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This past weekend, a child in our neighborhood saw me hanging our clothes on the line. “Why are you doing that?” she asked, “Don’t you have a dryer?”
I stifled a laugh and replied, “Yes, but this saves money and the environment.”
But her question made me think. Why do I choose to hang clothes out on the line?
1. To save money. During the summer months, when I can hang out our laundry to dry almost every day, I knock off $50 from our electric bill.
2. To make my clothes last longer. You know that wad of lint you pull from your dryer vent? That’s your clothes wearing out faster. Your tossing some of your clothes and money into the garbage when you empty the lint drawer.
3. Relaxation. Yes, you read that right. Something about pinning clothes out on the line relaxes me. I think it has to do with the fresh air and the beautiful earth God created for us.
4. Prayer time. When I hang up an article of clothes, I pray for the person they belong to. It may only be fleeting, but each of my family is covered in prayer when I dry clothes on the line.
5. The scent. No bottle of scented laundry softener can measure up to the sun and wind dried scent of clothes on the line.
Here’s a few tips when hanging clothes on the line. I hang all pants and shirts from the hem. This leaves no clothes pin marks on the shoulders and collars. The weight of the waist keeps pants from looking wrinkled and allows the thicker waistband to dry completely.
If you can’t abide the feeling of stiff towels, then pop in the dryer for just five minutes. They’ll fluff up without padding your electric bill.
I use an old wide mouth Mason jar to hold my clothes pins. It’s both decorative and functional.
What’s your favorite thing about laundry? Do you have any tips for me? What chore do you enjoy doing?
This post is featured on The Better Mom and Conerstone Confessions Titus Tuesday.
Melissa K. Norris inspires people's faith and pioneer roots with her books, podcast, and blog. Melissa lives with her husband and two children in their own little house in the big woods in the foothills of the North Cascade Mountains. When she's not wrangling chickens and cattle, you can find her stuffing Mason jars with homegrown food and playing with flour and sugar in the kitchen.
