Now call me crazy - and I know some of you who know me well will indeed do just that! - but I love to do laundry. I love to do washing. I love folding and ironing clothes. I know that for some of you, however, the laundry room is a terror zone, but it truly should not be daunting and should never get out of control. If you do laundry consistently on set days, immediately fold and sort clothes as they come out of the dryer, and then follow through on delivering them to each family member for putting away, you will never have to dread laundry again!!! Nor will the laundry get out of control. REMEMBER- the ultimate purpose of a laundry room is to get dirty clothes cleaned, dried, and put away.
 
Now, if you don't share my feelings about loving to do the laundry, the first step is to make the laundry room a place that you want to spend time in. Consider a fresh new coat of paint in a cheery colour and then add some of your child's artwork plus an attractive floor mat. What about a pretty new window valance? In my humble opinion, the spaces we have to spend time in should be pleasant to be in! Maybe you have an extra radio or CD player that could live in the laundry. That way you can enjoy your favourite music while you are in there.
 
OK, now look around your laundry room. Ideally the laundry room should be home to only your washing machine and dryer, ironing board and iron, and your cleaning supplies. Too often laundry rooms become dumping zones for all sorts of things that don't really belong there and just clutter up this space. So go into your laundry room right now and take a basket or receptacle of some kind and remove anything that doesn't belong there and then find an appropriate home for them.
 
A lot of laundries have built-in cupboards which are great. Some suggestions for usage of these cupboards would be to store extra light bulbs, batteries, cleaning rags and supplies, etc. Make sure that you group these items together and containerize them for easy access and visibility. Remember, everything looks better if it is containerized in some way. I also use a couple of shelves in my laundry room cupboards as an overflow pantry for canned goods.
 
It's great to have a folding table in a laundry room - I personally use my ironing board as such since it is set up at all times. Here's another option if you have a utility sink in your laundry room. Get a piece of plywood and then cut it to fit over the sink and use that as a table.
 
If you have the room, consider a multi-compartment sorting hamper and have family members bring their laundry down and place it in the hamper. When the hamper is full, it's time to do a load of washing! I think it's important to teach children to have some household responsibility, so maybe you can assign a different child the task of being in charge of collecting the dirty clothes each week and placing it in the compartment hamper. You might possibly want to use a clean clothes hamper for each family member and then let them be responsible for collecting their clean clothes from the laundry and putting them away.
 
Keep a hamper or basket for clothes that are "dry clean only" so you have the clothes all together and ready to take to the cleaners. I try to avoid even purchasing clothes that are labeled "dry clean only" because I hate having to make a trip to the cleaners. Give me loads of washing any day!
 
If you don't have built-in cabinets not to worry - add a shelf above your washing machine and dryer to house your detergents, bleach, pre-wash sprays, iron, etc. An alternative would be to purchase one of those slim line rolling carts that are made to fit in the space between the washing machine and dryer to house all your laundry supplies.
 
I think a rod to hang clothes on is a must in a laundry. The extra shelf I have in my laundry room includes a rod which works great for hanging clothes directly on once they've been ironed. Keep a supply of hangers and a lint roller in the laundry room for easy access. Have a stain removal chart somewhere in your laundry so when you discover that mustard stain before you wash, you will know how to treat it.
 
ORGANIZING A CLOSET OR BEHIND-DOORS LAUNDRY
 
If you don't actually have a real laundry room, it's still easy to organize the space that you have. First of all, add a full length shelf above the washing machine and dryer and then using attractive baskets (wicker ones look great), organize everything as outlined above. Remember to buy a shelf that has a hanging rod attached. If space allows, you may want to consider purchasing some ready-made cabinets and storing all your cleaning supplies and what not in them.
 
There are also iron/ironing board racks that work well when attached to the inside of folding doors. On the other door you can add a towel rack that can be used to hang clothes on.
 
Top 10 Laundry Tips
 
1. Try to do at least one load of laundry a day to keep up with it.
 
2. Empty the dryer lint trap after every load. Lint builds up and can be a real fire hazard. Also a clean lint trap will help to keep your dryer functioning properly and help to dry clothes faster.
 
3. Use a three-compartment laundry sorting hamper.
 
4. Keep a basket for lost and found items like those stray socks and coins you might find in pockets.
 
5. Keep a cleaning caddy fully stocked and ready to go from room to room. Include glass cleaner, a scrubbing brush, rubber gloves, micro-fiber clothes, toothbrush  (a great tool to clean those difficult to get to places), a squeegee, cleanser, abrasive cleaners, all purpose cleaners, and micro-fiber duster. You will no doubt think of other items that you like to clean with. Cleaning is so much easier and more likely to get done if you have everything at your fingertips. Ideally, I suggest keeping a cleaning caddy under the sink of every bathroom for easy access.
 
6. Keep some mesh laundry bags for delicates and sock sorters so you have a better chance of keeping those socks from disappearing as they like to do!
 
7. Store liquid laundry detergents and fabric softener on rimmed trays to prevent sticky and unattractive spills.
 
8. Use an all purpose non-chlorine bleach when necessary.
 
9. Use an over the door rack if space is an issue to hang dry items that cannot go in the dryer.
 
10. Keep a trash can in the laundry for easy disposal of used dryer sheets and lint.
 
Make it a fun space! Add some artwork, a pretty floor mat, bright coat of paint - anything that will help to make you actually want to spend the time you have to anyway in there!!

I hope that these tips will help you deal with your laundry chroes. If you have any questions, remember that I'm always available via email or phone to help!
 
Merri