Knickers to that
January 18th, 2010
Dear Melissa
I am at my wit’s end about something I feel terrible about even mentioning. My elderly mother lives in a residential home, which is absolutely charming apart from one minor issue - they are constantly mixing up laundry. Nearly every month, she asks me if I could drop in some fresh underwear for her, as her drawer has been filled with a quite random selection of greying, baggy smalls, none of which remotely resembles the crisp white M&S supplies I’ve provided.
I would happily do her laundry myself, but we live too far away. I’ve mentioned it to the care team but there’s been no improvement. Short of sewing in Cash’s nametapes, do you have a cunning solution?
Yours in despair
Mrs B. Loomer
Dear Mrs B
Communal laundry can throw up some lucky dips - I still have a vintage U2 tour t-shirt that wound up in my college drier - but only if what you’re pulling out is nicer than what you’re putting in. Rather than sewing in nametapes (zzzz), I would suggest a tactic my mother used to great effect at school: order 20 pairs of knickers from a quality source (Damart is excellent) in distinctive bright red or peacock blue. There’s no excuse for the laundry to mistake such flamboyant undergarments in a sea of greying cotton, and your mother will have the bonus thrill of knowing she’s sporting ‘trademark lingerie’.
Hope that helps!
Love, Melissa