Trying

I've been meaning to install a clothesline for a couple years now...  Well, finally it is up and I'm trying it out - finding out what dries well outside, what doesn't... Finding out just how long jeans take to dry...

Like so many things that our Grandmothers knew, the art of the clothesline is something that I certainly don't know and is really quite rare in my circles.  I'll take any tips or techniques you clothesliners have.  My goal is to use my dryer half as much -- half the energy is half the energy.   I'm not gonna lie -- it's going to be a huge adjustment.  We have hot sunny days coming in abundance so I'll have plenty of chance to practice. 

Bea, having read plenty of children's literature, is quite familiar with clotheslines and their use already.  We installed a lower one for her to hang little washcloths, etc. on and she's just about mastered the spring loaded clothespins already.  Of course, we need proper laundering aprons and clothespin bags now -- well someday.

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I'm probably going to be quieter than usual around here for a while... just posting here and there, adding photos to flickr now and then.  We're kind of in one of those rearranging, cleaning out, adjustment periods of life, ya know?  I AM making SLOW progress on your quilt, Angela -- it's still coming, I promise.

Comments

[Natalie]

I've been strolling through blogs this morning, and I came here by way of Color Fool; what a wonderful visit! There is a lot to enjoy and I love your sewing projects, and the thoughts you share. My name is Natalie.
Thank you for blogging.

[Alicia A.]

Nice photo of the line!

I'm gonna be back to read the clothesline advice. I'd love one too, but I'm worried about the dark colors bleaching in the sun... half as much. Good goal. Maybe I'll try it too.

[Ash]

I have some tips :) Being a clothes line expert and all. Well, not really, but every day that it doesn't rain or isn't freezing.

I hang mine from the balcony. In fact, you know what? I'll just take a photo of mine tomorrow and do a post.

Most important things to remember:

1. don't hang pants by the waistband. Hang them by the pant legs. The waistband (usually thicker fabric) hangs in the wind then and it dries faster.

2. fold sheets before hanging them. You can fold them double and hang them already folded - no ironing!

3. if you are on the sixth floor balcony like I am, use more pegs rather than less - or the people opposite you will end up with an extra duvet cover or two ;)

[Peg Schuler-Armstrong]

Your backyard is lovely! I'm so excited you're going to use a clothesline too. There's nothing like the fresh smell of line-dried clothes. No tips to speak of -- other than you may want to splurge on some dryer time for your guest towels if you're having company. I personally don't mind but some folks do. (If anyone has a tip on how to prevent "crunchy" towels, I'd love to know!)

[autum]

Clothes line tips, hmmm...
For crunchy towels and jeans, you can pop them into the dryer for just a minute to fluff them up before folding. Also a little fabric softener in the wash helps.
Hang shirts from the waist not the shoulders to keep from getting funny puckered shoulders.
I love my clothes line!! Clothes smell so good dried in the fresh air.

[joyce]

Try to have part of your clothesline in the shade if you worry about fading. If you hang clothes out when it's freezing, you can break them. Really! Then there will be a big tear where they broke.
Hanging out clothes on the line is the only part of laundry I enjoy. I'd never give my clothesline up even though I can only use it part of the year.

[knittymama]

De-lurking here...so glad to see you're finding the clothesline love! I had the same goal last summer, and I'm happy to say I ended up loving it so much that I hung my stuff out 90% of the time.

Everyone has such good advice already. I don't have much to add, other than the thing that made it succesful for me was realizing what a great excuse it is to get outside! Also, I found that it made things easier to fold as I fold while I take it off the line. When I empty the dryer I tend to dump it all in the basket and then let it sit:-)

[Eren]

I have often thought of the same thing of a lot of the "simple" things that our grandmothers did...cooking, cleaning, etc. There was definitely an art to homemaking.

Looking forward to everyone's tips.

[Krista]

Whether your posts are a day, a week, or a month in between - I enjoy every single one immensely.

Enjoy those sunny days coming up, and the fresh, crunchy towels and wonderful sheets. Ahhhhhh.

I do wish my laundry room was not a tall, narrow flight of stairs down from my clothesline. As it is with the belly and my troublesome ligaments, a basket or two of heavy, wet laundry is not going to make it up those stairs to the line for a while...
Tis a shame though!

[Kelly]

I think you and Bea are going to have a lot of fun with your new clotheslines. Great idea about hanging a lower one for her.

Most of the things I've learned have already been mentioned - fluff "crunchy" items like jeans and towels in the dryer for a few minutes, hang shirts and pants upside down for quicker drying and fewer wrinkles. I doubt you'll have to worry about fading much, since everything should dry very quickly in Texas - just don't leave items out too long after they are dry.

[Suzanne]

Hmm. I've never thought there was much of an "art" to hanging clothes. You hang them, you want until they are dry, and then you bring them back inside. You watch to make sure it doesn't rain on them....

You do have to watch the "thick" parts of things -- like waistbands, to make sure that they are completely dry.

I usually refuse to hang socks and underwear. There are just too many of them and not enough clothespins.

[Becky]

Great idea! We hang at least half our laundry. We have a couple indoor racks for wintry or rainy times, and one single line that we can string across our backyard. When needed, the indoor racks can also go outside for faster drying times.

I never hang socks or towels - they're much softer out of the dryer. But shirts, underwear, (some) pants... all great on the line. I hang t-shirts upside down with at least three pins in on the waist to avoid stretching (particularly on the shoulders...) If you're concerned about fading, then use a rack indoors for rich/dark colours. (I know - that's not as fun as outside.)

[Christy]

Here's my tip for the busy or lazy (me): Clothes tend to start getting damp again after sunset, but if the next day is expected to be dry, I just leave them out overnight. By 9 or 10 am (when I have another load, ideally), they're ready to come in. Cooler low humidity days are better than the hot humid days for drying. Days with a breeze are best of all!

[Deb]

Hi Amy, I'm posting a link to another blog here as I bookmarked it last year because I thought it was so informative. Tammy wrote on "how to do line drying." You might be interested.

http://www.tammysrecipes.com/clothesline_drying_laundry

[Angela]

Wonderful goal Amy! We tore down the clothesline that was here when we moved in and now I want one back. hmmm. Hope you have success with yours....half is good. :)
Like I said before, no worries on the quilt love.

[tracy]

v. timely. we are prepping for the install of a line ourselves. another tip - turn darks inside out to prevent fading.... good on you! xo

[Ali]

That's a goal I really aspire to. I had no tumble dryer before kids and managed just fine, but since I've had one, chucking a load in it has become automatic. Perhaps this summer is time for a re-think.

[kirsty]

This makes me laugh!! Where I live (Outback Queensland) it's so hot and dry that it's much much quicker to line-dry clothes than to put them in the dryer!! On a really hot day (40-46 deg C - I think 100 -120 deg F ??)the washing can be dry in as little as 15 minutes!

[Mirre]

I've only had my dryer for a couple of years and it's amazing how lazy I've gotten!
But the fresh outdoor smell though... one of the best smells in the world!!

[moki]

I am SOOOO doing this...but I need something to attach the closeline too! I coveted my bestfriends posts that her dad made and installed for her birthday one year...she's that type of gal that appreciates a clothesline :)

[Peitseoga]

I got a dryer only this winter. i live in ireland i know only 2 other people who have dryers, and they have babies, so they have an excuse... i just really wanted one because of lazyness and because it was such a pain to dry bedlinen, sheets in the house on radiators and clothes horses for days on end. i'm still drying jeans and everything else i don't want to shrink on the clothes horse, and when it gets a little warmer out i'll still be drying things on the line. i hope. but you can't beat towels out of the dryer!
great idea to have a little clothes line too!

[Leah]

I'm Australian, and we line dry our clothes here as a matter of course. Sheets smell fabulous after they've been dried in the outdoors, and if you give towels a 'flick' - like you're trying to sting someone - as you hang them out, and as you bring them in, it really makes a difference to their softness. If you're worried about dark clothes fading, just hang them inside out. Having a washing line keeps you in tune with the weather, and gives twice daily time outside just to enjoy the day. My kids love that we're all outside together, so I'm never alone when at the line. Happy clothes hanging :)

[dee]

I love hanging my clothes out, I actually like the crunchy towels, they absorb better! Its wonderful, solar powered and zero energy, and it smells better too!

[Diane]

Come Spring I love to hang my clothes outside too, it makes them just smell wonderful! My tip would be that I have the clothes pins all in a basket, kind of like an Easter basket, that I can reach into easily to get the clothespins out. And I hang it on the clothesline by these plastic c-shaped things that I think I bought years ago from Discovery Toys. The nice thing about them is I can add or take off links depending what height I need. But I have never been good about remembering to take them inside, so mine are quite weath-worn, but since the rainwater goes right through, it has never seemed to be a problem, they just look a bit more rustic! Good luck with that!

[jeanetta]

i would love to hang my things out and we have perfect weather for in it sanantonio but how does everyone deal with the allergens? my famiy has a horrible time with it if i dry things outside. would the dry take them out if i popped them in for a minute?