Hey ladies, my husband has finally caved and is going to put a clothes line in for me ( as most of my clothes get air dried) . Anyway is it best to put it in a place with a lot of sun? And do clothes pins leave dents or wrinkles in the clothes? If they do what should I use to hang them?
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Clothes line question
- Thread starter Grant Fan
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magnolia76
One of the Regulars
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I don't know if there is a specific way, but I love the idea of a clothesline. I drove by an adorable house that had two different clotheslines in there front yard, and they did it just perfectly. The yard was large, surrounded by trees, and the clothesline was in the middle of the yard looking fabulous. If I can remember where it was, I will post a picture. I will definitely have one, they are so practical!
lareine
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Clothespegs can leave dents, but if you hang garments by non-dentable parts (e.g. hems, seams, waistbands) it shouldn't be a big issue. There are lots of different types of pegs available. I like the single-ended ones with springs in them, but the double-ended fixed ones are handy for grabbing from a peg bag, as they're always the right way up 
Don't hang the line in full sun unless you are only using it for whites which will benefit from a bit of sun-bleaching. Dark colours will fade over time if you dry them in full sunshine. Ideally you'd have one line in full sun and another under cover but with good ventilation, to take care of whites and coloureds.
Somewhere sheltered from high winds is good too, unless you like hunting through next door's garden for your scanties after a sudden storm blew up while you were away from the house...
Don't hang the line in full sun unless you are only using it for whites which will benefit from a bit of sun-bleaching. Dark colours will fade over time if you dry them in full sunshine. Ideally you'd have one line in full sun and another under cover but with good ventilation, to take care of whites and coloureds.
Somewhere sheltered from high winds is good too, unless you like hunting through next door's garden for your scanties after a sudden storm blew up while you were away from the house...
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I like the idea of the two clotheslines. A clothesline on a porch is a wonderful thing, if you have a porch. Then you can dry the clothes in any kind of weather!
As far as hanging, I hang my things inside out to keep them from fading too badly, even in the shade. Put sheets facing away from the sun, pillowcases and clothes inside out, etc. As far as the dents, you'll learn to place the clothespins in the best places. Typically the shoulders, waistbands, or hems. If you have ultra-sensitive things, I've hung the clothes on clothes hangers off the line, and clipped the clothes hanger to the line itself using clothespins. Your unmentionables are hung on the interior line. Or away from the neighbors.
They say that the traditional clothespins don't leave dents as badly as the spring kind, but I'm pretty attached to spring clothespins myself.
It's a really good idea to put in some sort of ratcheting device on your line. Your line will eventually slacken and it's nice to not have to untie it every time it does. Also make sure your line is high enough to keep out of the way of pets. Dogs seem to think that stealing clothes off the line is super super fun. As is "keep away" with said items. Or maybe I just know some weird dogs. There's nothing quite akin to seeing your German Shepard mix running around with your underwear in his mouth like it's some sort of bizarre prize in front of the neighbors.
A clothesline on a porch is a wonderful thing, if you have a porch. Then you can dry the clothes in any kind of weather! As far as hanging, I hang my things inside out to keep them from fading too badly, even in the shade. Put sheets facing away from the sun, pillowcases and clothes inside out, etc. As far as the dents, you'll learn to place the clothespins in the best places. Typically the shoulders, waistbands, or hems. If you have ultra-sensitive things, I've hung the clothes on clothes hangers off the line, and clipped the clothes hanger to the line itself using clothespins. Your unmentionables are hung on the interior line. Or away from the neighbors.
They say that the traditional clothespins don't leave dents as badly as the spring kind, but I'm pretty attached to spring clothespins myself.
It's a really good idea to put in some sort of ratcheting device on your line. Your line will eventually slacken and it's nice to not have to untie it every time it does. Also make sure your line is high enough to keep out of the way of pets. Dogs seem to think that stealing clothes off the line is super super fun. As is "keep away" with said items. Or maybe I just know some weird dogs. There's nothing quite akin to seeing your German Shepard mix running around with your underwear in his mouth like it's some sort of bizarre prize in front of the neighbors.
Last edited:
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This is from my 1001 household tips book:
magnolia76
One of the Regulars
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- Boston to Charleston
This is from my 1001 household tips book:
Thanks Lady Day. I just pinned this!
chanteuseCarey
Call Me a Cab
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though not much here on how to hang ladies things though, except for dresses by the hem.
chanteuseCarey
Call Me a Cab
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Grant Fan, I have lots of clothes that have to be handwashed and line dried too!
CaramelSmoothie
Practically Family
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When I used to hang clothes, I made sure to put it out when the sun was the hottest. The clothes dried in snap. I also remember the clothing attracting very tiny red bugs, but i would just brush them off. I have been hearing that in some neighborhoods, people are complaining that clothing lines are unsightly. So think about how you will deal with this if neighbors start to complain.
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Saw this in new posts. Full sun works well but remember it can fade or damage dome items if left too long.I hang shirts on plastic hangers to dry on the line. many looked like they are nearly pressed when dry.
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Hang dresses like men's shirts: by the lower edges of the skirt unless the skirt is bias cut. If bias cut skirt, hand the dress over the lie by the waist and pin. Flip half way if needed.
As far as where to place the clothes line, I prefer bright shade. That way you don't have as much of a risk of sun bleaching.
As far as where to place the clothes line, I prefer bright shade. That way you don't have as much of a risk of sun bleaching.
