What a load of Laundry!

Hi everyone and welcome to another week of Clean and Organised, today we are tackling the laundry. Laundry is one of those necessities in life that we can’t escape from. Other chores seem to have a beginning and end or at least in some cases not so frequent in nature. I actually enjoy laundry (weird I know), I enjoy it because I have turned my laundry into a space that is fresh and organised allowing me to enjoy the task at hand rather than dread it.

When I come into the room my eyes immediately turn to my blue patterned rug on the floor. This was a purchase from Kmart and I enjoy it because I am not focusing on the big task ahead of me but the aesthetics of blue on a white tile. On the wall I have framed two items which I purchased from the Organised Housewife, the Laundry Schedule and Poster. I try to follow the schedule by washing at least once a day to try and keep things manageable, but I am also a realist. I work as a relief teacher which means that I can be called in at a moment’s notice thus making it hard for me to complete the washing. When life gets in the way I don’t chastise myself, but pick up on the day I am able to start again and continue on. It has taken a few years but I seem to have developed a strong habit and I rarely get too far behind in washing.

When it comes to washing the preparation can be just as important. When my husband and I first got married I was incredibly frustrated at washing day to sort piles of clothes only to miss that one red pair of underwear sitting at the bottom hiding under the white load I was doing next. To counteract this problem I went to BigW and purchased a basket rack so I could pre-sort all my clothes in the hamper. I labelled each shelf into Whites/Delicates, Darks and Coloured clothes and it has been a miracle in making washing quicker and easier to get started. On top sits my containers of Washing liquids, soakers and sprayers. I chose to have them sit up the top in a small basket so I didn’t have to squat down all the time to access the cupboard under the sink. This saves time and is a lot more efficient process.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In my laundry sink sits my soaking bucket. I only use this to pre-soak clothes with stains such as makeup and food etc. before throwing it straight into the machine. I try to keep this area clear of clutter helping to make the washing process go smoothly.

My washing machine is just a standard Simpson. I have gotten into the habit of cleaning my lint trap after every single wash and putting the rubbish in the bin BEFORE I hang the clothes outside on the line. We don’t have a dryer so I need to ensure that washing goes up straight away and does not become covered mildew necessitating to wash the entire load over again. I also do not shut the washing machine lid straight away, rather I let it dry out on the inside completely to ensure that mould does not grow under the seals of this wet environment. I maintain my washing machine by giving it a wipe down with a cloth once a week and monthly I complete an empty wash on the hottest setting filled with a 1 cup of vinegar to sterilise and clean.

I hope you have enjoyed today’s post. Please check out my video tour of my laundry giving a more indepth look at the systems in place. If you have not liked our Clean and Organised Facebook page please do so you are able to keep up to date with all our comings and goings. See you next time.

Laundry Video Tour

 

Welcome to another week of Clean and Organised. Today I am taking you on a video tour of my laundry and giving you helpful hints for you to be able to maintain and keep your laundry fresh and organised. Enjoy!

Walk in Robe Video Tour

Hi everyone I thought I’d do a video to go with today’s post.  I hope you enjoy!

My latest Project- Walk in Robe!

Hi everyone and welcome to another week of Clean and Organised. I am really excited to share with you this week as I have just completed a huge project… My walk in robe. In this post today I am going to share with you some before pics as well as the completed project which I think is pure bliss!

BEFORE

 

 

 

As you can see from the before pics my closet was  but needed something extra to take it to the next level of organisation. I started by considering my hanging space which was jammed packed with all my winter clothes. I live in North Queensland where we get a mild winter, but adding the coats and cardigans to my hanging space made it hard for me to move the clothes apart to remove any clothes to wear. To solve this problem I decided to rethink my design and utilise the top shelf where my suitcases were sitting.

AFTER

I decided to remove all my coats, cardigans and jackets and place them in these sweater boxes which I got for a bargain at the Reject Shop for $8!!!! I had been looking around for a while and thought I would purchase some from USA for $25 each, but changed my mind as soon as I saw these. I affixed a label made out of some leftover cardboard and pink scotch tape making it clear what items were inside. Another great purchase from the Reject Shop was the pink folding step stool. (I love the spots!) This allows me to easily look in each box and grab the item I wish to wear for the day.

Next to sort was my shelving space, I started by labelling the shelves with pink scotch tape to give a pop of colour to the space as well as label what each shelf contains. I placed my nail polish on a cake stand just for a cute way of displaying all the pretty colours. Below are my shoes, which I love! I have placed them neatly on display all ready for me to choose when I am ready to go out.

 

On the other side of the wardrobe is my husband’s side. I sorted all his hanging space into sections of work shirts, dress pants, t-shirts and site clothes. On his shelf I labelled each unit with black scotch tape helping to identify his clothing. On the top shelf I was able to purchase a sock organiser from Bargain Point to contain his exercise and work socks.

Originally I had my belts in a bag which was stored on the floor in wardrobe and it was a mess! I found a matching over the door pocket that matched my sweater boxes and hung it on the inside of my door with 3M hooks. Now I am able to store all my belts and scarves easily and grab them ready to go.

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Linen Closet

Welcome to another week of Clean and Organised. Today we head to the laundry where we are going to check out my linen closet. This has been one of my favourite parts of the house to organise and it always brings me so much pleasure to see a neatly folded towel sitting beautifully on the shelf.

 

When you open my cupboard the first thing you will notice at eye level are the towels. I make a point to rotate the towels weekly left to right to ensure that they all receive equal amounts of wear and tear. I have a specific way of folding my towels to ensure that they have a nice neat folded side displayed. There was a time when I kept my handtowels and face washers stacked on top of each other. This became a pain to me as I was always finding piles tipped over or not stacking correctly. To counter act this problem, I purchased under shelf hanging baskets from Kmart to place them in. I have four in total (2 for hand towels and two for face washers) and these have become a brilliant solution to storing these items.

On the shelf below sits our bedroom linen. I have Queen Sheets for our master bed, with three in total. This means that one is in use while the other two sit on the shelf. I also have a specific way of folding these to ensure that the pillow cases, fitted sheet and top sheet are all combined in one wrap making them easier to contain and a neater fold. To save space I purchased a small shelf rack from Kmart which I have labelled with what type of sheets they are to help make them visitor and husband proof. We rotate these weekly with the set sitting on top of the rack the next to go on the bed. Sitting to the right of this is a Double Sheet set which has the same principles applied.

 

I love baskets as a way of setting limits and containing items. You can see in my linen press I have used baskets to hold a number of my linen needs all with labels to help me identify the contents quickly and easily. I have a basket which hold my bathmats, tablecloths, napkins & placemats and Christmas linen. All are used effectively and without difficulty.

On the bottom shelf I store gift bags and boxes as well as storing my laundry baskets on the right.

The top shelf holds a basket with extra quilt sheets, two old towels for spills or cleaning needs and emergency candles.

 

I hope that you have enjoyed this week’s post and that it inspires you to become ever more Clean and Organised.

 

 

Into the Lounge…

Welcome to another week of Clean and Organised where today I take you through my lounge room. In our home this is a place where we can retreat, relax and unwind.

As you can see we don’t have an overly large space. On the back wall contains our borrowed 3 seater couch which is really comfy. Once a month I make it my habit to wash all the cushions and give the whole couch a really good vacuum, to give an item that is used every day a refresher.

 

 

 

 

 

We only recently bought the TV cabinet, coffee table and sofa table. We were able to purchase them in a set along with some other items of furniture around the house. In our coffee table you can see that we store some of our DVD’s. On the left side I keep our TV series which is what we grab the most and on the right some of my husband and I ‘dual’ likes.

Under the TV cabinet, I store the DVD’s specific to me in baskets, keeping it neat and organised when I wish to find a movie. My poor husband only has a couple of movies that is specific to his tastes so we keep them in a drawer on the right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our sofa table has been a wonderful addition into our home and has become storage space for a lot of different useful items. On the bottom open shelf I placed baskets to contain my knitting projects as well as blankets for the cold weather we are experiencing at the moment. In the drawers above you can find our batteries, 3M hooks and different apron sets (I love collecting cute aprons) which I rotate.

Down in the corner beside the sofa sits a magazine holder which I got from the Reject shop. I put here my Better Homes and Gardens magazines as well as organising books which I love for a quick read. It’s lovely to sit in the rocking chair and have a precious ½ hour of free time!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned for the next Clean and Organised room…