Does summer need to mean more clothing, and more laundry overwhelm?
Let’s talk about laundry. (I know… not your favorite topic. Same.)
But really—does laundry double in size the second summer vacation starts? No more uniforms. No more school clothes. Just kids running around in five outfits a day like it’s a costume party we never signed up for.
There’s the day camp outfit (currently dyed blue from the Slurpee machine), the wet swimsuit, the post-swim outfit, the pajamas they changed into after dinner—and don’t forget the second pair of pajamas they switched into after dumping water on the first ones.
But here’s the thing:
The problem isn’t that we’re “bad” at laundry.
The problem is that there’s just too much clothing.
Seriously. No laundry system in the world-color-coded hampers, rotating schedules, chore charts-can keep up if each kid has 47 shirts and 16 bathing suits.
The math just doesn’t work.
What We’re Really Drowning In
The truth is, laundry isn’t overwhelming because of the act of doing it. It’s overwhelming because of the volume. A kid with 5 shirts? Manageable. A kid with 16 shirts? Suddenly there’s a T-shirt avalanche in the living room, socks in the freezer, and you’re questioning how many children actually live in your house.
I always tell my students:
fewer clothes = fewer decisions = fewer messes = fewer meltdowns (from you).
You’re not inefficient. You’re just overloaded.
So instead of trying to do more laundry faster, hiring more help, or coming up with a different system, let’s cut the clutter at the source—starting with the clothing.
But Don’t They Need All This Stuff?
Nope. (That was easy.)
Most kids wear the same handful of outfits on repeat. (Same for us, by the way. I teach about this in my course, and women are mind-blown when they start paying attention to that.) Everything else is just taking up space in their drawers and creating extra laundry you don’t need.
Here is the summer capsule wardrobe I use and teach my students and clients:
• 6–8 full outfits (T-shirts, dresses, skirts, shorts, pants)
• 2-3 swimsuits
• 2-3 pairs of pajamas
• A couple of Shabbos outfits
• Enough underwear and socks for a week
• One light sweatshirt
• Sneakers, water shoes/sandals, and Shabbos shoes
That’s it. You’re done.
Try this for even just one kid. See what happens.
Camp Packing Doesn’t Have to Break You
If your older kids are heading to sleepaway camp, take a deep breath. The packing list might look scary, but I promise—more stuff is not the solution.
Stick to what the camp actually tells you to bring. Don’t double it “just in case.” So many times I see kids return home from camp with half their stuff still folded. The other half? Lost—because it was too much to manage, or mildewed at the bottom of a soggy duffel.
Get the Kids Involved (Yes, Even the 3-Year-Old)
When we pare down the wardrobe, it becomes possible—even easy—for kids to manage their own stuff. And they actually like it.
Even toddlers can help sort socks. Older kids? Teach them to do their own laundry. It’s a summer life skill.
So if laundry is making you crazy, it’s okay to do something about it. And beyond just being practical, this is actually a chinuch opportunity.
We’re teaching our kids about:
• Gratitude: When there’s less, we appreciate it more.
• Responsibility: They are responsible for their stuff—managing it, keeping track of it, and not ruining it.
• Bal tashchit: We don’t waste what Hashem gives us—including clothes.
Your kids don’t need a hundred options.
They need a clean shirt they like, a drawer they can manage,
and a mom who isn’t burnt out from the laundry monster.
Practical Tips for Teaching Kids Responsibility
I teach this in my course, but here are a few quick “Tips for Kids” you can start using now to help your kids take responsibility for their stuff:
• If you’re doing messy activities (like painting at day camp or hikes at sleepaway), wear a smock, an old T-shirt, or even a garbage bag over your clothes—or at least move your good clothing out of the way. Don’t ruin what you don’t need to.
• Never leave wet stuff sitting around. The second you’re done with swimming, water play, or a sweaty hike—hang it up. Don’t toss it into a bag and forget it. That’s how things get moldy and ruin everything else in the bag.
• Unpack your swim stuff right when you get home. Or if you’re in camp—as soon as you’re back in the bunk. Hang it on a hook, over the chair, wherever it can dry.
• Keep food away from clothes and beds. I know it sounds obvious, but remind them: no lollipops in bed, no snacks on the blanket, and definitely not while wearing your Shabbos outfit.
• If you spill something or make a mess—clean it up right away. Toothpaste, snacks, drinks—don’t leave it for later. Wipe it now so you don’t have to scrub it later.
• Be aware of what you’re wearing and when. Dress appropriately. If you’re going mud-sliding, put on easy-to-wash clothing. If you’re doing a hike, wear tough clothing that doesn’t rip easily.
• If something gets stained—show Mommy right away. Don’t hide it or wait until it’s dry. If you’re home, bring it straight to her so she can pretreat it before it sets.
• If you’re in camp—Mommy can show you how to do it yourself before you go.
The goal is to help them understand:
“I’m in charge of my stuff.”
When they get that, everything changes.
You’ve got this.
Have a beautiful, light, and laundry-sane summer!
Wow! This is empowering and practical! Makes me want to take stock of my kids clothing drawers right now. I honestly don’t even know how much stuff they currently have. Thanks!
This really resonates, thank you!!
I just want to add that my children – aged 9 and under – don’t own more than 4-5 full weekday outfits because I’m washing laundry anyway on a daily basis in the summer (either that the wet clothes shouldn’t get moldy, or the stains shouldn’t set in…). I don’t see a need for more than that and don’t want to deal with more than that. 9/10 times my kids just pull dry clothes off the rack instead of the folded outfit I prepared for them.
Same here. I aim for 4 full sets for each of my (young) children. 2 swim suits. 2 Shabbos outfits. 1 Friday night pj and a handful of weekday pjs.
They wash wear and repeat.
By the time the clothing wears out (mid season) the stores are all on sale and I can replenish at a much lower cost then had I bought 8 outfits in the beginning of the season. Plus it’s so nice to refresh! And no overstuffed drawers, hampers or pile of smelly clothes this way.
I totally agree but get stuck when it comes to the 9 days and I can’t wash for kids that are starting to get bigger and when we go away for a week in the summer to a hotel they need enough stuff for the day before plus the whole week plus the day after so they really do need more than 4-5 outfits for those few times, or is there a better solution?
I do one 1 load mid-week when we go away for a week.
Most hotels and cabins have laundry services.
Added perk is that you dont come home with bagfuls of icky stuff, and it’s lighter to pack / fly with less.
I had the same dilemma. So I sat with each child and had them choose their favorites (Ellie is right, they easily chose 3-4.) I didn’t get rid of the rest, I put them in labeled fabric bins above their closets, and some even in ziplock challah bags labeled “Chaim backup tees” etc. No one ever opened their backups! I have used some for when we traveled for yomtov and to find a specific color for color war.) The author is right that this is LIFE-CHANGING. I love opening closets now and we find thing so much faster. The best category to start with? Your own head gear (ie snoods/bands), you know you only wear ONE. Why do you have half a drawer full and some random belt you’ve never put on?
I think with less clothes it’s still the same amount of laundry just less of it. Now the kids are complaining their fave and only black shirt is dirty so ur rushing to do a load even if it’s just for two or three items. It probably makes the folding easier but the amount of times u will be doing laundry seems a lot more to me. Less clothes means constant washing bc they do indeed need the items since it’s very few. They can’t just take out another pair. Yea it may be more clothes to fold but less loads to do. U have the liberty to wait till the load will be filled instead of doing a load for only a few items every day.
I have enough clothing for everyone for a week (plus one day) so that I can wash each type of load just once a week! My kids (ages 5, 3, 1) all know to put their clothing in the separated hamper which is a huge help for me!
It comes down to how many people you’re doing laundry for. When I had a smaller family I was able to fit everything in 3 loads on Sundays but BH now it’s easier to do a load or two in middle of the week than do 5 loads once a week. For large families it’s probably most efficient to do a load every day so it’s not overwhelming. Now I need less clothes per child since I’m anyhow doing laundry mid week…
How do you do that?! I only have two tiny kids and I easily do two loads of laundry every single day, often more.
And what about those of us who hate doing laundry? For me it’s worth buying cheaper clothing and having more of it. I do laundry once a week. Yes it’s a lot of loads but MS & Sunday is laundry day and by Monday, latest Tuesday everything is washed, dried, folded and put back in their drawers/closets. Then I don’t have to think about it until the next week! Different strokes for different folks!
Or dont have their own machines, not everyone does – my daughter has to share machines, She can only do laundry 2 days a week (consecutive).
Same here! I have a large family BH, but I keep m laundry system exactly the way you described yours. One thing I do is throw in a “everything” dark load on Wednesday that goes into the dryer. If anyone is short a shirt or pants they can find it there. I don’t fold it though until Sunday.
9 days is still an issue. Only for small children can I wash. Not always are there extra outfits from last year that fit AND that kids would actually agree to wear. Esp this year when Tisha Bav is on Sunday. Friday is already rosh chodesh. So that’s 9 outfits minimum needed (assuming nothing gets too dirty to wear all day) till you can wash Monday afternoon. Maybe a skirt or shorts can be reworn but not tops, not in the summer. They are still in daycamp doing activities. And older kids won’t handle only 2 shabbos outfits when everyone has more. Yes minimization is great but you can’t do it at your kids’ expense.
Minimal clothing I see means something else for everyone. Take swim stuff, I would say 1 is enough, weekday 5 or less is enough
For sure less clothing equals less clutter, but how does it equal less laundry? They’re still going to change just as often, just into the same few outfits or pajamas over and over again. So it’s doing the same amount of laundry, just rewashing the same clothing instead of different outfits in each load…
It’s not less laundry, it’s just that the laundry doesn’t build up as much.
5 tshirts is a lot less overwhelming of a pile then 25 tshirts to fold…
I feel just the opposite.
This is what my kids have always had- 5-6 outfits at the most, 2 for shabbos.
Then I started buying more and suddenly laundry was so much easier!
Instead of running around all the time making sure that everyone has enough clothes. I am now able to wash one full load per kid once a week. Then I fold and put it right back in the closet, no sorting needed. Each day is a different kid, with whites on a separate day.
LOVE THIS.
Started this somewhat on my own but I’ll be bookmarking this!
I really agree about camp. I feel so bad for the boys I see arriving with three duffels full. So overwhelming! Send them what they need! Send a few backups in a bag marked backup and that’s all!
What do people do when it comes to the 9 days and have only 4 or 5 outfits for older kids?