i am sitting here staring at the most gigantic pile of laundry. so now you’re probably thinking, i thought you had a genius laundry system that was going to SAVE me from my laundry pile! that’s why i clicked on this post. don’t worry, i do {but genius might be a bit strong of a word}.

my gigantic pile of laundry is actually how i know my new system is working.

last week, i didn’t use my new laundry routine. i reverted to my old ways for various reasons. here in my room, looking at this laundry mountain, i am reminded why i love my new way of doing laundry SO MUCH.

to come up with my new system, i first asked myself 5 quick questions. these 5 questions are my favorite ones to consider when i need to streamline something for my household or my family like laundry or getting out to door in the morning. want to feel better about some of your most challenging tasks? i’ve made it easy for you! snag your own cute printable copy of these 5 questions here and get excited about revamping some of your family’s routines.

when i first used these questions to create my new routine, i thought, SURELY, everyone else already knows this secret. i just somehow didn’t get the memo. because my new system was so simple but it made SUCH A DIFFERENCE. so i asked my friends. i said, here is how i have started doing laundry. it is saving my life. did you already know about this?

surprisingly, they all said no. that got me thinking that i needed to share this with more mamas out there, because i am pretty sure we are all drowning in laundry. for me, i keep wondering WHY DIDN’T I THINK OF THIS SOONER?

the laundry system that will change your life

{1} do one person’s laundry a day.

before, i used to do all of my kids’ laundry together over multiple days. sometimes i even did ALL of our laundry together. then i had to sort it back out before putting it away. the sorting part took FOREVER, it was a mess, and it was an extra, time-consuming step i didn’t need.

now, i do one child’s laundry per day. on monday i do E’s laundry. he has mostly darker clothes so i just throw it all together in one load. on tuesday i do C’s laundry. she has mostly lighter clothes so i do them all together in one load. on wednesday i do K’s laundry. again, her clothes are mostly light. all one load. on thursday and friday i do my laundry along with my husband’s laundry. i do ours together, but i sort it into dark loads, light loads, and sometimes one bleach load. the weekends are for catch up, NOT for major laundry tasks. how refreshing!

{2} when laundry is clean and dry, put it back in that person’s room.

before, i put all clean laundry in a pile in our guest room. that proved to be a problem when our guest room became our new baby’s room. from that giant clean pile of laundry, i would sort it by child into clothes baskets. then the baskets would go to their rooms for them/me to put away.

now, no more sorting. i COMPLETELY ELIMINATED this step. happy dance. when laundry comes out of the dryer/off the air dry racks, it goes into one basket. that basket goes right into the room of the person who owns the laundry. i don’t have to stare at big piles and places like target have the CUTEST plastic laundry baskets now. you can almost make laundry a decoration!

{3} make a schedule for putting laundry away, one you will stick to.

before, i put laundry away whenever i could. or, i told my kids to put it away randomly. i didn’t clean/sort laundry on consistent days so putting it away on consistent days was impossible.

now, laundry is put away on the same schedule every week. and it is an easy schedule:

E puts his own laundry away on tuesday mornings before he comes down for breakfast {he is 7 and has been doing this for almost two years}. we wake up 15 minutes earlier than we used to in the mornings so we can get some basic chores done. if you want to know what other chores we do, you can grab a copy of our kid’s chore chart here}. he puts his laundry away on tuesday because i clean it for him on mondays.

K puts her laundry away on thursdays before she comes down for breakfast {she is 5 and has been doing this for a year, however, i put away things that need to be hung in the closet for her}. she puts her laundry away on thursdays because i wash it for her on wednesdays {logical, right?}. i do not require E or K to fold pants, shorts, pajamas, underwear, sports uniforms, or bathing suits. these get laid in their drawers however they want to accomplish the task. some things, you just have to let go. and i promise you, they do not go to school all wrinkly. shirts and dresses get hung in the closet. one school outfit per day goes in their dollar spot monday-friday closet organizer. learn how we save time every morning with that quick system here.

i put C’s laundry away on wednesday mornings while my kids are doing their other chores. mornings are reserved for laundry which means i try not to do any other household task {other than getting people out the door for school} before the bus.

thursday, friday, and through the weekend i work on putting mine and my husband’s laundry away. i try to do this all at once so i can feel done, but in truth that is not always possible. giving myself four days for our laundry gives me a reasonable timeline to get it done and also allows me to wash things like sheets and towels on these days.

that’s it. so simple, right? i am wondering, have you been doing laundry this way the whole time? or do you have any other time-saving secrets? feel free to share in the comments below! and don’t forget to grab your fun printable to help streamline some of your family’s household routines. there is nothing like a fresh system that saves time and energy to put a smile on your face.

while you’re in the resource library, don’t forget to grab a copy of 5 steps to organize any space. you might find as you work to create new systems, that some of your actual spaces need a LITTLE refresh to make things run even more smoothly for your household. use these helpful printables together to reclaim your joy for everyday tasks.

{want to save this idea for later? click the red save box on the image below to pin this post. or follow notice the LITTLE things on pinterest here.}