Organizing Tips to Help You Conquer the Laundry Monster

Laundry. You sort, you wash, you fold, you blink ? and the pile of dirty clothes has grown all over again. Laundry is a fact of life, but approaching the task in an organized way can make it more manageable.

Preparation is Half the Battle
If you have a large family (or lots of clothes!), sorting the laundry can be a daunting task all on its own. Sorting as you go not only ends the need for this part of the project, but also may encourage you to do laundry more often because it's all sorted and ready to go! Use a multi-compartmented hamper or several laundry baskets and as you throw in your dirty clothes just drop them in the appropriate section (even kids as young as pre-schoolers can learn to do this -- make it fun for them, give them a small reward (an extra 15 minutes of TV? staying up 10 minutes later?) each time they get everything in the right spot!)

Toss items that need dry cleaning into a special basket or bag as soon as you take it off. This way, when you are ready to go to the cleaners you can just grab them, rather than having to hunt for them in all the dirty laundry (ugh!)

Make a habit of always keeping a spare of laundry detergent, dryer sheets and whatever else you use regularly. That way you never have to drop everything and run to the store to complete your laundry (or use that as a reason to not complete the laundry...)

Put Away the Clean Clothes in a Flash!
Keep hangers and a folding hanging rack near the dryer. Save steps by putting hanging items directly on hangers rather than folding and toting them first. As you fold clean laundry, place items in baskets by person to simplify the process of putting it all away. Get everyone in on the act. Even small children can help put away some of their own clothes -- socks, underwear, etc. Older kids can put it all away. If you share the burden, it's not so overwhelming.

We know it's hard, but go through your drawers and closets and purge things that are never worn. Putting laundry away is much faster and more pleasant if you don't have to struggle to cram the clothes into an overstuffed space.

Set a side a small drawer or basket for socks that have lost their mate in the wash. Sooner or later the other sock will turn up and the pair can be put away with all the others.

Other Laundry Tips
Consider sprucing up and organizing the laundry area. A clean and well-organized space makes any task more enjoyable. Schedule set laundry days and stick to them. It's amazing how much more you can get done when you have a schedule.

Short of inventing disposable clothes, laundry is here to stay, but these tips should make it quicker and a little more manageable and you will never have a morning with nothing to wear.

Copyright 2004 Bridget Messino

About the author: Bridget Messino is a Professional Organizer and co-owner of Clutter Free Living, Inc. Her work frequently appears on many Internet sites and on her own organizing site Clutter Free Living as well as in her monthly Home Organizing Newsletter How to Be Clutter Free. Subscribe to the FREE monthly e-newsletter by sending a blank e-mail to cflnews-subscribe@topica.email-publisher. com

---

Making Space - Letting Go of Clutter

To make room for new things to come into you... Read More

Organized For Life

Questions come my way all the time regarding my God-given... Read More

Choose Spice Racks That Help You Organize Your Home

Today you have almost as many choices of spice racks... Read More

Finish in Style - Organizing Works!

One of my mother-in-law's many oft-quoted and wise declarations was... Read More

Feeling Overwhelmed and Unorganized? - How to Use Index Cards to Organize Your Life

Feeling Overwhelmed and Unorganized? - How to Use Index Cards... Read More

Organized Living-Secrets About Your Lifes Hidden Power Revealed

An organized living lifestyle can cause you to weed out... Read More

Don?t Be A Clutter Victim

There are 3 kinds of clutter: Inner (between our ears);... Read More

Be More Productive at Work: Avoid These Eight Traps

Obviously, productivity involves producing. Producing widgets, events, reports, sales. The... Read More

The Natural Law of Attrition

I'm cheap and proud of it.I use and re-use things... Read More

Getting Organized For The New Year - Part 2

In part 1, we discussed a system you could use... Read More

Spring Cleaning

Spring is such a refreshing time- we are filled with... Read More

Organizing Lessons from a Bookstore

The store reminded me of a well-worn slipper ? tattered... Read More

Get Organised and Transform Your Life

It takes effort to get results, and not just any... Read More

Simplify Your Life! No Really...Simplify Your Life!

We hear it every day."Buy this product, and simplify your... Read More

9 Simple Strategies for Home Organization

Home organization means being able to find your stuff when... Read More

The Most Frequently Asked Questions about Organizing Your Kids Rooms

1. In terms of organization, what is the first thing... Read More

Get Organized: 10 Universal Laws

The Law of the 1st StepA good first step in... Read More

35 Santity Savers - Get More Productive

Use these 35 sanity savers this year to help you... Read More

Four Tips For Clearing The Clutter

Spring?. Fresh breezes through open windows, sleeping trees come awake... Read More

What Balance Looks Like For You

Recently, in an online group, we talked about "balance" and... Read More

Clutter Campaign - Select Your Tools

Have nothing in your houses that you do not know... Read More

5 Tips to Banish Clutter From Your Life For Good

Studies show that 80 percent of what we use comes... Read More

The Clutter Campaign - Design Your Vision

I like a room you can dance in the middle... Read More

Memorabilia -- Use It or Lose It!

What do you do with those special items that have... Read More

The Five Ways To Ease The Process Of Eliminating Clutter

I recently had a conversation with a friend about clutter.... Read More

Without a Plan, You?re Doomed to Failure

"My job is an endless series of deadlines, I am... Read More

A Personal Action Plan for Change

There are eight distinct steps to constructing and executing an... Read More

10 Tips on Color Coding Your Paper: From Chaos to Coherence

Color-There Is No SubstituteIn anatomical illustrations you see the brain's... Read More

10 Minute Tricks to Help You Get Organized

Whoever thought you'd be able to get organized in just... Read More

Clutter-Clearing and Your Authentic Self

Have you ever felt so discouraged, your life so out-of-control,... Read More

Effective Closet Cleaning Tips - Let Go of More Than Skeletons

I know I have a problem when I have to... Read More

Mental Clutter- Is It Taking Over Your Life?

Chances are, most of you have a lot you need... Read More

Clutter & Creativity

Take a look around you right now. Look away from... Read More