The Laundry Hack That Finally Ended My Morning Chaos

Because I needed one less decision to make before 8 am.

ByAly Lamoreaux

Published OnAugust 15, 2025

Photo by Ty Mecham

You’ve probably heard about Steve Jobs’ iconic uniform: black turtleneck, blue jeans, sneakers. He wore the same thing every day to save his brain power for bigger things—like inventing the iPhone. As a working mom of two under two, I’m not launching a tech revolution, but I am running a high-stakes operation that involves trying to get everyone fed, clothed, and mostly happy before 9 a.m. Between nursing the baby (twice), wrangling my toddler into pants, locating the missing pacifier, and cutting strawberries into toddler-safe pieces, my brain is often at capacity before breakfast.

So when my best friend—a mom of five—told me she only does laundry once a week and never battles her kids over outfits, I needed to know her secret.

How It Works

Her system is as simple as it is genius: On Sunday, she does all the laundry, folds it, and then sorts each child’s clothes for the week into a hanging shoe organizer. Each cubby holds one complete outfit—a shirt, pants, socks, and that night’s pajamas—ready to be grabbed without a second thought. Come morning, each kid grabs that day’s outfit from their assigned organizer, gets dressed, and voila: calmer starts, no negotiations. It sounded almost too good to be true. I’ve tried other “get organized” ideas before, and plenty of other laundry systems—some stick, most don’t. But this one hit all the right notes: it’s visual, tactile, easy to follow, and makes the biggest difference where I need it most—mornings.

Photo by Aly Lamoreaux

Why It Works

Part of the magic is psychological. My husband is a firefighter, and he used to joke that mornings with the kids were more stressful than any calls he went on. If you’ve ever tried to wrangle a squirmy 18-month-old while digging through a pile of laundry for a clean pair of pants, you know the chaos of last-minute scavenger hunts.With the outfits prepped in advance, there’s more calm and less scrambling. No one has to wonder whether the baby’s only clean pajamas are in the dryer, hunt for matching socks, or negotiate with a toddler who suddenly refuses their favorite sweatshirt. The decision-making was done days ago, when your brain wasn’t in fight-or-flight mode.And while this system shines for large families, it works just as well for one baby or two. In fact, it might just be even more of a sanity-saver in households with younger kids, since every extra minute you’re not digging for clean clothes is a minute you can use to sip coffee, prep breakfast, or prevent your toddler from coloring on the walls.

The Laundry Connection

The best part is that this system builds in a natural laundry rhythm. By committing to one big laundry day each week, you avoid the never-ending “laundry purgatory” of half-folded baskets scattered around the house. Everything gets washed, dried, and put away in one swoop.

In our house, Sunday afternoon has now become laundry-and-outfit-prep time. I pour myself an iced coffee, queue up a podcast, and treat it like a low-effort ritual instead of a constant chore. It helps that baby clothes are small—a single load can handle a surprising amount, which makes laundry day more efficient.

How to Try It

If you want to give it a shot, here are some tips for setting it up:

Get a hanging shoe organizer for each of your kids – Pick one with at least five vertical cubbies. They’re inexpensive, fit in most closets, and make it easy to see the week at a glance.

Pick your laundry day – Choose one that gives you enough time to wash, fold, and sort without rushing. Sunday works well for us. Note: We do this just for the kids' clothes—towels, bedding, and our clothes get washed throughout the week.

Check the weather and your schedule – A quick five-day forecast helps for planning outfits that make sense (warm layers if the AC runs cold, sun hats if you’ll be outside, tennis shoes if PE class is on the agenda).

Sort complete outfits – Include everything: top, bottom, socks, and backup onesies if you’re in the blowout stage.

Label if you want to go next-level – Color-coded tags or sticky notes make it foolproof, especially if multiple people handle morning duty.

Let kids help – Even toddlers can point to or “choose” between two pre-approved outfits. It gives them ownership without the chaos and prevents the “I don’t want to wear that!” battle from happening later in the week.

Photo by Aly Lamoreaux

The Bigger Picture

If you’re wondering: “Sure, that’s nice, but does it really make that big a difference?” The answer is yes, it really does. Because it’s not just about the clothes—it’s about reducing the number of fires that need to be put out every day. Decision fatigue is real. We make thousands of micro-decisions each day, and studies show that our brains don’t differentiate much between “What should the baby wear?” and “How should I respond to this important work email?” Both chip away at our mental energy.

By front-loading one small category of choices—our kids’ clothes—we free up space for more important things: eating breakfast while it’s still warm, finding the missing lovey before nap time, or simply sitting still for a moment before diving into the day.

Plus, there’s something deeply satisfying about opening the closet on a Monday morning and seeing neat little stacks of outfits waiting, like a personal assistant quietly saying, I’ve got this for you.

Since adopting this system, I’ve noticed my mornings feel calmer, my laundry feels more manageable, and I no longer find myself frantically searching for a clean onesie right as we need to get out the door. Is it the magic bullet for every parenting stress? No. But it’s one small, repeatable win—and I’ll take every one I can get.

Steve Jobs used his uniform to focus on innovation. I’m using my kids’ pre-prepped outfits to keep our weeks sane. And honestly, that feels just as revolutionary.