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Housekeeping

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Original poster

Do you have a towel management system?

114 replies

PeaMcLean · 11/07/2008 17:39

Do you fold up the towels after they've been used and use them again?

And whilst hanging them up to dry, where do you put them? Let's say you've all had baths or showers and there are four towels? Do you really have enough space in the bathroom for them?

Do you keep to your own towels? Perhaps a colour coded system?

Do you share?

If reusing, how do you make sure towels get washed often enough? Do you literally just wait until they're smelly?!?

Just wondering how other people manage their towels.

OP posts:

overthehill · 14/07/2008 00:23

Thanks for your kind reassurance, Quattrocentro. I'm sure lots of people do think I'm very odd anyway, but there are enough things to worry about without adding towels to the list. We have a little saying in a frame that dh picked up some while ago with the words "An immaculate house is the sign of a wasted life" and we used to have a fridge magnet saying "Cleaning the house when you have kids is like shovelling snow when it's still snowing". Not original, I know, but they tend to encapsulate our philospophy to housework - and, by extension, to towels.

KerryMum · 14/07/2008 00:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

1dilemma · 14/07/2008 00:51

I love threads like this, they remind me that one day I'm going to grow up and get a proper house with lots of bathrooms and buy new sets of towels which I can hang on my heated towel rail (my parents had one of those I miss it ) and I can insist I have my own.

I've decided I'd like a boys bathroom and a girls one when I buy this house I will have towels that are a shade of red (can't remember the name-this house is a long way off) and I will hang over the heated towel rail. I will probably get an au-pair and get her to wash them every couple of days. sigh

Who was it who posted a picture of their linen cupboard? Jura was it you? Can I see it again please?

Reality is currently somewhat different.

I always wash towels after swimming

jura · 14/07/2008 10:49

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

zaphod · 14/07/2008 10:55

Saves you having to turn them inside out to put on the duvet.

minorityrules · 14/07/2008 11:03

Are we the only family that doesn't use towels but use bathrobes?

We have one each but also have colour coded bath towel and one for hair. The 2 bathrooms have 2 hand towels in each

All washed on a saturday

Quattrocento · 14/07/2008 11:06

I don't want to intrude upon your plans idlemma but I feel that a bathroom per person is better than one for girls and one for boys ...

claireybee · 14/07/2008 11:13

DH uses the bath sheet sized ones, I use the towel sized ones and the small ones on my hair. DC use baby towels. Hand towel and dh's towel hung on towel rail in front of bathroom radiator, my towels hung on bedroom radiator, dd's hung on her radiator and ds' is usully hung on the end of his cot. Change every week usually, hand towel more often. And I like crispy towels!

jura · 14/07/2008 11:16

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

robinpud · 14/07/2008 11:19

I put single duvet covers away inside out as it's then far easier to put them on. Your Nanny sounds very good Jura!

robinpud · 14/07/2008 11:22

Doesn't everyone's linen cupboard look like this?

zaphod · 14/07/2008 11:22

I find it easier to put your arms into the corners of the duvet cover, then grab the duvet by the two ends and let the duvet cover fall down over the duvet shaking to help it on it's way. THough I hesitate to disagree with anyone whose hot press is open to scrutiny.....

hifi · 14/07/2008 11:35

all colour coded, never use dh towel as he has permanent athletes foot.
change tue and fri. folded very precisely on towel rail to dry.
dd has a bathroom , her and dh stuff is kept in there, i have one all to myself.
i do occasionally use my towel to dry dd as its bigger than hers, she has just had worms so need to stop doing it.

MrsBadger · 14/07/2008 11:57

No, robinpud, they look like this...

branflake81 · 14/07/2008 15:13

People have a SYSTEM?!

We just have a few towels hanging about til they smell and everyone uses them.

What's wrong with sharing them? Am I missing something?

MrsTittleMouse · 14/07/2008 15:24

Wow! There's a whole world out there that has passed me by. Our towels are shared, we have no system and they're only washed once a week.
DD1 had new towels when she was born as all ours are of the "rough and ready exfoiliate whether you want it or not" variety. She uses ours now though. And I imagine that DD2 will get the same.

flowerybeanbag · 14/07/2008 15:32

We have several towels all the same. We change them when they look a bit grubby. We dry them on the radiator then hang them back on towel rail in bathroom.

Because they are all the same, DH and I occasionally pick up the wrong one when we step out of the shower . This doesn't bother either of us in the slightest.

chisigirl · 14/07/2008 15:55

I'd like to nominate this thread title for being one of the best ever in the history of MN! I love it.

Botbot · 14/07/2008 15:58

I don't like things that match, so every one of our towels is different. So no colour-coding here. Variety is the spice of life, etc.

But we don't share while the towels are in action - we each have our own until they are washed, which happens about once a week. Clean ones are kept in the airing cupboard and in-use ones are hung over the doors of a built-in cupboard in our bedroom which stays open for that very purpose.

Hand towel by the toilet washbasin is shared, since (as far as I know) only hands get wiped with it.

I too covet a house with more than one bathroom [dreams]

handmedownqueen · 14/07/2008 17:12

amazing!please share with me the secret to organizing your dcs and dh to follow such systems!
we are so low down on the pecking order of towel organization that i fear some sneaky ( holds head in shame) toothbrush sharing also goes on amongst the small people in our house.......
guess I have always taken the view that when they are old enough to care about not sharing towels etc they will organise themselves - 5dcs 11 -1 and rather boy heavy

HaventSleptForAYear · 14/07/2008 17:24

Mouth literally dropping to the floor (think this is the 1st time in 8 mths of Mn) at people washing towels after every use !

Had to read the whole thread to find a few people (or is that just the 2) who admit to washing when smelly.

No towel-sharing for us apart from the DS - but like Franny's DC baths are few and far between for them so not much of an issue.

(so we're dirty all round then

foxymolly · 14/07/2008 18:55

I wash towels after every use and was to find not everyone does

bluefox · 14/07/2008 19:13

Im also amazed at washing towels after every use. At that rate I would be washing 10-15 hand towels every day assuming we each visit the loo 5 times each daily.

itati · 14/07/2008 19:17

The kids towels are white and smaller. Have been known to dry all three kids with same towel, then wash.

Dh and I have our own bathroom and own towels. Not as posh as it sounds. he prefers the shower in the main bathroom and I use the en suite.

Hand towels in loos washed every 2-3 days or extra when baby uses towel
not soap and water to clean hands needed. Bath towels washed after 2-3 uses.

foxymolly · 14/07/2008 19:19

I don't wash hand towels after every use! I put a clean one on every day.

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