AIBU to be amazed my friend does all her laundry in one day?

[Laundryqueen1]

I called over to a friend yesterday evening with my dc. She was just coming down the stairs with an empty laundry basket when she answered the door.
she took a few minutes to answer the door so as she opened the door, she apologised and said she was putting away the laundry.
I jokingly said oh no bother I must put mine away, It’s been sitting there all week I need to clear the basket for the next lot.
she then proceeded to tell me she does ALL her laundry on a Saturday- washes, dries, irons and puts away! IN ONE DAY! I nearly fell to the floor. She said she had two and a half loads.
I was even more baffled because she couldn’t have us round until 7ish because she had a crazy busy day. Her dd had training, her ds had a friend over for a playdate, her dd then had an appointment in the afternoon. Then she had to collect her dh from the train station. My mind is blown! She fits her laundry in between doing all of this…and she irons! 😅 where am I going wrong?

Surprised you haven’t yet shoe horned in a photo of your kitchen yet @Kitchenbattle ! See as you manage to so often 😂

Do I really though? I don’t think I’ve posted it for ages, and never on random unrelated posts tbf…I don’t see your comment as funny tbh.

With cleanliness, never is the phrase "don't let perfection be the enemy of good" more true. I'm very good with dishcloths, food hygiene, wiping surfaces, keeping organised and reasonably clean food storage, and am particularly careful around meat and fish. Washing bed linen, clothes and towels? Not so much. They get washed when they need it. Yes I am on the slovenly side about it. Washing myself? Having the odd day without showering seems to best suit my skin. On the whole people are a bit too clean IMO and use a lot of chemicals that probably aren't doing us much good.

I just go "Oh dear that probably needs washing" and then wash it

That's my MI too.

MO

You only change your towels and bedding once a month?

I do one towel wash a week.

3 bath towels, a bath mat, about 4 bathroom hand towels.

7kg machine, that's a full load (without over filling)

No need to take a tone. Exercising is a better use of time than laundry in most circumstances (although I would always frame it as time for myself instead of keeping well for the sake of my family). What I am saying is: own it. Don’t bother arguing that washing bed sheets is unnecessary. Just admit that you don’t do it because you don’t want to!
For example, I don’t bake. I can’t be arsed and don’t want to. So there are no home baked goods here. I don’t argue that shop bought is better. It’s not. We eat shop bought biscuits because I don’t want to bake. Let’s not allow social conditioning to force us to justify ourselves. Some of us can’t be bothered to do endless laundry and don’t mind the kids a little bit on the dirty side. Others of us can’t be bothered to cook from scratch so feed the kids mostly processed food. It’s fine. Make your choices and hold your hands up for not having sky high standards.

I purchased a large capacity washing machine so I could do this. I don’t have a drier though so sometimes in winter I have to spread it out over the week. Definitely don’t iron much.

We don't go in for a lot of laundry here. We wash ourselves regularly.
We all have clean underwear, socks and tops daily. other things get washed less frequently. And bedding is washed fortnightly as we all shower/bath before bed so, bedding really doesn't get that dirty.

None of us smell or have got infections from wearing dirty items.

My standards are "clean and hygienic" and not "spotless at all times".
If you want to wash lots, then good for you, but don't then complain how long it takes because you have made a choice to do so.

If you have a family of 4 - that’s 28 pairs of pants and 28 pairs of socks per week, assuming you change every day. Probably 2 x night things each if you wear them. 2-3 changes of uniform per child per week, maybe more.
4 x towels a week. 2 x PE kits per week at a minimum, if your child does any kind of sport outside this it will be more. Any gym or exercise clothes for adults in the house. That’s without washing any other clothes or bedsheets or bath mats etc.

Haha! I'm finding it hilarious how triggered I am by this thread*. This is the sort of thing DH (who never does the laundry) says to me. As if I'm deliberately making my life harder for no reason.

But to answer your question, yeah, basically. DH's cycling and running gear is a sweaty, muddy, shitshow. The teen's netball stuff is always a bit niffy after one use. I suppose I could not wash the netball skirt but when I'm washing everything else anyway what's one extra small skirt? It feels a bit minging not to wash the karate gi after an hour of rolling around on the mats where teenager's sweaty bare feet have been treading. Also, sensei gets a bit arsey if the gi isn't sparkling white. And football kit speaks for itself!

Honestly, there. is. so. much. laundry. all. the. time. I don't need solutions or challenges. I think I just really need the validation of someone agreeing with me that yes, yes there is.

*Not at all meant in a snarky way.

No need to bring your husband into it!

To the poster who said her washing takes 1.5 hours minimum. Does your machine not have a faster wash? Unless it’s very dirty, my washing is nearly always done on a 28 minute cycle, ( machine also has 14 minute cycle) and is perfectly clean.

Genuine question though - where would you store the dusted off but still muddy cycling gloves?

Because DH has all his cycling gear in his wardrobe - we don't have a garage or anything like that. So if they weren't washed and put away, they'd just be lying around looking minging until he next used them again.

This thread is making me realise that so much of my laundry headache could actually be solved by having more space and more storage! Sadly not really an option at the moment. Maybe part of the reason I'm washing clothes all the time is just to get them out of the fucking way and back in the drawers?!

I've never had (or needed) a running belt, but I can't imagine ut getting more than the odd wash.

cycling gloves got washed occasionally with cycling shorts & tops, more for the sweat than mud, mud would just dry & be beaten (more than 'dusted'!😂) off.

swimwear - togs & towels straight into the wash. The rate kids grow damage to fabric wasn't an issue. If it's just me, it depends. Swimming baths, straight into the machine, beach hand wash togs, towel
on the line. Me & (now ex) DH kayaking, everything straight into the machine.

uniforms (like beavers, guides etc) would just get washed in an appropriate colours wash. No they didn't 'need' it everytime, but I don't like worn clothes just hanging around for a week & liked them to be washed & ironed for the next 'session'

one thing this thread has made me realise is just how much I miss my old life 😢. Kids grow too fast, DH's you had such a great life with become Ex's, a sporty able life can become a disabled limited one (literally) overnight 😢

I don’t know about your machine but on mine those are the freshen up cycles. I’d only use them on barely worn clothes and a half empty drum definitely not my full load including towels.

I use a claimed 59 minute cycle I’d never is though because I’ve waited when it says 16 minutes left and come back after 10 and might still say 13 minutes to go 😅

Is that not really expensive in terms of energy and water though? I always use the eco setting and it has saved me loads - I do 2 loads a day so every penny counts!

I know its so much but swimming alone is 1 load, school t shirt whites are 1, bedding 3 loads, towels 1 and the rest is clothes as the kids are very outdoor types plus have gym kits including mine.

Well humour me then & post one. I love seeing other people's kitchens. My current one is bloody tiny & I can't settle on how I'm going to re-do it (well now I'm disabled 'how it's going to BE re-done because I can no longer do it myself 😥)

the comment wasn't funny, it was just rude.

I presumed it would mean less energy and water!

But it costs more and uses more water, I'm happy for a longer wash.id get a log jam if the washing took a fraction of time of the drying

Yes, yes there is, if you don't like clothes festering or the kids not going to activities clean! 🌷

other people aren't so bothered, that's up to them 🌷

I do between 12 - 15 loads a week! For 5 of us.

I think Id have 3 loads a week if it was just me living here.

I really want to know what she washes and for how many people (Im assuming she doesn't separate into different colours/types like I do).

Mine has a 30 minute wash, but I always use the cycle where it weighs the load & takes into account what heat (40°) & spin (1200 if drying indoors/800 line drying) you've chosen and then determines how long it needs. Usually about 1hr 40 mins.

I don't really mind how long it wants to take to do what it considers a good job, it's doing it. Not me!

it's a balance of time & agitation. Faster washes are more agitation & harder in the clothes, 'Eco' washes are longer & slower, more soaking lower agitation.

each make of machine varies & people need to check their specific machine if they're trying to save money, because it's not always the wash you'd think it would be. But if they're happy with the extra expense & extra cost & feel the wash is good enough then 💁🏻‍♀️