Some weeks, I feel as though I’m drowning in laundry. I do laundry for 5 people, 3 of them messy kids, plus cloth diapers. The throwing in the washer I don’t mind so much. The hauling up and down two flights of stairs, sorting, and carrying back upstairs to put away – that I dislike.
Even one week’s worth of laundry means more than an hour dedicated to sorting out sizes, separating into piles, and praying no one decides to tip them over for fun. Then there’s the socks. The dreaded socks. You know, the ones without mates, the white ones that all look the same, but aren’t, the mates hidden beneath beds and couches?
After a recent stint of washing loads of laundry, but simply giving up on a pairing baskets full of endless mismatched socks, I decided there had to be a better way.
I also didn’t want to invest a great deal of time or money into my laundry solution. I knew we needed additional laundry baskets, but I was tired of hauling big, bulky baskets. With children ages 4 and 6, I also wanted to make it simpler for the kids to help sort, fold, and put away their own clothes.
Armed with a small budget, some sage advice from my mom, and a determination to solve my laundry woes, I visited the dollar store. In my initial trip, I purchased 3 small laundry baskets. After trying the method for one round of laundry, I returned for mesh lingerie bags and 3 more baskets.
With mesh bags selling 3 for $1, I had a laundry organization solution for my 3 kids for under $10. They didn’t have any more white baskets the second visit, so I grabbed pop up baskets instead, which I actually like a bit more. You could, of course, select designer baskets to match room decor, but my goal was budget-friendly, interchangeable baskets.
Our Family’s Easy, Inexpensive Organization Laundry Organization for Kids:
1. Each child has 2 baskets and 2 mesh lingerie bags. This ensures that there is always an available basket and bag for dirty laundry.
2. Kids know to put clothes into their basket and socks into the mesh bag.
3. When a basket fills up, I make sure all the socks are in the mesh bag and carry it to the laundry room. Kids can help with this step.
Great idea! Right now everyone’s laundry goes into the baskets in our room, and I have a similar setup (I bought a super cheap laundry organizer at Walmart – it’s basically a PVC frame with three laundry bags that hang from hooks. We sort stuff into either the delicate, dark, or light bag, and I also hang a lingerie bag from one of the hooks that I can zip up and toss in with the lights!) Another benefit to putting the socks in the lingerie bag is that they don’t end up in the gasket of my front loader 🙂
Those mesh bags are indispensable! I give them as a gift to all new moms at baby showers to keep those little socks, mittens and hats all in one place! Each of my kids has a little basket, typically I end up folding and putting back into the same basket and back to their rooms, but we’re all on one level.
I found the other day that I could hang my lingerie bags on the end of our laundry shelf between uses, better than wadding them up on the dryer, which is where they usually are. I typically use mine for bras and also for snap diapers so they don’t get caught up in the dryer.
Looks like we’ll be buying some more mesh bags! Until now, I used them just for hose and bras, but your idea is fantastic!
Great idea. I wish we had more laundry space. We have a 2nd floor laundry space, so no lugging, but also no space. 🙁
I put my daughter’s socks in a mesh bag too.
What a great solution! I don’t have issues with missing socks, but this is a wonderful way to prevent it from ever starting. 🙂
I’m pretty sure I have some of Ella’s lonley socks that she left before we moved! Good thing the girls are wearing mismatched socks these days!
I’m pretty sure I have some of Ella’s lonley socks that she left before we moved! Good thing the girls are wearing mismatched socks these days!
This really is a great idea! Love the socks made easy, too.
I need to do this! Or at the very least invest in some of those mesh bags for socks. Some days I feel that socks were sent by the devil to mess with me.