Here are some back to school laundry tips to keep in mind when sending your little (or big) ones back to school this year!
De-clutter
Depending on the age of your back-to-schooler, a size change may have taken place over the summer recess! Why waste time washing and folding pants that no longer fit? Before getting to washing and reorganizing, save yourself any potentially repetitious wastes of time by checking to make sure the garments spilling out of your closets actually fit. Donate anything that doesn’t fit, and the rest is business as usual!
Re-purchase
Along similar lines, when you’ve donated the clothing that no longer fits, be mindful of the way you replace them. There’s no time like the present to become a conscious consumer, and if you haven’t already, shifting from synthetic fibered clothing to natural fibers like cotton and hemp can help stop the microfiber pollution our oceans and waterways are currently being bombarded with. Try a Guppyfriend washing bag to catch any synthetic microfibers released by the remaining clothes that happen to contain them.
Organization is Key
Keeping things organized is the best way to have a smooth back to school routine that will carry through the semester. Start your kids on the path to laundry mastery by giving them two laundry baskets, one for whites and one for everything else. This will keep them lasting longer, make them easier to keep separated, and allow you to combine loads of laundry when you don’t have enough white laundry to justify running a load.
Another organization tip is knowing when you’re saving time and when you’re just wasting it. Pinning or rolling together socks requires extra minutes that could be spent soaking up the last moments of summer sun in peace. Regardless of whether they’re together, the same amount of socks are present in that underwear drawer. Skip the matching and trust that the black and white socks will find their partners with relative ease without this extra step.
Cutting down laundry time (and expenses)
Part of doing laundry is the waiting game. Although we’re sure you could occupy your time waiting for the dryer to finish with other important chores, what could you do with an extra 10 minutes not spent waiting for the dryer to signal its completion? Throw a Wool Dryer Ball into the dryer and you’ll not only cut down the overall drying time, but you’ll be saving energy and money on your next utility bill as well! Be sure to clean the lint trap before each load to keep the drying time even lower and prevent any potentially dangerous build ups.
Check the little things
Not so much a back to school tip, but one for all household members year round - check the pockets. Be it a piece of chewed gum, candy, a pen waiting to explode, or a tube of chapstick ready to spill over a weeks worth of laundry, checking pockets can save you hundreds of dollars in ruined clothing and hours of washing and rewashing the contents of said pockets out of the clothes you’re washing. You may even find a few dollars lurking in there!