Why oh why is my son in love with white?!

[scrhsa]

We just did this with white sheets, mattress pad, and martial arts uniforms. Soak item in 1/2 gallon of hot water, 1 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup salt for 1-2 hours. Then without rinsing, put in direct sunlight and dry. Then launder as usual. I was skeptical but this totally worked. No amount of oxyclean got anywhere close to what this did. Obviously we won't be doing this every cycle, but it's nice to be able to whiten things up every once in awhile!
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My Mom said that they used to throw their white garments/ sheets etc over the bushes and let sun bleach them when she was a young girl. Side note, she even said that they would put their stover burners out overnight and the dew would clean them. Never tried these Well, I did try the sun bleaced thing accidentally with my colored shirt once

 

[elaine amj]

Definitely have him do his own laundry. He's 15, he's probably got his learner's permit for driving? He's learning how to operate a vehicle, he can learn to wash clothes.

If you're not sure how to teach him something, just have him there with you and explain why you're doing each step. And tell him to ask you any time he has questions. Kids are smart, he'll get it.

Therein lies the problem and why I posted here. He has done his own laundry for years (and does mine a lot of the time too). And has no issues taking care of his whites. My problem right now is I don't know WHAT to teach him. So I am asking for help here and have gotten some amazing tips on how to care for whites.

If he wants to wear all white clothes and isn’t being careful then he needs to help pay to replace them if he ruins them before they wear out or he outgrows them.

He loves his whites and is trying to be super careful with them. I am the one who frayed his new shoes because I was scrubbing them too hard in my inexperience. And a bunch of blue rubbed off on his white hoodie from just laying in bed. Still not sure how as his duvet cover is many years old and has been washed many times. I don't see a need to punish him for this. I certainly would (and have) when it is pure carelessness or wilful destruction. One thing he knows - I will never buy him a pair of white shoes again lol! While he still adores white shoes and continues to be tempted by them, he agrees grey is a MUCH better color choice for light colored shoes.

I do admit I am nervous dealing with these whites. Especially after I damaged his brand new shoes trying to clean them. I am grateful for many of the tips shared here as it will prevent me from many future mistakes. Stuff like not using bleach every cycle because it weakens fibers to learning that bleach turns synthetic fibers grey. Super helpful as I have been bleaching like crazy and wondering why my towels are so white but the shoes are still grey. The whole hot water/vinegar/salt recipe sounds interesting.

I want to learn how to do all this without destroying more of his favourite things in the process. And then I can teach him and he can take it from there.

 

[gwynne]

Therein lies the problem and why I posted here. He has done his own laundry for years (and does mine a lot of the time too). And has no issues taking care of his whites. My problem right now is I don't know WHAT to teach him. So I am asking for help here and have gotten some amazing tips on how to care for whites.



He loves his whites and is trying to be super careful with them. I am the one who frayed his new shoes because I was scrubbing them too hard in my inexperience. And a bunch of blue rubbed off on his white hoodie from just laying in bed. Still not sure how as his duvet cover is many years old and has been washed many times. I don't see a need to punish him for this. I certainly would (and have) when it is pure carelessness or wilful destruction. One thing he knows - I will never buy him a pair of white shoes again lol! While he still adores white shoes and continues to be tempted by them, he agrees grey is a MUCH better color choice for light colored shoes.

I do admit I am nervous dealing with these whites. Especially after I damaged his brand new shoes trying to clean them. I am grateful for many of the tips shared here as it will prevent me from many future mistakes. Stuff like not using bleach every cycle because it weakens fibers to learning that bleach turns synthetic fibers grey. Super helpful as I have been bleaching like crazy and wondering why my towels are so white but the shoes are still grey. The whole hot water/vinegar/salt recipe sounds interesting.

I want to learn how to do all this without destroying more of his favourite things in the process. And then I can teach him and he can take it from there.

So if it were me I'd have him go to the Google. Learn about Clorox, Oxyclean, etc. Then I'd give him a smallish budget and let him product select. He needs to understand these are chemicals. Some, like bleach, you have to be extra careful in the laundry room with. Teach him why. Let him work on the laundry issues, see what works himself.

 

[Hrhpd]

As a mother who loathes laundry (and is not good at it lol) I have been trying to find ways to help him keep his stuff white and clean. Ugh ugh ugh.

Any tips on caring for white clothes?

Have your 16 year old do it.

You should not be doing all this scrubbing and jumping through hoops to keep an almost adult's clothes clean. If he had to do it himself, he may lose his fascination with white.

Since he is willing to learn, let him. It is a skill that will benefit him for the rest of his life.

(sorry, wrote this and let it sit while the rest of the thread evolved. Looks like you got a bunch of good ideas.)