How to Sort Laundry: A Simple Beginner's Guide

A beautiful laundry room with laundry ready to be sorted

If no one ever taught you how to sort laundry, it can seem more complicated than it really is.

Whites, darks, colors, towels, delicates–what goes with what? Can you wash jeans with T-shirts? And do you really need six different piles of laundry on the floor?

You don’t. I will make this as easy as possible. I’ve been doing laundry for over 30 years here’s what I’ve learned.

Sorting laundry is pretty simple. Once you understand a few basic rules, you’ll be able to look at a basket of dirty clothes, sort it in a couple of minutes, and get on with your laundry.

Here’s the system I use in my home.

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From the Homemaker’s Skill Book: This article is part of my Homemaker’s Skill Book, a growing collection of simple, practical guides for the basic skills that keep a home running. Whether you’re learning these skills for the first time or just need a refresher, the goal is to explain them simply enough that you can put them to use right away.

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Why Do You Need to Sort Laundry?

The main reason we sort our laundry is to protect our clothes. Trust me, I’ve ruined clothing items when I first started doing laundry because I didn’t do this. You’ll thank me later.

Dark or brightly colored fabrics can sometimes release dye in the wash. Heavy fabrics can be rough on lighter, more delicate clothing. Towels can leave lint behind. And some clothes simply need gentler care than others.

Sorting helps prevent:

Colors bleeding onto other clothes
White clothes becoming gray or dingy
Delicate clothes getting damaged
Lint getting all over clothing
Clothes wearing out faster than they should

You don’t need a complicated sorting system to prevent most of these problems.

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The Easiest Way to Sort Laundry

For most everyday laundry, start with three basic piles:

Whites. Darks. Colors.

That’s it. (see, told ya it was easy!)

1. Whites

Put your white everyday clothing together.

This might include:

White T-shirts
White socks
White undergarments
White pajamas
Other washable white clothing

Keeping whites away from darker colors helps them stay white instead of gradually becoming dull or dingy.

2. Darks

Your dark load can include such colors as:

Black
Navy
Charcoal
Dark brown
Dark grey
Other very dark clothing

Jeans can usually go into this load too, as long as the care label doesn’t tell you otherwise.

One thing to watch for is brand-new dark clothing, especially dark jeans. New clothing can sometimes release extra dye during it’s first few washes. If you’re worried about a new item bleeding, wash it separately or with similar dark colors the first few times.

3. Colors

Everything else generally goes into my colored load.

That might include:

Red
Green
Blue
Yellow
Pink
Purple
Orange
Pasteels
Prints
Most everyday colored clothing

I don’t make a separate load for every shade of clothing. For ordinary family laundry, that simply isn’t necessary.

If something is new and brightly colored, though, be a little more careful the first few times you wash it. A brand-new bright red t-shirt, for example , isn’t something I would toss in with a very pale shirt until I know the color isn’t going to bleed.

For most everyday laundry, remember:

Whites. Darks. Colors.

You can start doing laundry with those three piles.

What About Towels?

If I have enough towels for a load, I wash them, most times, separately from our clothing.

Towels are heavier than most clothes, and they can also produce lint. I also like to separate my darker towels from my lighter towels when I have enough for separate loads.

I’ve found that washing dark towels repeatedly with lighter towels can eventually make the lighter ones look dull and dingy.

But don’t start running tiny loads just to follow this rule.

If you only have a couple of dark towels and you’re already washing a sturdy load of dark jeans and similar items, it’s not a big deal to put them together.

Think of these as practical guidelines, not rigid rules.

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Separate Delicate and Special-Care Clothing

Before you put everything into one of your three main piles, look for anything that needs special care.

This might include:

Bras
Lace
Wool
Delicate sweaters
Hand-wash items
Clothing marked dry-clean only
Anything with special washing instructions

When you’re unsure about something, Check the care label inside the garment.

Those little tags aren’t there to annoy you, they tell you how the manufacturer recommends washing and drying the item.

We’ll cover laundry care labels more thoroughly in another Homemaker’s Skill Book lesson. For now, remember one simple rule:

When in doubt, read the tag.

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Separate Really Dirty Clothes

Most everyday clothing can go into your normal loads.

But if something is exceptionally dirty–muddy work clothes, greasy clothing, heavily soiled gardening clothes or similar items–pull those items out.

You don’t necessarily want heavily soiled clothes washing alongside lightly worn t-shirts, pajamas, or underwear.

Treat stains before washing when necessary and wash especially dirty items separately or with other similarly soiled clothing.

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Turn Graphic T-Shirts Inside Out

Here’s one little habit that can help some of your favorite shirts last longer.

Before washing graphic T-shirts, turn them inside out.

That includes things like:

Sports team shirts
Concert T-shirts
Shirts with printed sayings
Graphic tees
Clothing with printed designs

Turning them inside out reduces some of the rubbing directly against the design while they’re being washed.

I also don’t like to bake these shirts in the dryer. I’ll often tumble dry them for a little while and then let them finish air-drying.

You don’t have to do this with every piece of clothing you own. It’s simply an easy way to give favorite printed shirts a little extra care so they stay looking nice longer.

Before You Put the Clothes in the Washer

Once you’ve sorted your laundry, take another minute before starting the machine.

1. Check the pockets. Remove loose change, tissues, receipts, pens. lip balm, or anything else you don’t want washed in the washing machine.

2. Look for stains. If you see one, treat it before washing. It’s much easier to deal with a stain before it has gone through the dryer.

3. Check unfamiliar care labels. If you’ve never washed the item before, take a quick peek at the label.

4. Turn graphic T-shirts inside out. Do the same with anything else you want to protect from unnecessary rubbing.

5. Don’t cram the washer completely full. Clothes need room to move so water and detergent can reach them.

Now you’re ready to wash.

Do I Really Have to Sort Everything Perfectly?

No.

Laundry doesn’t need to become a complicated household project.

Sorting is meant to help protect clothes–not make you afraid to put anything into the washer.

Start by separating whites, darks, and colors. Pull out anything delicate, unusually dirty or likely to bleed. Wash towels separately when you have enough to make a reasonable load.

As you get more comfortable doing laundry, you’ll naturally learn which things in your own household can be washed together.

You don’t need to run five tiny loads because everything isn’t exactly the same.

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The Most Important Thing to Remember

If you’ve never done laundry before, remember this:

Whites. Darks. Colors. Check anything unusual.

That’s enough to get started.

You don’t need to memorize every fabric, laundry symbol or washing n=machine setting before you wash your first load. Those things can be learned one at a time.

For now, sort your clothes into those three basic groups, pull out anything that needs special care, check the pockets, and you’re ready for the next step.

Laundry is one of those homemaking skills that feels much harder before you’ve learned it than it does afterward.

After you’ve sorted a few baskets, you probably won’t think twice about it anymore. You’ll look at the clothes, make your piles and know exactly how to take care of it.

Hope this helped you!

from my hearth to yours,
Becky

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