How do you SORT your laundry?

[TLC1994]

I've seen lots of other posts about how to wash your laundry, but I was just wondering what system you have for sorting your dirty laundry. We used to use one big basket for everything, but that's out of the question now since there's just way too much laundry and the basket would forever be overflowing.

So, a while back I purchased at Target a box of those painted metal mesh storage cubes (each about 12 x 12) that can be rearranged into different configurations. Hope you can picture it. It could be used anywhere - in the garage, for toys, etc. One of the reasons I like them is that they're all open so the dirty clothes can breathe, just in case they have to sit for a while. Plus you can easily see how much laundry there is to do (whether you have a full load or not.)

Anyway, we have 6 different laundry categories (whites, darks, towels, baby, lights, drycleaning/handwash). Is that way over the top? For some reason my husband just cannot put his clothes in any of the cubicles. They're even labeled for him!!! His clothes always end up on the floor right in front of it! AHHHHHH!

Since this drives me absolutely crazy and he gets annoyed if I bring the subject up, should I simplify my system? Maybe just 3 bins - lights, darks, towels. I could also put a hamper in the kid's room.

What does everyone else do? I'd love to get some suggestions. Thanks!

[LD92599]

We use one large hamper and just recently switched over to the pop up hampers (love those since our bedrooms are on the 2nd floor and the washer/dryer are in the basement). We use a black one for dirty clothes and a white one for clean laundry. I've also started using another one for DSs stuffed animals!!

Laura
mom to William
3.5.2003

http://homepage.mac.com/ld14m

http://lilypie.com/baby2/030305/0/7/0/-5/.png[/url]

[divabell]

I don't sort into loads until the laundry is at the washer. We have a basket in our room and one in DS's room. His is smaller so I stack them to take downstairs, or I can just dump his stuff into our basket. Then I have another basket downstairs to hold anything that doesn't get washed right then, and the other stuff either goes right into the washer or into sorted piles on the floor. Maybe not the most organized system, but it works for us. :)

I only do three categories of laundry: whites, darks, lights. I use unscented detergent for all of it so just throw DS's stuff in with the rest.

[mamahill]

Lori's routine is pretty much mine, as well. But I'll even combine darks and lights if I don't have a full load. I wash both lights and darks in cold water, anyway. Whites are separate, and I try to do a towel load on its own because the drying time is more. But I try to get the laundry through the machines as quickly as possible. We've got a basket for clothes in our room and a hamper in Ainsleigh's closet.

[Momof3Labs]

Two baskets in my closet: whites/lights (I don't wash whites on hot) and darks. Colin's clothes go in with mine. Towels go straight down to the laundry area, and I do a load when the pile is big enough (we don't put out clean towels every day). DH does his own laundry - I don't mind doing it but can't deal with it all being dumped on me once every week or two (don't ask me where he hides it all), so he does his own.

[chlobo]

I don't sort until wash time. That way I only have to carry one basket to the washer. I sort at the washer and leave in piles.

I usually do a two level sort. Very darks that will likely bleed and everything else. I used to do more sorts but I got lazy and found it doesn't really makes a difference.

[Marisa6826]

We have two of those three sectioned rolling carts from Target in the basement.

We sort:

Whites
Blues
Browns/Greens
Reds/Oranges
Sophie clothes with my Maternity stuff and bras (stick those in lingerie bags)
Random other stuff (kitchen rugs, dog blankets, etc.)

Before laundry makes it to the basement, I have a giant wicker basket in our bedroom. Everything (including Sophie's stuff) goes in there, and then is sorted on laundry day. Towels and sheets are changed on Sundays when laundry is done.

Since I'm not allowed to be climbing the basement stairs at the moment, if I happen to have stuff that needs to go in the basement while I'm on the first floor, it just gets tossed onto the basement landing (dish rags, wet Sophie stuff).

As far as not having random clothes laying around, we signed up with our drycleaner for pickup/dropoff service. I LOOOOOVE my drycleaning fairy. They give us a big nylon sack every week to keep the stuff in. On Tuesday morning, the sack gets put outside on our porch bench and by Tuesday afternoon, the clean stuff from the prior week is hanging on our front door.

Nifty, huh? ;)

-m

[lisams]

We have the 3 mesh bag thingy from target (whish is nice because you can take them out when you're taking laundry downstairs). One for whites, lights and dark/denim. DD has a hamper in her room. I have a small basket in the laundry room for dish rags/kitchen hand towels. When I wash sheets or towels I just go around and collect them. Seems to work pretty well for us.

Hope you find something that works!!
Lisa

[C99]

We have a hamper in each of the bedrooms and one in the bathroom. Nate's laundry is done separately still, but on laundry day (generally Tuesdays), I drag both hampers into my bedroom and sort each one into piles. We have 4 smaller, square laundry baskets, so I usually just sort directly into those baskets and then carry them down to the basement (or ask my husband to do it).

[lrucci]

I dont' sort the laundry until I'm getting ready to do the wash. We have a big hamper in our room and dd has one in her room. I sort our laundry into:
towels
whites
darks - navy/black/dark green
orange/reds
yellow/tan/khaki/light greens
dd's whites
dd's pinks/purples
dd's yellow/greens/blues

I wash dd's laundry on gentle and throw some of my stuff in with her clothes.

Lisa
Mom to Kyleigh 7/19/03

[DDowning]

DH and I have separate closets and when we put closet organizers in, we included large wire hanging baskets for laundry. I have a separate wire hanger basket for towels to avoid a mold risk issue from the damp/wetness of used ones. Carson has his own hamper in his room for his room.

I do mine and DH's laundry about every 3rd day. I used to wait until Thursdays to do it, along with Carson's, but then I would be spending my whole day doing laundry. This way its 2 hours tops and I'll fold it/put it away when he's napping. I separate the loads by whites, darks and Carson's. Sheets/Bed Linens will usually get washed with towels about once a week.