A mountain of laundry!
With six children, my mother had to face countless terry nappies, shirts, school uniforms, towels…. and endless socks, vests and pants.
Getting all the laundry done was a constant worry, and a lot of work.
I don’t know how she did it.
Clean clothes do not appear in a wardrobe by magic.
It falls to ‘someone’ in the household (with a sense of responsibility and organisation) to keep clean clothing coming through.
I have vivid memory coming home from school seeing my mother standing over the twin-tub.
The kitchen was filled with the heavy smell of detergent ( Tide, Persil, Daz, Omo), the air steamy and humid. And it was noisy.
There was constant sound of chugging, bubbling water draining from the tub, and the loud whirring of the spin dryer
It was intensive, heavy work and it took most of her day.
Wet washing still has to be dried.
For this we had a washing line in the back garden
My mother taught us how to clean the line, then to peg out the clothes so they kept their shape, didn’t sag, or snag or blow away. But also, to peg larger items to the front and underwear to the back – so the neighbours wouldn’t see.
It gave her immense pleasure to see a washing line full of clothes neatly pegged out. In other words: a job well done.
A well filled washing line is a visible sign of someone at the top of their game.
Whatever I know about laundry is my mother’s knowledge passed down.
Whenever I am hanging out washing on the line this gives me a little moment to remember her by.
In fact, I still use some of her old wooden pegs.
They are infinitely more robust and durable than plastic ones; they feel nice in your hand.
In Ireland a good drying day is a rare gift.
Line drying puts you that much closer to the elements and nature.
It’s a really great day when you can get 2-3 loads of washing out and dried.
Done!
When you have washing out on the line you can never totally relax.
If it starts to rain it’s a scramble to get everything back inside.
Observing the skies and testing the air you constantly look out for signs of change. You develop a sense of when the clouds will clear, the sun will shine and the wind blow.
Will the rain hold off?
Is there enough wind?
Where did the sun go?
Air drying is by far the most sustainable way of drying clothes.
And it costs nothing.
Air drying In the older public housing estates of Hong Kong is a colourful display. Fluttering in the breeze like rows of flags, laundry hanging from every home, catches the wind and sun.
Residents hang their washing either in the kitchen/verandah or outside on poles, inserted perpendicularly to the exterior.
A precarious and tricky procedure, it is a delicate process of leaning out with the clothing pre-attached to the pole and then deftly inserting the heavy pole into the slot.
There is always a chance that certain items – or the pole – could be lost in the process.
Most US apartment buildings are designed without personal laundry facilities.
Instead, residents use communal laundry rooms with huge washing machines and dryers.
In the suburbs, many US homeowner associations have banned outdoor washing lines. People must use dryers, or hang washing in their basement.
A washing line smacks of a rural population, the working class and tenements. In this respect, wet clothes are seen to detract from the look and status of the building, the people who live there and the quality of the environment.
In the UK, many up-market housing developments have introduced set rules against ‘displays’ of washing on balconies or communal areas.
People still have to do laundry, but if you want to live here it must be hidden away and out of sight.
Air-drying has become associated with poverty.
Where displays of washing once used to be a sign of family life and an industrious housewife, it is now considered unsightly, and unsuitable for the public gaze.
A washing line has become something of a taboo.
Culturally (and by design) washing lines are being removed from everyday life. Whole generations have never used a washing line. They don’t miss what they have never had.
Prissy design values and social conformity have contributed to the demise of the washing line.
We have lost the sense of using the great outdoors, the air, the wind the sun, to dry our laundry – for free.
The irony is: certain brands are now playing up the value of air drying. There is a fabric softener that claims to be: ‘ Outdoorable: fresh! – as if dried outside’. And yet, not.
Laundry is a task and a chore.
It is a largely thankless occupation on constant repeat.
Clean clothes will get dirty again.
Laundry is a never-ending feature of daily life; an activity that consumes much time, effort and consciousness.
Through different seasons the content and workload of our laundry changes.
As we move from heavy fabrics and knits to lighter clothing different items have different drying requirements.
But, we still have separate coloured items from whites, remove tissues, check for banknotes, leaky pens.
As laundry, some items appear regularly – towels, school uniforms, sheets, sportswear, baby clothes, overalls, work clothes. Other items on only special occasions.
Within the small stuff – socks, underwear- item tend to get lost. And then there is big stuff; sheets, curtains, duvet covers, mattress protectors that take up more space, time and effort.
Laundry takes up space, mentally and physically.
Right now, in every home, every day there is dirty laundry set aside to be washed.
There will be clean clothes piled up waiting to be sorted, ironed, or returned to a designated place – a wardrobe, clothes rail, drawers, hot press.
This is a cycle never stops.
Washed, dried, ironed, put away, worn.
Washed, dried, ironed, put away, worn.
Only to do it all again.
Eventually, my mother acquired an ‘automatic washing machine’.
This was a dream come true.
It meant she could put everything in to wash without having to stand over it. As a result, she could reclaim that time and get on with other things.
In theory, modern washing machines create a more equal division of labour in the home. As an appliance it is designed to be used by anyone.
My father?… Not so much.
To him the workings and processes of doing laundry was a mystery. A mystery that her never wanted to – or had to – get to drips with.
Then… my mother got a tumble dryer.
Before that, I vividly remember on wet days every part of the house – the banister, backs of chairs, between chairs, shirts on hangers in the bathroom – would be bedecked and draped with wet washing.
And yes, on some days wet washing could sit for days. The smell of wet dog and excess moisture hanging in the air.
For my mother, a tumble dryer meant laundry was not time-dependent as before. It meant she could speed up the process. Most of all, it meant she was more in control and less dependent on the vagaries of the weather.
But still, her first choice for drying clothes, was always the washing line.
The deeper reach of politics, economics and marketing shapes, influences and nudges our behaviour.
We see, in a cost-of-living and climate crisis, how more people are weighing up what everything costs.
We are advised to do bigger wash loads… less frequently… on a lower temperature and… to use line drying whenever we can.
This means that line drying is now eco-fashionable. Though, perhaps only for people who have environmental concerns and people with less money.
We see innovative initiatives emerging for people who want to line dry but do not have access to outdoor space. This is something that can bring communities together.
Limited by design ie. having no access to the outdoors, through clever joined up thinking, like-minded people can share a space for drying their clothes that is not in use.
When your washing machine breaks down it is suddenly a household ‘crisis’.
Eventually we will come to an end of all our available clean clothing.
In polite society, we are required to present with clean clothing.
While reduced hygiene standards might be fine for a camping holiday, clothing with stains, odours and creases won’t work well in the office.
But, do we need to wash our clothes quite so much?
Social codes dictate that we should change our clothes regularly and shower every day. But there is a ‘trend’ of non-washing. That is: people who have decided that we could/should re-think the ‘need’ for washing – on the edges of what is necessary, and what is just a convention.
In a world of throwaway fast fashion before we buy any garment we all have ethical questions to answer.
How many times will I actually wear this garment?
Will it stain easily – and need to be washed often?
How long will it be fashionable?
Is it designed to last?
There is something very wrong if it is easier and cheaper to buy something new – than to wash or dry clean what we already have?
We need homes that are designed to accommodate the entire end-to-end laundry process.
In the UK, a home with a utility room is still a relatively rare thing.
But, it is something that people greatly value and desire.
With the trend towards more open-plan living our home space is more open and exposed. As a consequence, there is nowhere to hide anything.
A utility room may seem like a luxury space, one specifically designed for laundry, but this is an essential space that is acknowledgement of the time, process and effort involved in doing laundry.
With a utility room all the noise and the mess of laundry (at every stage) can be hidden away out of sight.
TV’s Kirsty Allsopp recently pronounced the presence of a washing machine in a kitchen as ‘disgusting’.
People responded angrily.
That is because most people do not have a choice.
If they live in a small home, they are limited as to where they can actually place their washing machine. The design layout of the space is what dictates what goes where. And so, in the UK (unlike the US) the kitchen – or bathroom – may be the only place for the washing machine.
Older homes were not designed for bulky appliances.
Perhaps because the original architect didn’t imagine occupants would ever be able to afford such luxuries as a washing machine, dish washer, dryer.
Perhaps they didn’t think that laundry was such a big deal?
Laundry means big business, big brands, and big profits.
So, what’s next?
Where once there was just soap, supermarket aisles are now filled with a vast array of detergents, softeners, starches, stain removers, fresheners, fragrances.
Super-appliances come with multi-functions that make washing clothes faster, cleaner, brighter, noiseless, more efficient, easier to use, eco-efficient and a more ‘designed’ experience.
However, we are now more aware of the relationship between detergents, water and energy. What we need is to look forward to smarter technology, shorter wash times, improved capabilities, efficiencies and water-less technology.
But, if our homes continue to be ( badly) designed things could go the other way.
Perhaps we will become dependent on a centralised ‘Deliveroo’ for quick-fix laundry. Or, a wash, dry, iron, return service so that no-one is required to do laundry at home. That is: an efficient service for all, not just for the rich.
There needs to be greater connectivity in the laundry cycle.
That is: from where it originates in (textiles, fashion, design ) to where it is used and processed ( in the home) and where it ends up ( in landfill) as a circular economy.
This is clearly a design problem.
Washing machines may be ‘ intelligent’ but they can very quickly become obsolete. Once they break down it may not be worthwhile getting them repaired. And so, because of bad design thinking, we are forced to buy a new one.
We need to look more closely at the practice and space in which laundry takes place.
In my mother’s lifetime new and improved appliances certainly made her work at home – and her life – easier.
These time-saving appliances disrupted the ‘old ways’ of doing things. Ultimately, this was a recognition that she was important and her time was valuable.
My mother was not a servant living a life ‘downstairs’. But given all the work she had to do, it was not far off!
We have to ask ourselves: with more women in the workforce, why does laundry still take up such a big part of their time?
With new, improved fabrics ironing is not always necessary, but clean laundry still needs to be sorted and stored away in the right place to ensure the cycle keeps moving.
There’s no shortage of hacks and advice around.
People who see the problem of laundry differently (because they are the ones doing it)are taking the time to think through what needs to be done.
A radical re-think creates an ingenious solution – that works.
A re-design of the whole laundry system looks at who does what – and where. It considers how the workload can be re-distributed more evenly and where the pain points lie.
This approach to a re-engineered domestic laundry starts at the end by questioning the conventional idea that all clothing MUST be stored in a wardrobe or a chest of drawers.
It doesn’t!
If the ‘interior design’ and ‘furniture’ is what is causing a headache in the laundry process well, maybe that is just because a ‘wardrobe’ is what we expect to see ( in a bedroom) rather than what we actually need.
This solution challenges the design norm of where and how we store our clothes (wardrobe, clothes rail, dressing room, drawers). It introduces a more efficient system more like what you might see in a regular warehouse than a home. That is, where items are easy to locate and easy to store and where the ‘users’ all know what goes where.
An efficient solution for a modern lifestyle.
