I’m a laundry pro – try one of four ways for folding shirts to keep them organized and tidy
LAUNDRY is a tedious chore, but rushing through it will leave your closet in disarray.
Next time you're folding shirts, try these four expert-approved methods to make quick work and a pile of tidy clothes.
You might find that just one of these four methods works best for your wardrobe, or you may be able to use different folds for different family members' clothes.
According to The Spruce, and save space in your wardrobe or drawers – provided you store them correctly.
"The way you store your shirts is just as important as the way that you fold them," the experts write.
You can stack shirts that are folded flat on shelves, or you can use dividers in drawers to separate rows of shirts and keep them aligned.
RECTANGLE FOLD
The fastest way to fold a shirt is by making it into a rectangle, the experts wrote. To start this three-step fold, place the shirt facedown on a flat surface.
Then, fold the sides in, first bringing the right shoulder and bottom corner to the center, then the left.
It's okay for the shoulders to have some overlap.
Smooth out any wrinkles, then lift the bottom corners up to the collar.
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"The result will be a neatly folded flat rectangle which prevents the shirt from being too bulky to store and keeps wrinkles out," the experts wrote.
SQUARE FOLD
A square fold is great if you need your shirts to take up less surface area, or if you want a neat, symmetrical look.
Place the shirt face-down on your folding surface, then fold it in half lengthwise.
Fold the sleeves over on top of the shirt – tucking them in this way should transform the shirt into a long rectangle.
Then fold, flip, and fold again: bring the bottom of the shirt up, so it barely touches the bottom corner of the folded sleeves.
"Then, fold it in half again, flip it over and you'll have a nicely folded square," instructed the experts at The Spruce.
BURRITO FOLD
An especially good option for saving space, the "burrito" fold is also an ideal method for packing shirts when traveling.
Like in the previous methods, start with your shirt face-down.
"Take the right shoulder and bottom right corner of the shirt and fold them longways towards the center of the shirt," the experts instructed.
Then, do the same thing to the left side.
"Take the left shoulder and the bottom left corner and fold them longways towards the center of the shirt, overlapping the folded right side."
Now it's time for the fun part. Starting with the collar, start rolling the shirt down toward the bottom, where you'll tuck it tightly into the bottom cuff.
This has the bonus benefit of keeping your shirt folded even if it gets dislodged from its place in its drawer.
HALF-FOLD
You can fold your shirt in half to make graphics easy to see. Put it face down, then fold it exactly in half vertically, matching shoulder to shoulder.
Make a long rectangle by tucking the sleeves towards the center fold.
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Then, bring the bottom of the shirt towards the collar, smoothing wrinkles as you go, until the shirt is neatly folded in half.
Organizing your shirts is the fun part. Try color-coding them, or put them into categories: band shirts, branded t-shirts, summer camp, or school shirts.