One thing that many people hate doing is their laundry. Why they hate it, the list goes on and on. If they are like me (or in my situation) they don't like doing it because it costs money and time. Whether you have to pay per load (such as in a Laundromat or apartment building facility) or pay by bills (having your own washer and dryer and only having to pay your utility bills) this will hopefully help you save a little money and time. Be warned, some things on this list may seem unreasonable or silly, but if you stop and think about them, they make sense.
Separate your loads
This may seem like an obvious tip, but not everyone thinks to do it. Why bother separating my socks from my jeans? What's the point? There are two very good reasons to separate your clothes. One, you don't want the colors/dyes from your jeans or heavier clothes to bleed on to your socks or lighter clothes. Two, it takes less time to dry a load of lighter material than it does to dry a load of whatever happens to be thrown in. Plus, its much easier to match up your socks if they're all in one load!
Don't wash clothes every time you wear them
Ok, this is one of those tips that will cause some people to start shouting about personal hygiene and cleanliness and such. But before you start jumping up and freaking out about it, think about it. Do you need to wash that sweatshirt you pulled on over your t-shirt for an hour because you were cold? If you didn't spill anything on it and it doesn't smell funny or whatnot, why wash it? Say you pulled on a pair of socks and tennis shoes so you could run out to the grocery store for twenty minutes. When you get back you pull off your shoes and socks. Why toss the socks into the laundry basket if you barely wore them? Set them by your shoes or in the front of your drawer so you grab them first the next time you grab socks. You get off of work and pull on a shirt and pair of jeans for a few hours before you change into your pj's and go to bed. Put the clothes in a pile on your dresser or in your closet so you can wear them again the next day. Also, pajamas. Why wash them after wearing them for one night? For example I wear a pair of pajama pants and a big t-shirt to bed. I usually wear them two or three nights in a row, at least, before I need to wash them. The main thing is to look at what you have and how long you wear it. If you only wore it for a little while or if it's not even dirty, wear it again.
Don't wash towels after each use
This one goes for both dish towels and bath towels. If you go a day or two without washing your towel, it'll be okay. This works especially well if you use one towel to dry off and another towel for your hair. The towel for your hair can last even a day or two longer than your other towel. Just use common sense, if your towel starts to smell funky by all means, wash it.
Wait to wash until you have a full load
This is kind of another common sense tip. Why waste the money, time, water, and electricity to wash a half load of clothes? Wait a day or two and wash a full one. Or if you won't have time until you have too much stuff later in the week, look around and see what might need washing. Check your bed linens and maybe toss in your pillowcases. Toss in a shirt or two that you know have been hanging in your closet since last spring that haven't been washed since then. If nothing else, you can always have a small pile of things that don't need to be washed as soon as you're done with them and use them to help fill up your loads. Just remember to not overload your washer and dryer.
Hopefully these tips will help you save time and money while doing the dreaded task of your laundry. Don't forget to check back soon for tips on how to save time and money while doing the other most dreaded cleaning task of doing your dishes!
