... to wonder what possessed DH to top up a dark load with my white underwear?

[Wibblypiglikesbananas]

Exactly that really, DH decides to wash his gym kit, all dark colours, and then has a rummage for stuff to make up a load to go in. We have a three basket washing sorter, divided into whites/colours/darks and he chooses the whites to make up a full load. Why oh why? The man is Oxbridge educated, generally not an idiot, but wouldn't you think something, somewhere along the line, would have told him this was a bad idea?

Ah well, I'm going to use his credit card and replace everything that he's just ruined. Just like last time - no, dear reader, this isn't the first time this kind of thing has happened. Under the vague guise of being 'helpful', the last washing incident involved a number of hand wash only Calvin Klein bras being given a thorough beating by our top loading, clothes destroying American washer (I'm not in the UK).

The sheer waste makes me so angry though - as well as knowing it's me who has to source a replacement for one of DD's favourite t-shirts that is also now a rather odd colour...

Mine often don't look grey until I put them next to something properly white and then the difference is very very clear indeed.

Hang on, I'll nip upstairs and photo my white bra and my now grey bra and show you.

Yes things look white until they are put with something white and then they look grey.
Sorting washes does not mean more washes, I don't put on a wash til I have I full one. I have a three way sorting basket so with six of us I might have one wash every second day and all my whites are still white.

ok, here's the first one

The one and only time I had whites coming out grey was when I accidentally chose the 90 degree wash. If you wash things at 30 degrees nothing goes grey. I do not separate anything either, unless it's new and the first time it's washed, and my whites are still white!

YANBU. My husband put a load of white towels, and added in a RED cashmere cardigan, and handed it to our new cleaner, who "was just doing as she was told" and jammed the lot in and put it on boil.
So we had pink murky towels and my cardigan turned to felt and was literally a quarter of its original size.
I sacked her and lectured him. He's very clever usually.

and the second one

both taken on the same little table in my bedroom, one after the other

Gah, ditto - DH incapable of understanding laundry, and then I feel like a Nag for saying yet again please don't put the whites in with the coloureds, or that you can't put a load of wet towels straight into the tumble drier, all it does is leave them warm and wet. Whereas if you have them over night, all they need is 20 minutes to become beautifully fluffy.

I am a bit obsessive about 'getting my whites right' separate mostly but sometimes add colours that I know wont run, not often as even though stuff does not run it can make them a bit dingy if done too often. I do use ACE laundry bleach a lot when its a pure white wash, sometimes a splash of kitchen bleach and mostly my whites are right

Hang them overnight, not have!

In fact, I have been thinking for some time of writing instructions to go next to the machine, but I suspect he would still get it wrong. And yet, he runs a successful company and can make hollandaise sauce I am convinced it's just a ruse to get me to do it all myself.

I dont separate but I wash in cold water so no runs. Everything fades eventually.

And also, this morning I found the Tetley teabags in with the Earl Grey!

LTB.

I generally have two loads; towels and everything else. I sometimes add really grotty or brand new colour

"Doing ten washes for different colours is a fucking insane waste of water and electric. You must have money to burn."

Erm, no iffy. I only ever use my washing machine when I have a full load, so I use exactly the same amount of water and electricity as I would if I put everything in together. Not so fucking insane.

I generally separate colours and whites but if I only have a couple of white things that need washing I will chuck them in with the colours. Never had a problem with anything being ruined.

I know a friend who never, ever separates colours and whites and has had no problems either.

My Dh bought some new tea towels yesterday, some in the pack were red, some were white. He very helpfully decided to wash them last night without telling me. All the white ones are now pink...

We barely have enough white things to separate, but I do separate darks and towels, but even then we always put a full load on to wash

I'm I the only one who separates into light (including whites) & dark??

Clothes in our house need separating due to different tempratures they get washed at.

I wouldn't dream of putting DS1s heavily soiled in oil and goodness know what heavy duty work pants in with my delicate Elle McPherson knickers and bra or my light weight floral summer dress.
One needs a 60 degree wash to even start getting clean. If the delicates went in that wash they would be fit for dusters, nothing else.

Can I be smug at this point and say that my DH would never do such a thing

He's a brilliant wash separator. We have whites, grey/mid colours, darks here (towels separate and washed light/dark towels).

Mine too gobbin. Even the teenage lads separate when the sort out the washing.

I guess when they are spending a fortune on their designer t shirts they don't want then to look like rags because they put them on a too hot a wash.

Wouldn't happen in this house. DH doesn't even know where the washing machine is (and it can stay that way).

My apologies Mintyy, but you did make it sound as though you'd done ten different washes this very day:

^I have done a load of cotton shirts and blouses today, all pastel colours.

I have at least 10 different wash loads.^

To me, that read that, in order to wash all these pastel blouses, you'd run ten separate washes. Which would be fucking insane had that been the case.

Havant and how often is this pristine bra worn? If you've had it years and wear it regularly I'd say it's minging just because of that

straps stretch, you might want to check where those knockers are

Just seen your question.

I have bras that are for particular dresses eg strapless, very low band cleavage one, drop back one and some that are just beautiful. I couldn't afford to replace them every few months.

I have to sit on my hands when I visit one of my DC and see everything being thrown into the washer together - and then all the whites coming out the same uniform shade of grey.
I separate into darks, bright colours and lights - which include towels which have been washed a couple of times already (just to make sure!) and tea towels - and my 8 year-old Sloggi knickers are still dazzling white