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Original poster

I dry my laundry in my garden and my neighbour is really unhappy about it

703 replies

WashingWoes · 20/06/2025 13:33

I really don’t think I’m in the wrong here but keen for opinions which I will take onboard if I come off as unreasonable.
I live in an end-terrace house. Neighbour is attached to me. I peg my washing out to dry on good days. We are a family of four, lots of laundry and I much prefer to peg out than use the (expensive and environmentally unfriendly) drier. My neighbour HATES me for drying my laundry in my garden. Relentless comments about how she can’t enjoy looking at her garden from her bedroom window because she can see my (clean) laundry. About how it’s spoiling her enjoyment of her garden. Why can’t I just use the drier, for everyone’s benefit (not mine, see: bills; climate change…). It’s bad manners to dry ‘smalls’ outside - her husband might see my ‘undergarments’ … honestly it’s relentless. I recently received a birthday card from them (very kind, and appreciated) which said ‘Happy Birthday WashingWoes, we really love seeing your washing on the line, have a lovely birthday’. Please reassure me that I’m normal and neighbours are barmy?

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BlueandPinkSwan · 13/11/2025 17:26

She'd hate my skimpy lacey undies then, but those gussets need a good airing don't they?😆
She's probably worried her h is having a furtive wank when he sees your smalls hanging on the line.
Just ignore her, she can take it up with the council if it bothers her that much, and when they finish laughing.....

Iwantmyoldnameback · 13/11/2025 17:22

mumzof4x · 12/11/2025 23:26

Oh my I haven’t read all of this but was a bit taken aback that some posts suggests people don’t actually like seeing washing on the line outside.
I absolutely LOVE seeing a long line of white washing blowing in the wind. Oh and the smell of line dried fresh sheets and towels !

I was so proud of my white nappies but then I'm old, (post war though).

Slightyamusedandsilly · 12/11/2025 23:29

twilightcafe · 20/06/2025 13:34

Your neighbour is nuts.

This.

You need to up your game by teasing her about it. As you're taking your laundry out, call out 'Just hanging out my smalls Brenda!'

Send her a Christmas card with something clothing-y on it (wise men in their tea towels) and write 'I've offered to do the washing for them since I've got so much washing line space!'

She won't take the hint (thick) but you'll enjoy it.

mumzof4x · 12/11/2025 23:26

Oh my I haven’t read all of this but was a bit taken aback that some posts suggests people don’t actually like seeing washing on the line outside.
I absolutely LOVE seeing a long line of white washing blowing in the wind. Oh and the smell of line dried fresh sheets and towels !

Iwantmyoldnameback · 03/11/2025 10:35

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

Why on earth did you buy the smallest model if you use it all the time? I have the bigger one and a tumble dryer and I still peg out my wash whenever there's a chance of it drying.

bigboykitty · 03/11/2025 10:32

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

America - destroying the planet as fast as humanly possible and also bragging about it! Awful

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 03/11/2025 10:26

She’s bonkers, and prudish-bonkers, which is even worse.

Widowed FiL, who’d just moved to a smaller house, was told by two female neighbours that it was ‘not allowed’ to hang washing in his garden, and that he needed to put net curtains in his front windows, because ‘it wasn’t nice’ without them.

Pleased to say he ignored such rubbish.

My DPs used occasionally to talk of a ‘net curtain mentality’, which IMO just about sums up these two, and OP’s neighbour.

Onlyhereforthebatshitneighbours · 03/11/2025 10:19

...and the heated airers are oh-so-affordable!

Orangeandpurpletulips · 03/11/2025 10:10

I don't know what was weirder, that or the not even factually correct appeal to American cultural mores.

vodkaredbullgirl · 03/11/2025 09:56

Petitchat · 01/11/2025 21:29

"wartime Britain" 🤣
Just because there's some washing on the line......🤣

Show quote history

I know it's crazy 😂

Petitchat · 01/11/2025 21:29

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

"wartime Britain" 🤣
Just because there's some washing on the line......🤣

Petitchat · 01/11/2025 21:23

Sunnydayj · 01/11/2025 17:12

My sheets are on the line on the Google Earth view of our street!🤣

That's funny 😁

SpanThatWorld · 01/11/2025 19:08

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

If next door's laundry is so offensive, either put up a 2m fence or put a paper bag over your head.

It is entirely legal to hang out your laundry in the USA unless you have chosen to live on an estate with a homeowners' association.

Timeforabitofpeace · 01/11/2025 19:00

I’m over 60, and I’ve never thought about whether I should hang out washing or not. Sometimes I do.

TreeCake · 01/11/2025 18:37

PondUnderTrees · 01/11/2025 13:38

What a depressing post. Economically disempowered women with a stultifying and publicly-judged cleaning schedule? Fuck that. I’ll take my PhD and salary, and being responsible for my own laundry.

Show quote history

Aww I like it, such a sense of community. I work full time, the kids are in wrap around care and I love my job. But even so, a greater feeling of community would be lovely. I barely, know my neighbours.

HoldmecloseTonyDanza · 01/11/2025 18:14

Nat6999 · 01/11/2025 03:42

When I was young we lived in a 4 houses to a yard terraced house, everyone hung their washing out & if it started raining someone would always fetch everyone's washing in, this was before everyone got tumble dryers & mothers were expected to be out at work even with small children. There was no snobbery, my brother & I were the only children in our yard & spoiled rotten by our adopted aunties & uncles. You always knew what day of the week it was by what the women were doing, Monday was washday, Tuesday was upstairs cleaning day, Wednesday was downstairs, Thursday was baking day, Friday was shopping at the greengrocers & washing the outside paintwork & scrubbing the back & front step, if any woman didn't scrub her step on a Friday it meant one of two things, either there was a family crisis or a death in the family, everyone noticed & the word would go round the terrace & one of the neighbours would do it for them. People looked out for each other, not being nosy but cared.

@nat6999 That sounds like a lovely childhood 😍

Sunnydayj · 01/11/2025 17:12

My sheets are on the line on the Google Earth view of our street!🤣

mbosnz · 01/11/2025 16:44

I don't care what other people do in their back yard, so long as it isn't illegal or aggressively antisocial, and I sure as hell don't care what they think about what I do in mine. Washing is a fact of life. Wet washing needs to get dry. A dry day and a good wind, with washing on the line, is a match made in heaven!

Onlyhereforthebatshitneighbours · 01/11/2025 16:03

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

Generally speaking, one shouldn't spend time gazing into neighbours' gardens. Whether you choose to hang washing out in your own is up to you, but if you don't like looking at then keep your gaze to your own garden.

Booksandcheese · 01/11/2025 15:28

Gettingbysomehow · 01/11/2025 13:41

I don't like seeing washing on the line, it looks awful. Nobody does it in my street. We don't live in wartime Britain any more. I dry mine in the house on one of these, they are dry in a couple of hours.:

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/53211/drysoon-heated-drying-pod-airer?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20891890221&gclid=Cj0KCQjw35bIBhDqARIsAGjd-cbsWRDkSObQKaZZbac3VCC2ez6taxw9AIYLI_5pE-SU5aEMDP3QHBoaAs6tEALw_wcB

In a lot of places you are not allowed to dry washing outside. Certainly not in the USA.

12 items?? I can get far more on the line thanks. And, it's free. You'd hate our street. We all hang our washing out on lines. We have lovely neighbours too and have jumped over fences to get in washing thats out when it starts to rain as have they with ours!
No one cares what it looks like.

purple590 · 01/11/2025 13:55

Ridiculous woman, how much time is she actually spending gazing out of her bedroom window?

As for the passive aggressive birthday card you should have ripped it up and put it back through her door.

suburburban · 01/11/2025 13:52

Mine’s out today. Hate having to dry inside. Smells better too

PondUnderTrees · 01/11/2025 13:38

Nat6999 · 01/11/2025 03:42

When I was young we lived in a 4 houses to a yard terraced house, everyone hung their washing out & if it started raining someone would always fetch everyone's washing in, this was before everyone got tumble dryers & mothers were expected to be out at work even with small children. There was no snobbery, my brother & I were the only children in our yard & spoiled rotten by our adopted aunties & uncles. You always knew what day of the week it was by what the women were doing, Monday was washday, Tuesday was upstairs cleaning day, Wednesday was downstairs, Thursday was baking day, Friday was shopping at the greengrocers & washing the outside paintwork & scrubbing the back & front step, if any woman didn't scrub her step on a Friday it meant one of two things, either there was a family crisis or a death in the family, everyone noticed & the word would go round the terrace & one of the neighbours would do it for them. People looked out for each other, not being nosy but cared.

What a depressing post. Economically disempowered women with a stultifying and publicly-judged cleaning schedule? Fuck that. I’ll take my PhD and salary, and being responsible for my own laundry.

Wingingit73 · 01/11/2025 13:26

But a load of thongs and all sorts and hang them out like bunting.
What a strange view of life they have. Love a washing line