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Post by prettybad on Jun 3, 2015 21:44:48 GMT -5
Ok
-clothes in the dryer put away -clothes in the baskets put away -washer stuff into dryer -cycle of bleach in the washer because it was smelling musty
Clearly too much stuff is part of the problem and I need to purge as well as stay on top of the washing. I'm going to think on that and formulate a plan for disposal of excess clothing and linens which I can reasonably hope to follow to completion of the task. I'm thinking baby steps.
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Post by larataylor on Jun 3, 2015 23:19:54 GMT -5
I'm sorry that you have to haul the laundry up and down. I have the luxury of a laundry room on the first floor right near the rooms where things go. I have strategies, and I have to remember that they won't work for everyone. Mostly I hang up and fold things right there in the laundry room.
When my laundry was in the basement, I had lots of pipes to hang things on. My brother (who is a builder) disapproved of this, so we hung hanging poles from the rafters. I like hanging up a lot of things right out of the dryer. For a good while, my family had to go down there to get clean clothes … not ideal, but at least they were clean and hanging, or folded on shelves.
Do you feel like you have a good system? Is your laundry set up conveniently? Is it a pleasant place to work with space to store clothes, or do you have to haul baskets out of there to deal with elsewhere?
Just wondering if there may be ways to make it easier for you.
Purging definitely helps!
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Post by prettybad on Jun 4, 2015 3:25:53 GMT -5
Thank you for your kind words of support larataylor Although the laundry is in the basement the room is finished and has a counter for folding, a sink for hand washing, and plenty of areas to hang clothes. I also like to hang things straight out of the dryer. Unfortunately the laundry floor is strewn with clothes and the counters are likewise. Basically the room is a mess but I think you are right. Putting the room in order and making it a pleasant place to work will help towards achieving good laundry habits. And purging. I have way too much stuff and it makes management of laundry a more difficult task than it needs to be. Thanks again for you thoughtful reply.
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Post by lostchild on Jun 4, 2015 4:26:13 GMT -5
Suggestion... Purge first. Then wash what's left. Put all the actively used stuff away first so you're functional. There is no need for trash to be clean. If you donate then you can wash those separately then immediately load them into bags and donate asap. Don't let them sit around. This should get you from under.
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Post by larataylor on Jun 4, 2015 6:27:08 GMT -5
I would purge first and give yourself a lot of amnesty.
Looking back at my experience dealing with the hoard in my new house, I spent way, way, way too much time laundering things, hoping that musty smell would come out so I could donate them. Often it didn't, so the thing was trash anyway. Trash anything iffy, and only wash what you *know* is good enough to donate.
I'm glad you have a good laundry room. That's a big thing.
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Post by prettybad on Jun 4, 2015 19:19:25 GMT -5
Thank you lostchild and larataylor Your suggestions make perfect sense to me. What is the point of expending energy needlessly when some days it is a truly precious commodity. Ok -clothes from the washer into the dryer. those which need to hang dry separated out. -small load into washer. -linens out out dryer, folded and put away. Need to find some hangers for the wet clothes from washer.
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Post by prettybad on Jun 4, 2015 21:37:55 GMT -5
Ok -daughter's delicates hung to dry `large bag of uniforms out of closet and taken to donation bin -hangers from uniforms taken to laundry room
It feels very good to rid myself of uniforms I was no longer using! If I keep chipping away.......
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Post by larataylor on Jun 4, 2015 21:51:34 GMT -5
I am easily overwhelmed by laundry. It works best for me to work on it every single day.
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Post by prettybad on Jun 4, 2015 22:49:04 GMT -5
larataylor laundry is up there as one of my most disliked tasks. I'm the same, easily overwhelmed by it particularly the sorting and putting away. I was very encouraged by the space I created by purging some of my work clothes and I hope I can keep plugging away on the laundry every day until doing laundry becomes a GOOD habit requiring no effort of thought or will. That will be a real blessing.
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Post by larataylor on Jun 4, 2015 23:11:28 GMT -5
I think … I hope … that resistance to the task can be overcome by doing it every day. Avoidance only builds resistance, and makes the job bigger.
Like with the litter boxes … I hate that chore. But it's *almost* pleasant how quick and easy it is when I do them every day, or even twice day. When I feel the resistance, I counter it by reminding myself that it's so much less unpleasant when I do it daily. Tomorrow it will be worse. The day after, even worse. And the resistance grows stronger the longer I avoid it.
Small, easy chore NOW. Bigger, nastier job later. Do it NOW.
I LOVE being all caught up on the laundry. I want to reward myself with that pleasant feeling every day.
Right now, it's helpful that I have one set of work clothes. I have to wash them every single day (except weekends). This has really been helping with the every day habit.
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Post by gillian on Jun 5, 2015 3:17:04 GMT -5
A few words about donating. I don't know about where everyone else is, but I volunteer in a charity shop where any clothing, which is not suitable for sale is put into recycling. That includes the musty, smelly items. We get an amount per bag of recycled items.
I find I have a load of washing to do every day, if not more. I'm pretty good at getting towels put away. Dh's and my clothes make it to our bedroom fairly quickly, but can take a while to be hung up. Ds#3 looks after his own laundry most of the time. Occasionally he asks me to put it in the dryer and he is a bit slow about moving his clean laundry to his room, but mostly he finds his own clothes and he even hangs his clothes up provided they make it to his bedroom. Ds#2 is capable of doing his own laundry but tends to leave it until he has nothing left to wear and he doesn't put away his clean clothes - just takes from the pile as he needs it. Dd hasn't been well and hasn't done laundry for a long time. Her room is full of clutter - that's another story - and it's impossible to put her laundry away. It ends up in piles wherever I can find space, which makes it difficult to find anything she wants to wear.
Does anyone here iron? I haven't done so for a very long time.
Gillian
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Post by Declutterme on Jun 5, 2015 5:42:07 GMT -5
Oh wow, mount washmore as Flylady calls it has been a major problem for me for years. I have been living out of laundry baskets for about 14 years now and it's not nice. I also have a bad habit where I will put the clothes etc into the washer but I won't take them out and dry them. This problem got worse at the height of my depression back in November. I used to re-wash maybe 3 or 4 times before eventually drying but then I stopped drying and after re-washing I would just put an outfit over a radiator to dry, meaning the rest of the clothes remained in washing machine until I needed another outfit. I am sure things have been re-washed 10 plus times. It has to stop. The load I re-washed earlier has just stopped so I am gonna put them in the dryer and hang outside what can't be tumble dried. I have a clothes line in the entry in my back yard and gonna ask my dad to put a couple lines up in the yard now that hopefully better weather is on the way.
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Post by larataylor on Jun 5, 2015 8:01:49 GMT -5
Declutterme- ugh. That's sounds terrible. Depression makes things so bad - you're not up to doing the simplest chore, and then you've got more work to do because of that. Creates a terrible downward spiral. I don't try to hang things outside. There are good reasons to do so, but I don't want to slow the process or make it more complicated in any way! I hope that being on this thread can help you catch up, purge, and solidify some good habits so this part of your life can be as smooth and simple as possible. Laundry is just one of those things that's always with us.
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Post by Declutterme on Jun 5, 2015 8:56:01 GMT -5
Declutterme- ugh. That's sounds terrible. Depression makes things so bad - you're not up to doing the simplest chore, and then you've got more work to do because of that. Creates a terrible downward spiral. I don't try to hang things outside. There are good reasons to do so, but I don't want to slow the process or make it more complicated in any way! I hope that being on this thread can help you catch up, purge, and solidify some good habits so this part of your life can be as smooth and simple as possible. Laundry is just one of those things that's always with us. Thank you so much Lara. After hours of procrastinating I have hung a few delicates up and am waiting on second load to finish before chucking in dryer with the rest. That way the outfit I wanna wear tonight won't take several hours to dry although there is a breeze but as you said, I don't wanna slow myself down.
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Post by larataylor on Jun 5, 2015 9:09:28 GMT -5
I put delicate things into mesh bags and wash them with everything else. Often I just hang up the bag to dry. Usually the delicates are just underwear so wrinkling is not an issue. I have some hangers with tiny hooks for strappy things, and I just hang the mesh bag from that tiny hook. I try hard to avoid acquiring any clothing that requires special treatment. on doing some laundry!
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