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This subject may seem a little odd, but ever since I started dressing, I've had to discover ways of laundering my feminine undergarments without harming them or calling attention to them. Dresses, skirts, etc. are easily cleaned by including them in what's taken to the dry cleaner, a chore I always volunteer to do. But bras, waist cinchers, panties, girdles, stockings, etc. are another matter, especially since many of those items have to be laundered either by hand or in the washing machine's "Delicate" cold cycle. And then there is always the matter of how to dry all of that intimate apparel. Fortunately, in my case, the basement is where I hang most everything to dry, which is always pleasant and even thrilling for me to do, for seeing all of those garments out in the open is a form of validation. But I'm curious about how others--all of you--handle this everyday mundane challenge?
Livi
I wash almost everything on the delicate cold cycle. Lingerie goes into a mesh bag. Anything that's too delicate for the washer gets hand washed. I air dry everything. Occasionally guests will stop by and I'm sure they've seen things hung up to dry. I'm trans. There's no point hiding.
/EA
@gynaeceum I do all the laundry for wife and I so that helps. At first it was a little tricky washing my panties and camisoles but since coming out to her that’s not an issue anymore but still have to worry about kids seeing certain things on drying rack. In saying that I still hang most of my tops and skirts , pantyhose which are washed in a lingerie bag and hung to dry. One time while folding a load as I was folding a pair of my panties and my son walked in and said” I bet those look good on you” I think/ hope he was kidding but I still replied “ they look great on me”. lol. Like someone else mentioned is the size thing that could easily give it away that it’s not my wife’s as I wear a much larger size. Oh well maybe someone would figure it out. I will admit I do smile when I see my pantyhose and camisoles hanging on the rack.
@gynaeceum Hello Livia, I am lucky I can hang my washing outside on the washing line. My neighbours are a where of my dressing so are ok with seeing female clothes hanging on the clothes line. I will put just female things on the line some days, then other days have a mixture of male/female clothes on there.
I know it is not easy for some of you who do not tell your SO or other people about your dressing, so I am lucky with that. love Helenmarie
I do understand your concerns. I will have to say that I wash my lingerie with my wife's. Given that I am open with and have the support of my wife, that, itself, is not an issue. The difficult part for me is that my wife and I currently live with her parents who are unaware, and would not be supportive to the point of being hostile. As such, I have had to be creative with how I dry my lingerie. Currently, I will hang both my wife's and my lingerie in our bedroom to dry. As my inlaws do not come into our bedroom, it is not generally a problem. However, it is a concern nonetheless as my wife (38C) and me (48B) do not wear anything close to the same size. If anyone pays attention, it is clear that there are two different size bras hanging in our bedroom when drying.
MacKenzie Alexandra
yes delicates have to be hung to dry and I use my bathroom which I proudly display with a smile. As far as dry cleaning I use the same cleaners who know Debbie since I drop off and pick up en femme.
For me it is a mundane challenge as I do two washes a week, light and dark. On the rare occasion I will get something dry cleaned. Hosiery and bras are put in pouches to protect them. I have a secluded outside drying area which is used when the sun shines and I am around but that is usually for towels and bedding as there could be a knicker nicker on the prowl! usually the drying cycle is enough to go on the drying rails, dresses and cardigans on hangers. Some of it needs an iron and that part is often hated by my friends to the point they don't do any. That part is therapeutic when a dress goes from a wrinkly fabric to a smooth garment, ready to wear. Most of what I buy is machine washable and although bras say hand wash as do a few other things it isn't all that necessary and anyway hand washing doesn't do the nails any good....
I've always done my drab laundry at my place where there's just me, so Fiona's clothes have just been added to the wash. Whatever will go on at the same 40° and cope with being washed with my drab darks goes in with them. All are well-washed by now in any case so not really much chance of colour runs. I'm gathering up a whites/delicates/30° load to do. My washing patterns are going to have to change over the summer, it'll be mainly Fiona's stuff and happy to say, very little drab at all 🙂
It all gets dried in the large open-plan doorway between my lounge and dining room on a large collapsible freestanding rack - I have to move it out of the edge of the shot every time I take a photo against that brick corner! I use hangers in that doorway for dresses, as Angela @theunrealangelawagner spotted. I iron my drab jeans and tops in one big session when I get a good load, like 8-10 of each. With each piece of Fiona's wardrobe being more unique, I imagine I'm going to have to get the iron out a lot more frequently for single or just a few items. Ironing is always relaxing and enjoyable for me, and I often take the opportunity while I'm doing it to play music I've not heard before 🙂
Yes, it is a challenge, but a challenge that confirms my femininity.
When I was but a young boy, I can clearly recall the thrill of seeing my mother's stockings (no pantyhose in the 1950s) hung with care to dry in the bathroom. By ten years of age, I was wearing and washing my own.
Fast forward to the present. Similar to most of us, I wash most of my intimates via the delicate cold water wash cycle. I enclose my pantyhose in a net bag. There are a few special pieces of intimate apparel that I hand wash. Waist cinchers and long line bras which have multi eye-hooks tend to grab on to other clothing items if placed in the washing machine and thus require hand washing.
Some intimates I place through the low-heat drying cycle in the dryer, while others I will hang to dry in the lower-level finished basement where the laundry is.
I wash almost everything in cold water, so things are rarely a problem. I put bras, hosiery, and if needed, panty girdles (in the summer when I'm not wearing control top hosiery) into mesh lingerie bags and add it to my laundry. I mix my boy clothes with my girl clothes, and whatever needs to be hung (be it lingerie or the material) will be brought upstairs. I have a room on the top floor that gets quite warm and things usually dry pretty quickly there. I have 2 dryer racks so I can stretch out skirts or dresses across 2 rungs giving them more space to dry. I try to avoid dry cleaning because of the expense. I've also seen items that say dry clean when they are made of the same material in the same proportions as other items I have. I'll usually wash those in the machine but for safety will hang them to dry.
Of course, putting away things becomes a chore because I have to separate the skirts, jeans, men's pants, gym shorts, women's only tops, women's tops that I wear in guy mode. When we're in the in-between seasons there are long and short sleeve tops. Some are "hang up" tops while others are "put in drawer" tops I also have tee shirts that I wear for gym. There are so many different piles to sort things into before putting them away.
I have a few items that are washed by hand. Everything else gets washed together. My wife's and my clothes get washed together, seperated when dried. We both have items that get hung up to dry. I have two umbrella style cloths lines in the back yard. I love being at the laundry mat watching the panties tumble around in the dryer.
I, like Emily Alt, am a full time girl, so there's not a single piece of drab wear. So everything gets done in a front load washer on cold delicate setting with all lingerie in mesh bags. All lingerie is air dried.
Hugs,
Ms. Lauren M
I have to say that it's one of the great benefits of no longer being in the closet that I can easily (and regularly) launder my clothes. No more surreptitious washing of my 'smalls' and the trying to find a secret drying place!
I have been instructed on the ways of the washer by my partner and as part of my transition from 'unemployed bloke' to 'housewife', the laundry is one of my regular tasks.
The DADT set up in this house means I must do Caty's lingerie when the "Boss" is not home.Most times I dont have enough to warrant running the washing machine, so all of the above is hand washed and gently rung out
As for drying. I have two wardrobes, (my bedroom and my study/den) that are reasonably private, so old sheets and towels go on top of (mostly) my wine collection to collect the water drips and I leave it all in these hidey holes until its dry.
I have a collapsible drying rack in my storage unit about 30mins for home, so sometime, (especially summer for the silkies), I take them down to have more time to be hung on hangers under the dryer to dry out.
Right now with the warm summer nights behind me, I have nearly finished washing all my summer silkies. When dry, they go down in the unit to "avoid prying eyes". Again I thank the storage Gods for giving me a unit with power and light.
As for the "non silkies", once its all dry, I really enjoy sitting on my bed "in the early morning light", still dressed "nighttime femme", bra, forms and sleepwear and carefully fold it all and put it away in my dresser drawers. Male me just throws "his stuff" where it will fit.....
Then follows a "ritual". Lingerie change** for the (underdressed) day, moisturiser to stop the "forms itch", femme pj's put away, back to male drab. Occasional bruise cream where my bra band has been on my ribs, hearing aids in, then out to say good morning to my "nearest and dearest"
To paraphrase (who was it Hermit the frog), "its not easy being CD".
Caty.
** Sit on my bed, tuck "male me" back between my legs, hopefully with breast forms that have not fallen off. Remove bra, panties and camisole and replace with fresh pieces. Winter with short sleeve thermal cami, undo bra, drop bra straps and remove bra through cami neck Oh so "femme when it works!!
I forgot to say that the unit is where I keep an iron and ironing board for the silkies. Nighties, pj's and my dressing gown will be hung underneath an old nylon/polyester gown to keep the dust off until next summer. Camis and french knickersm carefull folded and placed in storage bags.
I do Suzanne's laundry when my wife is out of the house. Bras get clipped so as not to snag anything which so far hasn't been a problem (I learned that from my wife). Everything except bras goes in the dryer. The bras get hung up in my study/office where I store Suzanne's clothes. My wife in well aware of where things are so it is not an issue, she has gone in looking for a top a few times. Pantyhose and stockings get handwashed and hung in the same place.
XOXO
Suzanne
Well long story short, my wife washes my panties now. I wear them everyday. My bras and pantyhose I do by hand. My dresses I dry clean. My corset is dry cleaned.
Hi Livia, Everything except the few dry cleaning items go into the washer on cool or warm cycle. All delicates go into a mesh bag with bras being hooked so as not to snag something else. Things get a gentle tumble dry on low heat and the delicates go on the line on our sun porch (they usually dry in about 1 hour there). My wife and I know what items belong to each of us and we just fold and place them into our own basket for put away. I rarely do hand washing except for very special items or spot removal. Sometimes my wife and I just have everything combined on a washday and sometimes I do my own laundry load. And that's how it's done at our house. Marg
