Happy weekend, folks.
I want to talk to you about laundry, because it feels like a weekend catch-up activity, and I’ve recently been enjoying it(!!!) which is a pretty rare experience, and therefore invites discourse.
Part I: I got a clothesline!
Here are some reasons why:
1. Air drying uses no natural gas (read: nonrenewable fossil fuel) to power my dryer. I love the environment and climate change is real, so this matters tremendously to me.
2. I believe small changes really matter.
3. I’m also saving money, because I’m not paying for said natural gas. Woohoo, more money for me! (The two-line retractable clothesline set me back $30. Not too shabby, that.)
4. My clothes are instead being dried by fresh air and wind and sunshine. Which can’t possibly be bad.
5. Hanging the wash on the line gives me a splendid reason to go outside and get some fresh air and sunshine myself. Also rather delightful.
6. Line-drying is easier on clothes. Evidence: You know all the lint you throw away in your lint trap? That’s pieces of your clothes that *come off* from the rough and tumble and hot air. Line drying is more gentle.
7. Clothes dried in the outdoor air smell and feel fresh and nice.
8. Sheets in particular develop a lovely crisp feeling, almost as if I had ironed them. Which, LOL, is a thing I would never ever in a million years do. (Who has time or energy for that? I mean, really.) But now, I get that “freshly ironed sheets” feeling when I get in bed with almost zero work! So, I win.
(I don’t, however, dry towels on the line. With terrycloth, the crisp feeling becomes “crispy” which actually is not desirable in towels.)
End of list one.
Sidenote: Drying racks are a delightful alternative for those who don’t have space for an outdoor clothesline. Bonus points if you set it up on your deck or in the yard to soak up some of that sunshine goodness!
Part II: 5 tips to make laundry less sucky
Yaaay! One of my favorite things to do is figure out how to take a task I procrastinate and avoid, and to make it less shitty. This summer, I’ve started to pay attention to why I avoid laundry, and then making some changes to how I do it, and I’ve made significant progress—I actually look forward to laundry day sometimes!
Here are some tips to make laundry less shitty:
1. MAKE time for it. Instead of trying to squeeze in laundry in nooks and crannies throughout the week, set a designated afternoon where this is your sole focus.
2. While you wait for the first couple of loads to wash, mix the first hour or two of your laundry day with related activities (perhaps tidying up the laundry room or changing sheets on beds).
3. Then, settle in for some enjoyable, lazy laundry time. Lately, I have been choosing one of two activities, weather permitting.
IF IT’S NICE OUTSIDE: set up a big blanket in the grass, and hang out with a book or a podcast to listen to while you wait for loads of laundry to fold.
IF IT’S NOT SO NICE OUTSIDE: Put on a movie, one that is easy to start and stop when you hear the cycle buzzer and need to switch loads. (I have been digging children’s movies for this purpose, like Frozen. Also, The Little Prince on Netflix is ah-mazing.)
See? We’re having fun already.
4. As each load is dried, either from the dryer or the clothesline, fold it in front of the telly or while basking in backyard nature, then return to your activity of choice.
5. Add in whatever delightful details might make this laundry day more lovely to you. For example:
- A delicious snack or beverage
- Music or a podcast in headphones, worn while you wander around the house emptying hampers and sorting textiles
- Periodic dance breaks and/or yoga stretching that feels nice and easy
- Someone to help you! Like a partner to share the fun or a cat to lay on the fresh towels
6. Before you wrap up for the day, take your full baskets of folded laundry and return them to their homes. OMG you just finished your laundry!
I hope these tips will help you see that housework can be filled with ease and delight, and does not have to suck.
End of list two.
How would you like a free laundry day checklist?
Lucky for us, I made one! It contains all the steps you need to do to make your next laundry day filled with EASE and not SHITTINESS.
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Over to you!
I would love to hear your laundry tips and/or your thoughts on clotheslines, which are my new favorite thing. Email me or leave a note in the comments!
