Laundry: The Home Comforts Book of Caring for Clothes and Linens

by Cheryl Mendelson

For Cheryl Mendelson, laundering is the best part of housekeeping. It’s full of physical pleasures—the look of favorite clothes restored to freshness and beauty, the tactile satisfaction of crisp linens in beautifully folded stacks. Good laundering preserves things you love and protects your pocketbook. It doesn’t take much time or effort. What it takes is knowledge, and Laundry is the comprehensive, entertaining, and inspiring book on the art of laundering. Culled from the bestselling Home Comforts, with revised and updated information and a new introduction, Laundry is an indispensable guide to caring for all the cloth in one’s from kitchen rags to bedding, hand-washables, and baby clothes to vintage linens. Mendelson offers detailed guidance on when to disregard labels, removing stains, making environmentally informed choices, sewing, and storing clothing and fabrics. A much-needed antidote to the standard-issue how-to manual, Laundry celebrates the satisfactions of ironing, folding, and caring for clothes and linens. Both pragmatic and eloquent, Mendelson provides beginning and veteran homemakers with a seamless combination of reliable instruction, time-tested advice, and fascinating personal narrative. As a farm girl in Pennsylvania, Mendelson—who is a philosopher, lawyer, and professor, as well as a homemaker, wife, and mother—received a classic domestic education from her grandmothers, aunts, and mother. Laundry combines the best of the traditional lore they taught her with the latest in technical and scientific information. Writing with infectious love and respect for her subject, Mendelson is sure to instill in readers a newfound affection and appreciation for the art of laundering.

Genres: Reference, Nonfiction, How To, Domestic

420 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 4, 2005

Reviews

[Helena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't realize when I picked this up at the library that it's basically all the laundry info from Home Comforts in its own book. I would say this is a great resource on laundry, but if you're that into the techniques of home care, odds are you'd do better with the aforementioned title. Also, note that the section on laundering cloth diapers applies to cotton prefolds *only*, so if you use BumGenius or any of the many other brands of clothies out there that are not prefolds, do not follow her advice. I was a little disappointed about that, just because the book is touted as being updated, and it is so carefully researched overall, that I felt like it wouldn't have been hard to update that section too.

[Jenny Preston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually learned the cycles on my machine, getting out stubborn stinks and stains. Don't try to read through this unless you are a super nerd, but it's a priceless reference for my home.

[DDog · Rating 5 out of 5]

I might pick up the original book, this one was great. I’m going to condense some of the info into charts and tables so I can have a handy reference. My previous laundry strategy was just tossing everything in together on a regular cold wash and normal dry, except sheets which get hot water per UfYH, so I hope my new knowledge will help me take better care of my clothing.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the history of laundry. The major points of this book are found in Cheryl Mendelson's other tome. I am happy there is a separate volume for laundry, which I consider to be my life's work.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not ashamed to say that I love doing laundry. So naturally, when I came across this book at the library I decided to check it out. I didn't read it cover to cover but the information I gleaned was very interesting and useful. For example, I learned what all those symbols on clothing care tags mean. Very helpful. I also learned how to properly make a bed, which I will probably never do because I hate making beds properly. All in all, an interesting volume about a seemingly uninteresting topic.

[Steph · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really didn't find this very practical or hands-on for me. Perhaps I am not the targeted audience. I am a homemaker that homeschools our children, and really do not think women "can" do it all...or "should." The author seems to target highly educated, working mothers that "choose" to stay home. Elite. I am educated, and I do choose to stay home, but I still didn't feel like she was talking to me. I tried to skim information from the book, but the comparisons she referenced were really not like me.

[Christine Kenney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Granted, it was useful to have this much info consolidated into one place. It would have been helpful to have skimmed this in my younger, more experimental days. The health impacts of laundry chemicals and environmental segments were pretty perfunctory for such an encyclopedic work. You could get more of an overview of responsible garment design from a Patagonia catalog. The "gentle" cleaners suggested all indexed in the D to F range on EWG. Very little was said about the health ramifications of a dry-clean only wardrobe.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, learned a lot about the appropriate way to care for textiles in the home.

[S · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very informative book with a lot of useful tips and history of laundry. Though I knew quite a fair bit, it is quite interesting to discover nuggets of information.

[Hannah Schmidt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entirely comprehensive. Be sure to read chapter eleven!