Last Updated on May 17, 2023 by Lori
Can I confess? I actually don’t mind doing laundry. But that’s because I have a secret. And it changes everything. It’s one big tip for hassle-free laundry!
I’d rather do laundry than do a lot of other household chores. I like the feeling I get when the laundry is washed, dried, folded, and put away – in other words, finished.
Most other household chores are never really finished – not even for an instant.
But for brief moments in time (like, you know, until you change your clothes again), laundry is one thing you can actually check off the to-do list and say “complete”.

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I’d rather do laundry than scrub bathtubs or mop floors. It seems they get dirty again before they even have a chance to dry.
I hate emptying the dishwasher. Guaranteed, there is a dirty glass on the counter waiting to go in just as soon as the clean ones come out.
Laundry, on the other hand…
I Have a System to Make Laundry Less of a Hassle
It’s not a really big deal for me.
I suspect that the reason I don’t mind laundry duties is that I’ve created a system that is so automatic, I don’t really have to think about it. It’s second nature for me.
I have my system, I stick to the system, and laundry takes place in the background of my daily activities – it’s there, but it is certainly not my main focus.
I can concentrate on other things that need to be accomplished, and still get the laundry done.
And when I say done, I do mean washed, dried, folded, and put away. Because if you know me, you know I’m all about finishing a task.
I know there are a lot of people who struggle with laundry and find it to be an almost insurmountable task. If that sounds like you, I’m going to show you how to take back control of your laundry situation just by changing one simple thing in the process.
Someday I will write out the entire process of how I do laundry.
But even if you are not into systems, there is this one simple, surprising task that will change everything for you, if you do it consistently.
It really, truly will make doing laundry easier – if you do it every time.
Promise.
Cross my heart and everything.
This works.
What is this one simple tip?

The Secret to a Good Laundry System: You Have to Finish the Job
The key to my system is that I finish. Each and every load gets washed. Dried. Folded. And put away. Right away.
That’s it. That’s the big secret.
Don’t stop part-way.
Laundry isn’t finished until each item of clothing has been hung up in the closet or folded and put in a drawer or on a shelf.
It doesn’t count if it’s washed, dried…and dumped on the couch, unfolded.
Or washed, dried, folded, and sitting in a big pile on the bed.
That’s not finished. And I want you to finish.
I’ll admit, for a very long time, I thought everyone did laundry the way I do. Then I found out that I don’t even do laundry like my own mother, the woman who taught me how to do it in the first place.
Here’s Where Most People Get Laundry Wrong
The dryer buzzes that the cycle has finished and the load is now dry.
You pull everything out into a big pile, perhaps back into the empty basket.
Either you leave everything in the basket, or you dump it on the couch or on the bed. And then you stop and move on to something else and leave it there.
Maybe – maybe – you fold it before you move on. But chances are, it sits.
When (if) you get around to folding it, you fold it into one enormous pile.
But if it’s all in one big pile, then you put it away by taking off the top item and then the next.
When it’s all mixed together, you end up putting away one shirt in your son’s room, then a dress in your room, a couple of pairs of shorts in your daughter’s room, then back to your room.
All that running around from room to room – arghhhh!
Or, maybe you are digging through the pile to find all of your shirts at once, or all of your husband’s socks. In the search process, all your careful folding gets pulled apart, and it’s frustrating and so not worth it and oh – FORGET IT!
You are so over this.

The One Big Tip For Hassle-Free Laundry: Make Little Piles of Clothes (seriously, that’s it!)
Are you wondering what you can do to make this easier?
Eliminate that big pile of folded laundry.
Don’t ever do that again. Instead:
As you fold the load of laundry, create lots of little piles.
Put all your folded shirts in one pile.
Put your husband’s shorts in a separate pile.
Socks in a different pile.
And so on until everything is folded.
Now, look at your piles.
Scoop up the one with all the hanging clothes, go straight into your closet, and hang them all up.
Gather anything that goes into your dresser, and put them all away. All the shirts at once into one drawer, all the jeans at once into the jeans drawer…
Now scoop up the piles that go in the next location, and put all of those items away.
It takes no more time to put folded clothes into multiple piles rather than one big pile, but when it’s time to put the clothes away it is SO MUCH faster.
And that allows you to finish the laundry.
Bam! Done!
Go do something fun.

Final Thoughts on A Simple Trick to Make Laundry Hassle-Free
Are you disappointed that I didn’t offer something a bit more…um, magical?
But give it a try, and I promise you, the fact that the laundry gets finished every time is going to be a tremendous weight off your mind.
Because the task is complete.
You can let it go and forget about it, at least for a little while.
Fold laundry into little piles of items that go together.
It’s the fastest way to finish the laundry.
Try it and let me know what you think!
Don’t forget to try out the BEST laundry sheets ever!
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Deceptively simple tip that is actually so important! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for reading, Molly!
Ahhhh laundry – the bane of my existence. I always imagin that was how Sysiphus felt – it’s never-ending! But Yes – I definitely stick to the Pile system – My daughter and the boys get their own piles and I deliver it to their rooms in separate trips, and the husband gets his own one too. I agree with you laundrey is not the worst house chore – but it is for me the most repetitive – thank God for Netflix that keeps me entertained while I fold all those piles late at night…
It is definitely more work, the more people you have in your home. Can you fold each load as you go, instead of all at once at night? That might help. Also, look forward to the day when your kids can do their own laundry!! Thanks for reading.
I do it the same way. When the clothes are dry I fold them on the bed and put them right in closet. My mom just makes huge piles and then waits to iron them. I don’t iron at all, just shirts when I need them. I don’t have enough space to have clothes waiting in piles for me to fold them and then put away. It needs to be done right away.
I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one who doesn’t do it the same as my mom! I do iron some, but not too much to be annoying. Good for you for being efficient! Thanks for reading!
I don’t mind doing laundry but I hate folding it. Since my kids are older so this task is not mine anymore but I really like the tip of putting everything on the bed so you have bigger space to sort it out.
Good for you for getting your kids involved! Yes, folding on thebed is great for space. Thanks for reading!
Laundry is my downfall! I despise folding and putting it away! I’m going to try this method. Thank you for sharing!
I think you’ll like it, Jillian because it keeps you on top of those two things! Thanks for reading!
I actually use this method so I’m happy to know I’m on the right track. Thank you for sharing. ☺️
Good for you! Thanks for reading!
That was a very helpful post. Laundry is one thing people get lazy to complete it as you said. But you have made the whole process easier!
Thanks, Nisha. I have other tips too, but this is the biggy that seems to help the most. I appreciate you reading!
Great post Lori! I hate laundry, and we have the pile problem of leaving it in the dryer, moving it on top of the dryer, or on a chair and repeat! Before you know it, the laundry is mixed together and you can’t find something you wanted to wear. It seems lost! It is so frustrating, so thank you for this post to motivate me to fold it right away. Would make life much easier!
Denise, I think your way is probably more common than mine! I hope folding right away works for you and it becomes less frustrating. Thanks for reading!