Hanging it all on the Line

“We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it is only picking grapes or sorting the laundry” E.B. White

I am not such a big fan of sorting the laundry, but I do like to hang it. Nothing smells better than sheets that have been hung in the sun to dry. My mother used to hang our laundry on a line, and one of my favorite hymns included a line about it….or at least I thought that it did. In church I happily sang, “We will come rejoicing, bringing in the SHEETS.” It made so much sense because for me bringing in the sheets was such a fun activity. I was really disappointed when I found out that it was supposed to be “bringing in the SHEAVES.” What the heck are those?  In short, the sight of laundry blowing in the wind makes me happy, and therefore I have taken a lot of pictures over the years.

As my mother used to hang the laundry, and I was very glad that the Cape of Dreams had a line so that I could continue the tradition. The line has apparently been here since the house was built in 1952, as you can see by how the original two pulleys have been absorbed into the tree. Douglas added new pulleys and replaced the line when I moved in. Unfortunately, I do not have a picture of him perched on top of the ladder precariously balanced on the tail of his truck because we did not have a ladder tall enough to reach the pulleys. We do not recommend that behavior anyway, so it is probably a good thing that there is no photographic evidence of such an unsafe practice.

Some people have mistakenly thought that I do not have a dryer, since I hang all my laundry to dry. However, the house came with a brand new washer and dryer in the basement. I did not have to do much to the laundry area. I did take out an old table that was across from the machines and put in some cabinets that came from Douglas’ apartment when he moved in. We also hung his shower caddy on the left of the washer to hold stain sticks, dryer sheets, etc.

I have always hung my delicate clothing to dry. It not only saves the money that it costs to dry the clothes, but it makes them last longer. When I lived in apartments, I would hang my clothes on this rack that I bought at Target. Here is another one. Now I use that rack in the basement to hang our unmentionables that we do not want the neighbors to see. I also use it in the winter or when it is raining and I cannot hang the clothes outside.

The previous owners of the house must have hung the laundry in the basement as well because there are a lot of rods hanging from the ceiling. I also use these in the winter or when it is raining.

The laundry begins in this hamper that has three compartments. I also bought it at Target. Here is another one. Can you tell that I love that store? They have great buyers. Most hampers have two compartments at most, but I need three. I sort the clothing by whites, colors and delicates. This one has wheels and is easy to move around.

The hamper lives in the hall closet with Douglas’ clothes.

The bags pull out of the hamper and have convenient handles for carrying down to the basement laundry room. The metal handles also come out so that the bags themselves can be washed. It is the best designed hamper that I have ever seen, and I love it. It’s the simple things that make me happy!

After washing, I hang the unmentionables in the basement and carry the rest up in this basket that I bought for a dollar from Bed, Bath and Beyond. The best thing about that store is that you can get coupons everywhere, and the store will honor them even after they expire.

I then hang the clothes on the line.

The previous homeowners were nice enough to leave this bucket full of clothespins.

There were also several of these in the bucket.

At first, I was not sure what they were for, and my first attempt at hanging clothes looked like this.

Then, I realized that those odd wooden pieces should be used to keep the lines from stretching with the weight of the clothes. Metal ones are more practical.

The line is almost the perfect length for a full load of laundry. I do have to hang the shirts on hangers, so that they take up less space.  Here you can see that the clothes stretch from the porch to the tree near the back of the property.

The line is high and cannot be reached from the ground. I stand on the porch and use the pulleys to string the clothes along the line. This allows me to drive my car under as long as there are no sheets or blankets on the line.

When I moved into the Cape of Dreams, Freckles the Freak was old and blind. She could not move very fast, but she still loved to be outside. Douglas is very clever, and he fashioned a run for her on the clothes line. It made her extremely happy to amble back and forth and smell all the wonderful scents of the great outdoors. It gave me great peace of mind that she could not hurt herself and I could watch her from the porch or the window.

The colorful squares in the picture below are napkins and kitchen towels. I have been able to completely eliminate all paper napkins and paper towels from my house. I also use cloths to wash the dishes. I only use the cloth once and then wash it, so it is much more sanitary than using a sponge. Besides the frequent washing, hanging the cloths outside allows the UV rays from the sun to kill even more bacteria.

Therefore, my line has had a great deal of use since I moved in. Here is a list of reasons to hang your clothes outside. I got the list from this website. By hanging the clothes instead of using a dryer you can save money, keep your clothes longer, have a more pleasant scent, save energy, preserve the environment, reduce pollution, get exercise, get your clothes disinfected, replace your dehumidifier and avoid a fire. They did not mention that it also keeps the whites whiter without having to use bleach. So, I hope that I have convinced you to use a clothesline.

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Happy Homemaking!