets separately.

My rule of thumb is that if it is soft and fuzzy, it will lovingly share the lint with everything else, not to mention the static.

Final thoughts!

Now that you know all my little secrets, it’s time to go and wash some clothes! But before you leave, I truly hope that this information helped you and that the next time you get to do laundry for your family that it will be much more manageable and less stressful. Please, feel free to mention any little laundry secrets of your own in the comments. I’m always looking for ways to improve.