To wonder why hankies haven't made a comeback?

[Eestar]

The world is so eco friendly and waste conscious now... plastic straws are out with the dinosaurs, light bulbs have completely changed since my childhood, and using plastic bags seems almost punishable by law... Some of my braver friends have even embraced cloth nappies.

With all of this in mind, using single-use paper tissues just to blow your nose seems such a waste, with an easy and obvious solution - so why are hankies not more of a 'thing' by now??

Me and dsis were looking round an antique centre yesterday.
There were some beautiful hand embroiderd ones for sale. We found one with an initial and flowers on I said she could use it to wrap a small gift for a friend whos name Bagan with the initial. She bought a few.
I bought 4 tea napkins which two seen together would make lovely tray cloths

I do tend to use paper tissues but hankies are useful for other reasons , wiping face , if your mascara runs , dabbing a stain .
When clearing my mum’s house I found 2 or 3 boxes of fabric hankies

Because they are discusting germ riddled things that should never been invented. My DH used to use them but I refused to wash them and told him how discusting they are and he now uses tissues. My MIL still uses them but she is 90.

This! I love mine too. Used them for years now, (I’m 45). A clean one each day, several if got a cold, own allocated pocket, if they’re really bad, you can rinse the snot off them first in the sink, but that’s rarely needed. You fold them so the snot, although typically just clear mucus, is inside. Wash your hands. Being too clinical and germ phobic is unhealthy and unhelpful. I rarely get a cold.

My parents go through tissues at such a rate, they’re not cheap, and it makes me very sad! Mum (77) can’t get passed a childhood memory of boiling up the hankies. Think that was days before washing machines though!

I still use hankies, usually just at home, they are so much softer than a tissue and stop your nose getting sore. We all sprinkle olbas oil on them when we’re blocked up. During the day I tend to use tissues just because they are less bulky and will fit in pockets or up sleeves better. I use them several times before binning. COVID definitely made them single use only. Every lidded (for tissues only) bin in my workplace has a ‘blow it, bin it’ label on it.

when i have a cold, each blow produces enough to ruin a tissue so i wouldnt get more than one single use out of a hanky anyway!

Lots of the younger family use them and older friends. Soaking in the sink first then on a hot wash with towels . I embroidered and gave lots away. I use paper , just what I’m used to . They sell them in home bargains in 3. I buy the blue or white men’s hankies and can’t do enough. The young love them .

Exactly this, the paper ones with their contents will biodegrade anyway. Disgusting to use hankies.

But after one blow they are dirty and you need many more throughout the day. Then you are carrying around your dirty snot rags all day.

Of course you can clean them but really why would you want a bunch of snotty rags being soaked in your kitchen sink

Why would you ever soak handkerchiefs in your kitchen sink? Or nappies? Or sanitary pads?

You added 'kitchen' in there yourself, the pp you're quoting didn't say that.

Sinks are in kitchens, basins are in bathrooms

I call them both a sink

So do I.

Something I have never done. Sinks to me mean kitchen. Metal sinks, butlers sink, basins are in bathrooms.

Language I grew up with had a word for sink that meant the one found in the kitchen and a different word for the “sink” or wash basin found in the bathroom

I’d certainly understand what you meant if you referred to a wash basin (that it was in a bathroom), but I’d still refer to it as a sink myself.
Language is odd.

What about utility room sinks?

We use them, we have cotton M&S hankies in a nice box in the living room. We also have tissues for those who prefer them, mainly my DD. We've saved so much waste, and I think this pack of 10 hankies has lasted about 6 years so far, with 6 of them still in use

*hawking

Im back with more hanky questions for DS. We looked at cotton ones in Tesco, but he didn't think they were very soft. Do they get softer once they've been washed? Would muslin be softer?

He has lots of sensory issues going on so softness is important.

I think when you actually have a cold or sinus infection then blowing your nose and flushing it down the loo and washing your hands gets rid of it faster than hanging on to the germs in something reusable. But for general use, a cotton handkerchief is fine. DH has them.

Bogey cloth 🤢

Yes, we've found they've got softer, and especially nice if I tumble dry them. We've got M&S cotton ones