Can't cope with washing clothing

[MonsteraMother]

I'm relatively competent in most areas of life except this one. I cannot fucking get it together to be on top of the washing. I sometimes buy new socks just because I can't face the bloody sock mountain and pairing them all up. I own over 60 pairs of knickers as I only seem to have the time and space in my life to catch up with washing during school holidays.

For context, we have a 4 bed house with a washing machine, a tumble dryer and outside washing line but no utility room - just a small office/box room which is always stuffed to the max with the wash baskets and the sock basket. We also have a cleaner once a week but she doesn't do anything to do with washing.

My excuse is that I work incredibly long hours (7am to 7pm) and have 2 young DC. DH does lots to help too with cooking, dishwasher, all school runs but he is also crap at washing. We have 4 wash baskets and they are all full of washing in various states.

AIBU to ask for your help? Surely at my 'close to menopause age' I should be able to get a grip on this one area of life.

Please give me your tips...

I used to be like this . I got everyone a pop up dirty basket for their room which holds a load. I wash it dry it and dump it in their rooms for them to put away . And I never iron ever

Re socks. We threw out all our unmatched socks and bought about 30 pairs of plain black socks. Me and my husband both wear them. There’s no stress about pairing them as they’re all identical.

If you have a cleaner once a week can't you pay her a bit extra to put the washing in?

I read this in the night and felt really sorry for you. Working conditions for headteachers are so rough. 💐

All I can suggest is do 1 load a day every day. Use the timer delay so it washes while you are out of the house and dry it when you get back.

Don't let it build up and that should work.

Get these for socks - AND USE THEM. Every time they're taken off. They save hours and go in the washing machine. There are other types
smile.amazon.co.uk/Cooplay-Stockings-Cleaning-Organization-Multicolor/dp/B011VSL21A/ref=sr_1_16?crid=1GT7GWQZDUKWI&keywords=sock+pairers&qid=1667326856&qu=eyJxc2MiOiI0LjA3IiwicXNhIjoiMy40MCIsInFzcCI6IjIuNDIifQ%3D%3D&sprefix=sock+pairer%2Caps%2C80&sr=8-16

Tumble dryer I meant to say

I second the idea of having all the same colour socks. I just have black ankle and sports socks and it's so much easier!!

When you buy socks get each person one colour of socks, six pairs or so, then easier to pair and put away.

Sorry, we all had the same idea at once! My children are now adult, but this got me through 20+ years of washing socks for a family of six.

Washing is the bane of my life, I hate it! I wash through the week usually a load every other day but then I’ll make myself spend an hour at the weekend sorting into piles to hand back to the right person. As much as I hate doing the job the clutter it creates just causes me stress too! The older my children get the more I deligate some of the tasks to them.

I put a load on every morning (lights one day darks the next) as soon as I get up, then it’s ready to hang before starting work. Take precious days off airer in morning, sort into pile for each person and put away / in their room. Odd socks in box go through weekly. I iron the bear minimum - school shirts and odd t-shirt only

Get rid of most of your clothes. Nobody needs 60 pairs of pants.

Then you'll have so much less to wash, it's far easier to stay on top of - you'll be reminded more easily and not able to let mountains grow.

Just to go against the masses as I love to often...it's absolutely reasonable and understandable to stop and think to yourself, hey I as a mum and wife work ridiculous long hours and look after kids and have to deal with all this guff on top of all the other things conditioned into me. Lob the bloody socks and get new ones. 😁I can't be doing with all the domestic drudgery either.

If you are a size 10 again, would you really want to wear the old stuff from before you had a baby, or get something new (or new to you) that suits your new shape and current fashion? Be ruthless!

Sorry if it’s already been said but I wash per person. There’s much less sorting to be done then. We each have our own little foldable washing basket and when I put a wash on I just wash from whichever is fullest.

I put a wash on in the evening and hang on the airer to dry. If it’s dry enough out I hang it out in the morning before leaving the house or if it isn’t raining over night I’ll hang it before bed to save time in the morning. I’m trying to cut down so there are a few days with no washing, but if I didn’t do it most days we wouldn’t have enough clean clothes. The kids PE and sports club kits need washing and drying over night usually as they often need them several days in a row.

Your laundry is not the problem , it's working 60 hours a week with 2 DC.

One assumes if you have a cleaner for a 4 bed house then you can afford to extend her hours by a min 30 minutes. 15 mins which is ridiculous to load a machine and 15 mins to take out. The going rate in London appears at the most to be £15 an hour so if you are outside of London then even cheaper - can't understand why you haven't thought about doing that?

Can I suggest getting the cleaner involved. Ours does all the ironing which is a chore I hate. See if she'll come an extra hour until you are on top of it. Fill the machine at night with things that need ironing but don't put it on till the morning that the cleaner comes so she can put it in the tumble drier and iron after she has cleaned. And try and do a couple of extra washes at the weekend but leave the ironing for the cleaner and you will get on top of it. There's nothing better than coming home to a clean house and a pile of iron clothes.

Use a laundry service and ask your cleaner to put it away if you do not have the time to do so. You can work your way through the spare room heap by wearing it, sending it to laundry when dirty and then having it put away.

Has your washing machine got a delay function? I load my machine at night and set it so it's done when I get up or set it in the morning for when I get home, then I just bung it in the tumble dryer. There's only 3 of us living here now but there always seems to be washing so I do at least one load most days.

we all have areas in life we struggle so pls dont beat yourself up, I put all underwear in the tumble dryer and then chuck it in a laundry basket and everyone digs through to get what they want,,life is too short to pair socks,if i am hanging clothes outside I put them straight onto hangers then hang the hangers on the line,then I just put them away in the wardrobes and iron as necessary,I feel your pain

simplify it

dh and I (and dd but shes mostly left home just visits a lot) dont get dirty or smelly. Therefore I was everything on a quick wash. 28 mins. thats it
then as its winter now I am doing an extra spin because I dry inside on an airer - but if you are happy to tumble you can get SO much done

folding laudry/pairing socks is NOT a separate job - unload, pair and fold into the 4 piles. dump in doorways

mix colours and darks and do low temps.

get rid of all those socks and knickers and try it

I think sometimes having more clothes than you need is detrimental - so maybe have a clear out and only keep what you need/wear.
I’ve recently got a heated airer which is helping lots and just being motivated to iron /put away immediately, rather than leave stuff piled up or sat in baskets.

Procrastination is killer when it comes to laundry, as daunting as it sometimes feels, it’s best to get through it as quick as you can.

It takes practice if you’ve struggled before. I did for a long time… Feels good to get a proper handle on it though, hope you get there.

Our dining room is a laundry room! We have a 4 bed, 3 adults (adult son) and a 2.5 year old who is potty training! Adult son does his own washing but I’m on load 7 since Sunday ! All piled on the dining room table currently ! God knows when I’m gonna find the time to put it all away. I do work long hours but from home! Now doing toddler bedtime the. Food then will be bedtime for me so just no time!