Washing lines

What an interesting question Missfoodlove !! I love Gransnet because it always make me think about things! When I read this I remembered that as a young child in the early sixties a whirligig was how I defined a ‘poor’ area. I ask myself where I got that from and can only think of one thing. My father came from a very posh family and my mothers family were Scottish crofters and very poor. My Scottish granny had a whirligig. I loved watching her multi coloured bloomers flying around in the wind when I visited with my mother but I remember all her washing disappeared and whirligig was put in the shed when my father was around !

My washing always goes out, living near the Atlantic though does mean strong pegs are a must!

Our old neighbour used to hang her husband's large white cotton Y-fronts side by side on the line.

One day, she told me that her husband had problems buying trousers because he was 'long in the drop'!!

Yes, we know, I thought

My English granny, who came from a posh background, even though her branch of the family had fallen upon harder times, used to lay some of her laundry out on the grass - mainly towels and tea towels. I think this was to catch the maximum bleaching effect of the sun. When my other, Scottish, granny came to stay with us, my mum was embarrassed to think that neighbours would think she had taken to wearing long combinations. She used to get irritated by our pinching the clothes line to use for skipping games.
Sorry, off topic - of course it's not 'common' to hang out the washing. It was and still should be, a matter of pride to have lovely clean laundry blowing on the line.

My mum always kept a spin dryer.

I must be particularly common as I hang out my washing EVERY day. I don't use detergent for environmental reasons, only soap powder so have never owned a washing machine or dryer, (have a spindrer tho'). My laundry is done in the big old sink every morning as I hate the thought of soiled clothes hanging around. My daughters think I'm mad, but it's me they turn to if they want silk items washed. Large things like curtains & loose covers are done in the bath, & I'm lucky to have a south facing garden to dry it all.

No it’s the best way to dry large items and I love the look and smell of it .
My husband is Scottish and I found out the hard way not to hang out washing on Sunday near the coast when a sheet blew off and travelled over the fields for quite some way before being returned by an irate farmer !!! To be honest he would have been cross whatever day it was !

Hang out the washing - my mother would be horrified at any other way

Well, if you’re common so am I and most of my friends. However I do think most younger people would rather use a tumble dryer, but they don%to know how lovely washing smells when it comes in from the fresh air.
I never hang washing out on a Sunday, as that was instilled in me by my mother.

It’s the highlight of my day when it’s sunny and I can get my washing out. But I’m just 60 and a happy Geordie!

*day in

My mum had a long washing line and it was always full, but she also used St George’s laundry for shirts and sheets.
There was my dad, and my 5 brothers all wearing shirts each Dayan our house.

I love to hang the washing out. It’s a joy to get it outside on a sunny, breezy day and have it all nicely dry by the evening.

We tumble dry some items and hang out those which can’t be tumbled.
I like the line to look tidy and I always colour co-ordinate the pegs with the item.
I don’t put underwear out on the line, neither did my mother.

I always hang washing out.

No way would I pay for something that nature will do, free.

BarbieB

Those like GabriellaG54 who think hanging out washing is common are actually the plebs who wannabe be. They are people we used to call nouveau riche, who have pretensions to be upper class but with no idea how those who truly are upper class behave.

I’ve no choice. ( see another thread) my washing machine blew up three weeks ago and I cant get anyone to fit a replacement coz of lockdown. Everything has to go outside to drip dry.

My husband hangs his washing and the sheets and the towels because he washes in the big machine which is downstairs. I do my washing in the small upstairs laundry and use the drier only because I can’t manage the stairs with a laundry basket. But I have never considered hanging your washing on the line common

I hang mine out; so do my neighbours

Hang washing out most of the year but not in depths of winter when it seems to come in damp so I use tumble dryer then.
Am I sad if I say I love to see a line of clean washing blowing on the line, gives me satisfaction to see.
Not so keen on the ironing afterwards. ?

I would love to be able to hang out washing. I have a good sized garden with washing poles. My neighbour has trees over 60 feet high which block the sun and cast debris over my garden. All the cream coloured slabs have gone black. I have hay fever so it would cause me awful problems to dry anything outside

I have had friends over the years from all 'classes' and have never come across anyone who thinks hanging out washing is common - some had staff that did it rather than themselves. I would choose hanging on the line every time, from an environmental perspective but also cost and you can't beat that wonderful smell!

I’ve never heard of a whirlygig is it a rotary clothes line
If so I always like to hang my washing out, I love seeing the clothes blow on a nice sunny day, especially when it used to be lovely white nappies years ago.
I think anyone who thinks it’s common is a snob

How did hanging washing out ever become 'common'? What a ridiculous notion, unless as another poster has said, it means that most people do it when they can. I take pride in avoiding my tumble dryer, and saving energy, and take even greater pride in using wind and solar power to dry my laundry.

Everyone round about us hangs their washing out. A few years ago a young neighbour told me that she had never hung out washing as she thought it was common, however, her sister owned a hairdresser’s shop and her washing machine broke down, so this poor young lassie said her first ever load of washing to hang out was a load of hair dye stained towels. She was sure the neighbours would think she was a black besom!

It honestly has never entered my mind that anyone might frown on neighbours hanging out washing.

I still remember 40 odd years ago how happy I was to move from a flat with a shared drying area to my own garden and able to hang a washing out any day.

No more rota with the neighbours for whose turn it was to have the washing line.