Make Life a Little Easier on Yourself With Some

We've all been there. A messy house, dozens of loads of laundry sitting at the bottom of the stairs, begging to be washed, folded and distributed. We've all felt overwhelmed with the amount of chores that need to be done to keep our families happy. The laundry room has long been a despised area of the homestead. In cities, many choose to send their laundry out for others to wash and fold instead of doing it themselves.

Laundry rooms are often neglected when it comes to design and organization. This is unfortunate, because a well-designed laundry room, complete with clever laundry room organizers, can make a seemingly dull chore a lot easier and even a little bit fun! So, where to begin? Let's start at the very beginning, which The Sound of Music has told us is a very good place to start!

First and foremost, you'll need a good hamper. It's recommended to have two, so that you can easily sort your whites and darks before you go to put them in the washer. Pre-sorting might sound silly, but it actually saves a good deal of time when it comes to putting in multiple loads. You can keep baskets to throw things in upstairs in the bedrooms, but in the laundry room, one hamper for lights and one hamper for darks is a great idea.

Many stores also sell dual hampers that are divided into sides for easy sorting. Some hampers even come with three bins, so you can also separate your delicates! Many of today's hampers come on wheels, so when it's time to fold, you can easily wheel away from the laundry room and into the living room and pop in a movie while you fold. If your laundry room is in clear view of guests, consider investing in some nice looking hampers - you can find nice canvas and wood ones, as well as wicker options.

You'll also want to invest in a series of drying racks. These days, many clothes are dry clean only, and dry cleaning bills can easily rack up before you know it! However, sometimes you can get away with doing your 'dry clean' clothes at home, so long as you wash them by hand and do so carefully with the correct detergent. For these sorts of clothes, you'll need a series of drying racks. Luckily, there's a good deal of options on the market today. You'll find stand up folding racks, as well as stackable sweater drying racks. There are even collapsible racks that you can put in your backyard if you don't have a working clothesline. The options are endless! If you wash your own bras (which most of us do), consider investing in a hook and dry bra hanger, so you can dry multiple bras at once without sloppily hanging them around the house to dry.

Another item that you'll want to consider is a good iron. Many people these days also invest in their own steamers. You might be thinking an at home steamer is a ridiculous item and an unnecessary expense, but if you steam your own clothes, you can save a fortune on dry cleaning bills. Suits, dresses, jackets and coats - all can be perfected with your own at home steamer. Plus, they're less expensive than one would think. All you need to do is hang up your item of clothing and run the steamer along it. Steamers work like magic, and you'll save yourself some big bucks not having to send big loads to the dry cleaner every week.

A good iron is a no brainer - almost everything can and should be ironed, especially if you're a working professional. If you don't have a lot of space in your laundry room, consider an over the door ironing board, which folds away against the back of the door when not in use. You can even find pant pressing stations similar to the ones you'd see in the olden days - the options are positively endless.

Lastly, you'll need to consider storage options and washing accessories. Lingerie bags are a must for those who don't hand wash their bras - the wash will destroy them otherwise. Installing shelving is a good idea - you'll need somewhere to put all of your detergents and other laundry products, but if wall space is minimal, consider a slim rolling storage rack that can slide between the washer/dryer unit and the wall. Of course, if you've got the luxury of space, a counter for folding is a great idea. Many families fold their laundry on the floor of the living room, where it can easily gather dust and pet dander. A clean countertop space for folding means you can keep your clean clothes clean.

A well-organized laundry room equipped with the right tools can make a boring chore go more quickly. Find the right organizers for your laundry room now.