Photography: The Palm Co | Styling: Sarah Yarrow
When you’re busy with family, friends, work and just life in general, it’s natural for household chores to build up, which is totally okay, until you reach a point of overwhelm. Determined to get back on top of things? Then organising the laundry is the best place to start. If you conquer the laundry, you conquer the whole house. Think about it: the laundry isn’t just where the washing gets done, it’s also where all the cleaning supplies and equipment like vacuum cleaners and mop buckets are stored, so if the room is in order and functioning efficiently, the whole house will follow suit.
But where to start? Take a step back and scan the room. What are the main pinch points? Overflowing washing hamper. Check. Basket of clean clothes waiting to be ironed. Check. A week’s worth of blazers due for the dry cleaners hanging precariously from a hook. Check. Cleaning supplies cluttering the bench top and making the whole room look untidy. Check, check, check.
Here are 5 steps you can take to get your laundry in order and ensure it stays in order so you can breeze through wash day, saving time and energy in the process.
1. Wash boosters
And no, we’re not talking about stain removers! We’re talking about investing in the right equipment to boost the overall efficiency of your laundry room, because at the end of the day, the number one cause of a chaotic laundry is clothing. And if you haven’t got the right appliances to get soiled clothing in and clean clothing out in good time, then it’s important to tackle this problem first. Here are a few ways you can do this:
Handy helpers
There’s no recent Australian data on how long it takes to do the laundry, but a 1992 survey by the Australian Bureau of Statistics found women spent about four hours a week on laundry, ironing and clothes care. Reclaim precious time by taking the manual labour out of tedious laundry tasks, like ironing and trips to the dry cleaner with an LG Styler™. This multi-purpose appliance harnesses the power of steam to gently dry clothing, smooth out wrinkles, freshen up lightly worn garments and eliminate germs and odours.
2. Create a folding station
Once the machines have done their thing, it’s time to wrap up the job – or should we say, fold up the job? Creating a beautiful, functional folding station will make folding and storing laundry easier and distract from the monotony of the task. This means clearing work surfaces of clutter and perhaps even placing a simple timber phone stand on the counter so you can watch your favourite TV show or listen to a podcast as you fold. A simple artwork can also do wonders to make a utilitarian space like a laundry feel inviting.
3. Handsome hampers
Basic laundry accessories tend to be all function and no style which, cumulatively, can really bring down the look and feel of the room. Invest in hampers that look great and do a fantastic job of keeping washing hidden until you’re ready to deal with it. Opt for a woven hamper with a lid, or, if your laundry lacks bench space, look for a dual hamper style with a bamboo frame you can use as a folding station. If you’re a ‘do the laundry once a week’ household, then you may need several large hampers to prevent the inevitable mid-week hamper overflow.
4. Open and shut case
The laundry is one room that can really benefit from a combination of open and closed shelving. Open shelving is great for keeping items like washing detergent, stain remover and softener on hand without cumbersome cupboard doors. Save closed cabinets for unsightly items like cleaning supplies, pet accessories, spare towels and sporting gear. Clothing that is ‘not quite dirty yet not quite clean’ can be placed in the LG Styler™ to steam so they’re fresh and ready to wear again (without adding yet another item to the washing pile).
5. Stylish storage
The final stage of organising a laundry is to store like with like. Empty out the cabinets and group all of the cleaning products together, all of the spare linen together, all of the pet accessories together, and so on. Place items in tubs or baskets (cleaning supplies are best kept in a caddy with a handle so you can easily take it from room to room as required) and label each container clearly so you know exactly where everything is. Consider investing in refillable laundry detergent containers, so you can keep them proudly on display and within reach next to your washing machine.
Doing the washing isn’t may not be the most exciting task, but you can definitely make the process bearable and (dare we say it) even enjoyable by organising your laundry room, introducing stylish touches and investing in appliances that are tailored to the needs of your family. After all, your time is valuable and you should be spending less on laundry and more on things you really love.
