laundry question/vent

SmrBrd2012

How often do you wash your clothes, like pants, shirts, and sweaters, after you wear them? How about your husband?

I ask because I usually wear jeans several times, pants at least 2-3x, t-shirts 2x, and sweaters maybe 4x. I of course always do a smell test first! My husband literally wants everything washed after wearing it one time, except sometimes his pants will go for 2 wearings. Not only is it incredibly time consuming to wash his laundry and energy-wasteful, but we don't have our own washer and dryer so we have to pay and drag it down every time to do it. And we only have one washer/dryer in our building of 12 units.

It drives me INSANE! I keep my own laundry separate because if we kept it together, I would never find my laundry again. He has 4 baskets to my one basket.

He does sweat a lot so he feels "dirty" if he rewears his clothing. I get that to a point but even sweaters and hoodies?? If he's that hot and sweaty, he shouldn't be wearing the damn sweater! He tells me that I'm the dirty one for wearing clothes over again...

I guess this turned into a vent but I'm also curious if other women are in this situation and how do you deal with it?

VadersValkyrie

H and I both wear our jeans several times before washing them.  For me, with shirts it totally depends on how many hours of the day I wore it.  Work clothes get washed after one wear, mostly because the building I work in isn't super clean.  H washes his shirts after one wear.  

We do have our own washer/dryer so it's not as big a deal for us.  Although my H's laundry takes up much more room than mine, so he's in charge of washing the "regular" clothes, while I do the delicates and whites.

Leftie22

If he's that picky about it, he should wash his own clothes! I wouldn't be going out of my way to do my DH's laundry if he was throwing everything in after one wear. I wear jeans and pants a few times, and shirts a couple of times before washing. And DH does laundry too, especially if he just filled the hamper. Get your DH to do his own laundry, and I bet he'll get a whole lot less particular about how often he needs to wash things.

SmrBrd2012

Leftie22 said:

If he's that picky about it, he should wash his own clothes!

He usually does! That's why I separate mine out. I gave up years ago with doing all the laundry. The main issue for me is that he lets it build up so much that there are just so many clothes and our apartment is so small that the amount of overflowing baskets makes me cringe. I like things neat and tidy. If our place were bigger or if we had our own machines I don't think I would care as much.

Sillygirl45

I wear jeans, pants an tops a few times before washing unless I am actually dirty or sweaty. H does the same. 

Maybe you could come up with a schedule for doing laundry so it's not piling up? 

It sucks when you don't have a washer and dryer. The last apartment I rented before buying had a little stackable. I was in heaven! I had grown so used to having to lug my laundry around I forgot how nice it was to have my own facilities. I am glad those days are over, but I feel your pain!

GilliC

We both rewear everything 2-3 times. My problem is finding a place to store the worn-once items, because I won't put them back in the cupboard. That means having a separate place to store things that are waiting to be reworn. So we always ended up with clothes everywhere anyway!

(And I'm a huge fan of doing your own laundry. I wash most things on delicate, so aside from jeans there isn't much overlap in our loads.)

Sillygirl45

GilliC said:

We both rewear everything 2-3 times. My problem is finding a place to store the worn-once items, because I won't put them back in the cupboard. That means having a separate place to store things that are waiting to be reworn. So we always ended up with clothes everywhere anyway!

(And I'm a huge fan of doing your own laundry. I wash most things on delicate, so aside from jeans there isn't much overlap in our loads.)

I have two hangers that hold four pairs of pants. On one side of the pants are clean clothes, on the other are clothes I've worn. It also helps me see what I've worn recently and actually forces me to rotate my outfits. I don't put anything I've worn back in my dresser though. I fold worn jeans and put them on top of the dresser or in a basket under my nightstand that also has my pj's in it. 

chrisnjay05212010

I def re-wear jeans, shirts, sweaters a few times before washing them, obviously depending on what i was doing that day and if my dog has proceeded to slober on my jeans

My husband wears a uniform for work so during the week he usually re-wears the jeans and the shirt b/c he only has it on for a few short hours going to and from work.  On the weekends he is usually doing something in the garage. If he knows he is going to do the same thing the next day he will leave the outfit out and rewear it so he doesnt dirty another set of clothes.  If i'm about to do laundry and i see some of his stuff out i just ask if something needs to be washed.

GilliC

Sillygirl45 said:

GilliC said:

We both rewear everything 2-3 times. My problem is finding a place to store the worn-once items, because I won't put them back in the cupboard. That means having a separate place to store things that are waiting to be reworn. So we always ended up with clothes everywhere anyway!

(And I'm a huge fan of doing your own laundry. I wash most things on delicate, so aside from jeans there isn't much overlap in our loads.)

I have two hangers that hold four pairs of pants. On one side of the pants are clean clothes, on the other are clothes I've worn. It also helps me see what I've worn recently and actually forces me to rotate my outfits. I don't put anything I've worn back in my dresser though. I fold worn jeans and put them on top of the dresser or in a basket under my nightstand that also has my pj's in it. 

Unfortunately almost all of my clothes have to be folded and put on shelves or in the dresser. The rod in my closet is only 18 inches, so I can only hang the things that absolutely cannot be folded. (The downside of a small apartment.)

I need to buy a low cabinet to fit under the picture window for the cats to sit on to see out, so I'm planning to choose something with shelves or drawers that I can use to store worn-once clothing.

moonprincessd

My husband and I re ware pants all the time. Shirts are one time things, except my husband's work clothes. He only washes those like once a month (granted he wear a white shirt underneath so those get washed once a week)

We do 2 loads of laundry once a week. 

I get that it's frustrating, but well if your husband is doing his own laundry, there isn't much you can really do. You can't change a person and if it's a deal breaker, then something you should have considered before marriage....

SmrBrd2012

moonprincessd said:

 You can't change a person and if it's a deal breaker, then something you should have considered before marriage....

Lol, it would be pretty sad if a person considered a lot of laundry to be a deal breaker in a life partner, especially when they will do their own laundry. Of course it's not a deal breaker. I'm just venting and curious as to what others' habits are.

Sillygirl45

GilliC said:

Unfortunately almost all of my clothes have to be folded and put on shelves or in the dresser. The rod in my closet is only 18 inches, so I can only hang the things that absolutely cannot be folded. (The downside of a small apartment.)

I need to buy a low cabinet to fit under the picture window for the cats to sit on to see out, so I'm planning to choose something with shelves or drawers that I can use to store worn-once clothing.

The cat seat/drawer combo sounds like a great idea! I can't stand clothes in the floor. That's where spiders hide (I'm paranoid about spiders) and the dog will use them as a dog bed. He's a selfish bastard and doesn't care about the dog fur everywhere.

IAmSherlocked

Jeans and sweaters are the only clothes I'll wear multiple times (Jeans I can wear maybe twice, sweaters and hoodies usually a handful of times). Everything else gets washed after one wear. DH's work is not clean at all so his clothes definitely need to be washed frequently. He doesn't tend to care if his clothes are wrinkled though, haha. I tend to just feel gross if I wear "dirty" clothes. Granted I'm odd and hate wearing sweatpants all day, and I feel gross if I don't take at least one shower a day, so take whatever I say with a grain of salt.

Kimbus22

I'll wear pants twice but I get icked out at the idea of wearing a shirt more than once without a washing.

DH would wear the same damn thing for a week.

MaggieW518

DH and I each do our own laundry... Sheets and towels will be done by whoever gets to them first, but each of us is responsible for our own clothes. He tried being helpful years ago when we first moved in together, but after he accidentally bleached a few of my shirts, he doesn't touch my clothes at all.

 

As for # of wears... jeans and work pants will be worn 3-4 times before washing... t-shirts and work shirts just once... sweaters and sweatshirts are 2-3 times... That's me. DH, I'm honestly not sure... I could guess, but since he does his own laundry and we have our own separate baskets, I don't pay much attention... I think his work shirts get 3-4 wears before washing (he works at a bank) but he also wears an undershirt so that certainly helps.

 

I understand being frustrated with the hassle and cost associated with washing more frequently, but I feel like everyone's personal hygiene habits and preferences are just that - personal. If he feels more comfortable wearing freshly clean clothes, I don't think he should be faulted for that.

SmrBrd2012

MaggieW518 said

I understand being frustrated with the hassle and cost associated with washing more frequently, but I feel like everyone's personal hygiene habits and preferences are just that - personal. If he feels more comfortable wearing freshly clean clothes, I don't think he should be faulted for that.

I like this- you're 100% right. Once we have more space and our own appliances I think this will no longer be an issue. Just have to be patient!

daisy662

Wow, I'm shocked by some of the responses! I wash everything but jeans after one wear. Jeans will go 2-3 wears. I do all of the laundry in our house (me, DH, and 2 kids) and I don't find it overly time consuming. I typically try to throw a load in the washer before work and fold from the dryer after work every day. This keeps it pretty manageable. I do sheets on the weekends.

Dandylione

Daisy 662, I am going to start employing your schedule for laundry! I think it will help the "overwhelmed" feelings I get on laundry day!

I think how many times you wear something depends on where you live. Here in the desert of the SW, I can wear pants 3-4 times in the winter/spring, but only about 2x in the summer. In the winter/spring I can wear shirts maybe 2x, but definitely only once in the summer. Sweaters I always feel can be worn 4 or 5 times since they go OVER clothes. 

However, if we go somewhere that I feel is particularly unclean, I will wash after one wear. 

My DH has laundry habits opposite to those of the DH of the OP. I have to make sure most of this things make it in the wash at an acceptable time (especially pants!) He's pretty good with shirts...but I still check. haha! 

Oh laundry. 

Sillygirl45

Dandylione said:

Daisy 662, I am going to start employing your schedule for laundry! I think it will help the "overwhelmed" feelings I get on laundry day!

I think how many times you wear something depends on where you live. Here in the desert of the SW, I can wear pants 3-4 times in the winter/spring, but only about 2x in the summer. In the winter/spring I can wear shirts maybe 2x, but definitely only once in the summer. Sweaters I always feel can be worn 4 or 5 times since they go OVER clothes. 

However, if we go somewhere that I feel is particularly unclean, I will wash after one wear. 

My DH has laundry habits opposite to those of the DH of the OP. I have to make sure most of this things make it in the wash at an acceptable time (especially pants!) He's pretty good with shirts...but I still check. haha! 

Oh laundry. 

Ditto, my H wears his socks more than once. Totally grosses me out!

CowgirlK39

Due to the stinky, dirty nature of our jobs, DH and I usually wear shirts once, jeans 2-3x. Hoodies will go for a week without being washed because they go on and off regularly. We do not have laundry in our apt either and have to drive 15 mins to get to it, so usually we take multiple large loads. That's getting very old though.

MrsDcamacho

My husband like to change twice a day and will never wear anything for more then 12 hours (drama queen lol) after trying to get him to see how much work it was for me to walk to the laundry mat twice a week I told him he's now in charge of all the cloths washing. I was actually surprised that he has not only stuck to it but does a much better job then me.

formerlyGDaisy09

H frequently gets his clothes dirty at work, so he creates a lot of laundry.  I usually wear pants or skirts 3-4 times before washing, sweaters 2-3 times, and t-shirts, socks, etc get washed after one wear, unless I only had them on for a little bit.  Since H makes most of the laundry we've worked out a schedule where he does most of the laundry. 

basically, we have a 4-bin sorter I wash the delicates and the linens, he washes everything else. 

lfk2013

H will rewear shirts if they aren't dirty, but he wears double (sometimes triple) the amount of clothes I do in a day.  His work clothes are usually washed separate because of the amount of mud he is able to get on his clothes in a day.  I rewear pants/jeans until they are "dirty" (3-4x), but shirts & sweaters get worn once.  I don't like my tops smelling (even if they don't).  Sweatshirts I wear until they are "dirty".  Most of the time, I do my laundry once every two weeks whereas H will do his every week.  We have to lug ours to either the apartment complex's laundry room or a laundromat.

GilliC

Since this post originated, I realized that XH and I always just did our own laundry. No questions asked. It was never even an issue. We'd done our own laundry as adults prior to getting together, so there was no reason to change things. He washed things more often than I needed to, and I never trusted him with anything gentler than "regular." So occasionally I'd wash a pair of his jeans, or he might do a towel I'd been using, but for the most part we just did our own laundry. Much less stress that way.