Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Works-for-me-Wednesday: Lost Socks


There is a mystery of life that I don't think I'll ever solve this side of heaven: missing socks. How can two socks go into a washer and dryer and only one ever comes out? I truly don't understand how I can have so many socks that are missing their mate...it's become an epidemic.

One slightly effective solution I've come up with is to have a small basket that holds all the bachelor socks. When I'm folding clothes, I can simply go through the basket and look for any matches. It keeps all the strays together and keeps the kids from wearing mismatched socks.

When the basket consistently stays full for three months, I throw out all the socks. If I can't find the mate in three months, I figure I'm never going to find it. But that begs that age old question...

Where do socks go when they lose their mate????
For hundreds of tried and true tips, head over and visit Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer.

9 comments:

Melissa said...

I'm not exaggerating when I tell you I have well over 50 orphaned socks. And, that is just from the time we moved here in June.

I know why about 5-10 pairs have been separated....the evidence lays in the backyard when The Dog goes out to relieve herself (she seems to favor #3's socks with fruit designs on them!) but I can't account for the other 40!

Anonymous said...

Great Tip! One little mystery was solved for me yesterday, when I saw my 6 year old making sock puppets! I said "where did you get those?!" Out of my drawer, she says. Oh. Now at least 4 pair of socks have no more match, unless she wants to wear a sock with a face. :-) Here from Rocks in My Dryer.

~Rhen @yestheyareallmine said...

We have a sock basket, too. As I am sorting laundry I just put all the socks in the sock basket. Then, while I am watching a little tv, talking or whatever I can match up socks at the same time. It is also where the kids go to find missing socks. Works so well!

Livin' Life said...

I can't say much for mine and my Knights socks but for the boys we buy plain white all the same size. I don't match them they get cleaned and all go into a sock bin. When they need socks they sort through and find pairs for themselves. For some reason maybe because we don't have as many pairs my Knight and I can keep them together most of the time.

The Gang's Momma! said...

I have a similar method for dealing with mis-matched or un-matched socks. Except that I seem to be psychologically unable to part with even the orphaned one. I just can't throw them out. I even moved several un-matched ones with me from Mechanicsburg. I just threw out one the other day that BBE grew out of 3 summers ago! I think I need sock therapy.

2 Boys' Mom said...

I rarely have any unmatched socks because I keep a lingerie bag in all my clothes hampers and all socks go in them and make their way through the wash/dry cycle. The only ones that I have problems with are the ones my husband puts directly into the washer with their mate in the lingerie bag.....more training needed.... =)

El Shaddai Ranch said...

I had this problem for years til I read online about pinning socks together before they go in the washer. Works For Me! No more orphans coming out of the dryer for me. I LUV it!

Nikki said...

I like your tip. I consider it permission to purge the sock basket.

I also like the idea from Livin' Life's comment about buying all the same size/same color and letting them find pairs for themselves. Very smart.

I tried pinning mine together years and years ago. But it left little rust spots that I didn't like.

Occasionally we'll take a lonesome sock from the sock basket and make sock puppets or bean bags. One sock I have that I re-purposed years ago I filled with dried beans and sewed up the end and turned into a sock for muscle aches and cramps-- especially for that time of month. (was that a crazy long run-on sentence or what?)

Nikki said...

I meant to say that the bean-filled sock is like a heating pad. We warm it in the microwave for one minute, wrap a thin towel around it and AHHH. relax.