Laundry has become the bane of my life. I’ve always hated laundry and the task has been made so much worse since having a baby. It’s never ending. I honestly don’t know how such a small person can create so much washing. I’m just so thankful that we now live in a flat with a garden. Since I met my husband we have lived in a variety of flats and one house, none of which had gardens and this served only to make the arduous task of laundry that less enjoyable. Living in a small space is not easy to begin with but when you don’t have room for a tumble dryer it makes the whole situation even worse. You end up with clothes airers all over the house and damp washing sitting around that takes forever to dry. I used to dream of having a garden not so much so that we could sit outside and enjoy the fresh air of a sunny evening but so that I could dry my laundry outside and get it out of the house! I feel so middle aged just typing that!! But it’s true.
So when I heard about Brabantia‘s new campaign to celebrate the ‘Joy of Outdoor Laundry’ I completely got it!!! It might sound like an exaggeration to say that doing your laundry outside is a joy but it’s really not! Anything that takes away the hassle and inconvenience of having laundry scattered all over your house is a joy in my book. The Love Nature campaign encourages us to dry our laundry naturally which has many benefits.
Every time you are drying your laundry naturally, you’re being kinder to nature. It’s gentler for your clothes, saves money and energy, and is better for the environment too! It’s just one of those small things you can do at home to make a difference. And doing good is feeling good.
Tijn van Elderen, CEO of Brabantia
I was lucky enough to road test some of the newest laundry products on offer from Brabantia and I can say in all honesty that they not only look great, but they offer loads of advantages when it comes to practicality.
The first product I had the pleasure of testing out was the new Tower Drying Rack which provides up a 23 metres of flexible drying space on just one square metre of floor. What i really love about this airer is the fact that it can take on a full machine load of laundry. Previously, I needed to use two separate airers to dry a full load which took up a whole lot more floor space and meant I hads to dry laundry in two seperate rooms. Definitely not ideal. The rack has four adjustable wings that can be folded out at various angles to meet your needs and which are ideal for drying longer garments like trousers or long skirts. However, they can also be used for drying delicate items that need to be laid flat to dry. The rack also has a simple transport lock which makes it easy to move around even when fully loaded up with washing so you can move it pretty easily from inside to outdoors and vice versa depending on the weather. And when not in use it folds flat for compact storage. It is really sturdy and robust, not like these cheaper airers that tend to buckle under the pressure and weight of the washing and end up breaking.
The next product that I chose to trial is Brabantia’s foldable laundry bag which I have to say is an absolutely genius idea. I so wish that I had had one of these in my student days and if you know any students heading off to Uni in September then this would make a really useful and really trendy gift for them. I hated having to trapse to the laundrette on campus lugging my dirty smalls in whatever bag was big enough. But if I’d have had one of these trendy show stoppers I’d have felt a lot more comfortable making the weekly washing trip. It was even worse when I was at University in Paris as I had to march a fair distance through the city to reach the nearest laundrette and I can tell you now I did not look chic with my laundry in tow! Thios would have been the perfect solution. But even if you have the facilities to do your washing at home it comes in handy. When closed, the sturdy textile bag has a Quick-drop opening you can toss your dirty laundry right into easily and once full you can fold the top into handles and carry your bag straight to the machine to empty it. Genius! For the fashion conscious the Brabantia Laundry Bags are available in two different designs and six beautiful colours: Pastel Mint, Warm Red, Pastel Pink, Cool Grey, Royal Blue or Chic Black. I opted for the Pastel Pink bag in the oval design and it has been really handy. I especially use it for transporting my washing out to the garden to hang on the line.
The final product I was lucky enough to test drive was the Selector Laundry Bin. Nobody has time to sort their washing on laundry day and it’s just so much easier to separate it as you go along so that’s why these bins are especially useful not to mention practical. The 55 litre Selector Laundry Bin has a smart double Quick-Drop Lid and a removable, washable cotton laundry bag with two compartments and a handy Velcro closure. It’s basically two laundry bins in one but taking up far less space. The lightweight lid can be removed and hooked on to the top rim of the bin for easy access to the contents which is an added bonus. I also really like the shape of it as the relatively flat back means that it can be positioned nicely against the wall and out of the way. 
The products that I have been trialling from Brabantia have really impressed me although that wasn’t a huge surprise. The quality is just second to none and the emphasis on design and practicality is unrivalled. Brabantia is always my first port of call for homewares. But what I find so great about the Love Nature campaign is not just the wonderful selection of laundry products on offer but the fact that the design brand is also doing something for the environment. Brabantia has teamed up with international non-profit organisation WeForest to donate one tree for every Brabantia rotary dryer that is purchased. WeForest is dedicated to bio-diverse tree planting in tropical countries all over the world, helping to cool the climate whilst providing jobs for those in the poorest countries. Supporting this great work, Brabantia has set a goal to plant 500,000 trees.
Making good products more visible to consumers and influencing their habits to buy less and better is what we like doing. Planting a tree for every thing we do, for everything we consume will enable us all to Make Earth Cooler in no time!
Marie-Noelle Keijzer, CEO of WeForest
I think this is a wonderful campaign and I’m glad to see Brabantia is supporting such a worthy cause.
Disclosure: This post has been written in partnership with Brabantia who provided the product for us to review. However, all the opinions in this review are our own and we stress that we only collaborate with brands and companies that we genuinely like and believe that our readers will like too.
Are those in the last picture really socks? On one hand they’re lovely, so small, like for babies and kids. On the other hand they’re so many! ;-) And so many shades of green.