Hey party people!
Welcome to the almost weekend – hope yours is filled with super fun things like LAUNDRY!
So this might seem totally random and weird but when Jeremy started working from home, he asked if he could help more with house work. I KNOW! Jackpot winner is THIS GIRL. The problem was – I really don’t like the way he does housework. I know that sounds weird but I clean differently than him and sometimes that drives me crazy when he does stuff and it is like NOOOOOOOWHYYYYYYYYYY?!!!?!?!?! I talked about this with some friends and they think it is totally normal because they all do housework differently than their husbands too….so it really isn’t that anyone is doing it wrong….but just differently.
I decided that the thing that I really could hand over was the chore of doing the laundry….not my laundry mind you because he would probably unintentionally ruin everything I own (Jer sweetly tried to wash my bras and I looked like I had either a uniboob or Miss Lumpsalot for a month.)….but the loads of towels and kids clothes and bedding and everything else – I could totally hand that off. BUT if you know me….hey mom….you will know I am kinda a weird controlling dictator when it comes to the laundry.
I like it done a very VERY specific way. Some people have asked me how I do it. I could not exactly explain because it sounds crazy coming out of my mouth….so I made a flowchart for everyone to love and enjoy and be fully educated in all things – BOWER LAUNDRY.
Oh as far as products go – it should be noted that we like Oxi-Clean Spray for pretreating unless it’s a really big stain and then we will use Oxi-Clean White Revive soaking stuff – here is an old post about that method – and sometimes if I am out of spray, I will just add regular Oxi-Clean to the drum of the washer. We do tend to have some shrinkage with the kids clothing but we are okay with that since they just get passed to the next kid….but I’d rather have smaller clothes than dirty stained ones. And we don’t like fabric softener for the kids because a couple of them tend to have sensitive skin. But we adults use it for our clothing – we just like regular ole Downy and Jeremy prefers using the dryer sheets. We also use Color Catchers because some of the clothing has just a little red sleeve or a red detail and this helps it not to bleed. And we just recently started using Downy Un-Stoppables for our bedding (not the pillowcases but the blankets and stuff) and it makes the master bedroom smell SO GOOD. I also use it on my clothing because ya know…mama gotta splurge sometimes 🙂 Also – our couch we wash differently. You can see that post here. And when we did cloth diapers, (we don’t use them now unless we are potty training)….this is how we washed those.
WHEW! See how I have a little bit of control issues when it comes to the ole wash cycle? Yeah. I’m working on it.
But it definitely helps knowing that Jeremy can just follow the flowchart and make sure everything gets nice and clean 🙂
Also – I made it as a printable for you guys. CLICK HERE FOR THE PDF! Happy laundering!
What does jeremy do for a job?
Why so much bleach?
Thanks!
Did you know bleach can sometimes yellow some kinds of fabrics? Oxyclean can be a better option for a lot of cottons and linens. Also fewer chances for bleach-oops ruining other stuff.
Wow! That’s a really thorough chart. That’s a great system. I don’t know about anyone else but I just separate into pinks/reds, darks, and whites and then wash. The odd time I’ll have a separate load for my stuff or really grody stuff…oh yeah and I mostly wash in cold to save money. I find the things get just as clean.
Honestly, I suspect that if I actually wrote out my laundry procedures, they would probably be as complicated as yours. Which is why my husband is only allowed to wash his own clothing.
I did notice that your chart says to use fabric softener with white bath towels. It’s generally a bad idea to use fabric softener with any type of towels, as it will decrease absorbency over time.
Oh I should have clarified that one. Once every other month or so, I do add vinegar to the towels and skip the bleach and fabric softener in that one wash and it helps keep the towels absorbent!
xo – kb
He works from home basically as a consultant. We have a lot of babies (aka diapers and messy messes) so we bleach to kill the bacteria 🙂
xo – kb
Our clothes are definitely only need cold but the boys are SO dirty that hot is the only way to get them clean!
xo – kb
My OCD-ness giggles with glee just reading this!
Very cute! Here is my verso: . Is it mine? Yes? Then I wash it. If not then I don’t wash it! 🙂 Actually my two boys, ages 13 and 16, have been doing their own laundry since they were in 2nd or 3rd grade. The system is by no means perfect, but I figure start early – they have learned to take care of their own clothes. When they were little, I used to have them help me fold etc, and put things in drawers. As they got older and began to choose their own clothing each day and dress themselves,, I realized that once things were in drawers, they got all messed up and wrinkled so I switched to baskets on shelves. Then, eventually I realized that since my boys only wear T-shirts and athletic pants or shorts every single day to school, that they may as well just have two laundry basket: one for CLEAN clothes and one for DIRTY clothes. They just take their clothes (that they wash) right out of the laundry basket and put them on. No folding or putting away, no struggles to get them to put clothes away! Somehow, despited some wrinkles, they look fine, get good grades and life goes on!
Haha you sound like me – totally controlling when it comes to laundry! I don’t mind when my husband does a load of a towels, but I can’t stand how he folds them, so I just end up having to refold them lol. I have to say though, I have never used bleach. It terrifies me! How do you make sure there is no residual bleach in your washer just waiting to ruin the next load of clothes?! For extra fighting power, I like to add washing soda to the drum…also works great for soaking something that is stained!
Any tips on rayon??? I’ve tried everything and it always ruins it!! Hand wash cold, laid flat to dry, ruined. Dry clean… Ruined. Am I using the wrong detergent??
I started using vinegar in every load instead of dryer sheets and it works better IMO. Plus less cost and less trash.
My husband also works from home and we split housework. His job is usually kitchen duty as I am not allowed to load the dishwasher because I the way I load it is ‘inefficient’. Hah.
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/dishwasher
Amazing chart! So organized. But do you know that some of the products you use aren’t really very healthy for people? Especially dryer softener sheets–full of chemicals, including formaldehyde. I’d look into the safety of fabric softener in general. And that does seem like you use a lot of bleach, which is also not so safe. Sorry to criticize, but I think it’s important to know what you are putting on your and your children’s bodies regularly.
Oh, this is a true work of art, Katie! I am a laundry nerd and very particular with my stuff too. What detergent do you prefer?
Woah! If I’m being honest, at first glance I was like- is this a joke?? How does a mom of four littles have time to wash laundry 11 different ways?? BUT when I thought about it- I’ve never tried to explain how I wash our clothes to anyone, and I don’t encourage my husband to do laundry… so if I ever drew out my process it would be like, half this crazy!
What brand of laundry soap do you use?
Turning that into a laundry room poster would make a great future post. Maybe with a companion mystery stain treatment chart. I’ll bet you get plenty of “mystery” stains with four little boys…
Poor Jeremy! Laundry is awful enough without going through this with every little piece…I bet he’s sorry he offered to help!
my chart would be
is it laundry -> yes -> throw it all in together and press start
Oh my goodness this is so funny. I love the chart! So funny to see how people do things differently. I seriously just divide into either colors, jeans, whites, or towels/sheets, I wash everything on cold with just detergent, not fabric softener or anything. I dry on low with no dryer sheets. I do wash cloth diapers on hot… and occasionally I will toss a little bleach in with the whites, and that’s IT. LOL! Does this give you hives?! But seriously everything comes out as nice as it went in, any fancy things I don’t want to risk shrinking get hung up instead of dried, I’ve never even heard of color catcher and wouldn’t even know how to pretreat something… I spray a little shout on dirt/mud stains on my kids’ clothes right before I toss it in… and that’s it 🙂 Super simple. 🙂
Hahaha! I like that! It’s even graphic enough to be framed and hung in the laundry room 🙂
hahahahaha!
xo – kb
Yeah. But I make it up to him 🙂
xo – kb
Different kinds at different times. Right now we are on a Tide kick.
xo – kb
How did you know? 🙂
xo – kb
We use Tide right now but we have gone through different brands.
xo – kb
I definitely want to teach the boys early. My mom did with us…she said it was part of turning double digits 🙂
xo – kb
You can always do an extra rinse (most machines have that as an option) if you are scared of bleach! I have found that we haven’t had any residual bleach issues unless I use the bleach pen…because it’s a gel it can not rinse out as well if it goes straight into the wash…
xo – kb
Hmmm…I don’t actually wear a lot of rayon! I think that if you have a rayon piece but it’s very delicate then maybe you can try the air out method if it’s not super dirty. I know people do that in other countries a lot. You can actually hang it up outside, spray with a little light detergent and water and then let it air dry. If it has a spot – then spray that area more and make sure you are treating it accordingly (like grease would be with dabs of baking soda and shake it out, etc.) – let me know if that works.
xo – kb
same here, I just throw all in and press start!! But Katie, just want to say, you have inspired me to read up my washing machine’s instruction manual page by page. 😀 Also, am still not getting the weekly bower emails in my mailbox. 🙂
I LOVE THIS SO MUCH! ALL CAPS SO MUCH! 🙂 I have dogs, not kids, but their blankets and beds work about the same and certainly need the sanitize wash. My mom always wants to do a load of laundry for me when she comes over, but I just can’t. Maybe if I had a flow chart for her to follow! Haha!
Do it! 🙂
xo – kb
I think this is awesome, Katie! Though I’m not quite as varied in my laundry routine, I do think having something like this is really helpful! I have three boys (4&1/2 and under) and really with all the food and dirt stains, things need to be handled a certain way to keep them clean enough to pass them down.
Gotta say… you’re a strong woman for putting this out there… so many snarky comments here. I’m just so over unkindness on the internet! Hugs to you, Katie!
Wow, this is so intense! Mine would be like “does it smell or look dirty?” If yes, throw them all in one load, if no, wear it again.
Katie! I swear you and I were separated at birth! This flowchart is my jam. I am ultra-obsessive about laundry. It started when I was getting ready to go to college and working at the Gap to earn money (and the employee discount, of course) to buy my own clothes. I wasn’t about to risk ruining those expensive clothes I slaved for!
Thank you so much for turning me on to the OxyClean White Revive! It is such a lifesaver! We have the same Pottery Barn couch as you, and recently we had a HUGE stain incident on one of the cushions. I was sure it was hopeless, but after three rounds of soaking and washing, it finally came out. Whew!
A couple of suggestions since you mentioned that your littles have sensitive skin: For all types of loads, I add a big scoop of baking soda (you can get 12-lb. bags in the pool care aisle at Walmart) to the wash instead of fabric softener. It works just as well and doesn’t have chemicals that can irritate skin. And I use these reusable wool dryer balls instead of dryer sheets: https://www.amazon.com/Smart-Sheep-Premium-Reusable-Softener/dp/B00GA9P5P0. They’re way more economical, safe for sensitive skin and actually cut down on drying time. Hope that helps! Laundry control-freaks unite!
That is such a great suggestion. I always think that the boys clothing (it’s basically the stuff we wash without fabric softener) is not soft enough!
xo – kb
Carey – how much would you say is ‘a big scoop’ when measured out? Sorry – newbie to the baking soda w. laundry deal. Thanks!!
Um, can we just please be friends? I was definitely in my office trying not to laugh too loud reading this (“Miss Lumpsalot” got me snorting)… and I recently had a baby and so laughing that hard when full of water = not good if you know what I mean. 😉 Keep ’em coming Katie.
Also PS I totally have a Bower Power email hoarding problem. Every time I read an email I’m like, “OK, I can delete this now” but I can never do it… I get to the trash button and I’m like “Wait, I better archive this so I can read it again.” Which is crazy because it’s all on your website but I thought you’d get a kick out of it. 🙂
omg I thought you were saying that you hoarded all emails and I was gonna be like SOULMATE! That is me. With everything. Including the junk emails.
xo – kb