5 techniques for folding a dress: Which one worked for you?
In this blog post, I will show you the most popular techniques for folding clothes. I will describe each technique in detail from the perspective of an outerwear item. This way you can learn new techniques and easily compare the different methods!
Try all the folds and choose the most practical one for you!
KonMari dress folding
Made famous by Marie Kondo, dress folding helps keep many people’s wardrobes tidy. The folding technique aims to make folded clothes form a rectangle shape and stand vertically next to each other. This is practical because it means that clothes take up much less space in the wardrobe. KonMari folding in drawers is very easy to do. The big advantage is that you can see all the clothes folded in this way, whereas with traditional folding you can only see the topmost piece. This means that you don’t have to open the drawer when you are looking for a particular garment and therefore you can create a more sustainable system in the drawers. To make this system more aesthetic and logical, use a drawer divider or drawer organizer. These can also help you easily separate clothing categories.
To make this method of folding clothes as easy as possible in a wardrobe with shelving, I recommend you to divide your shelves into drawers! You can do this by organizing your folded clothing categories into different storage baskets.
Remember to label your bins so that you can lift the right basket off the shelf at a glance when you’re getting dressed.
But what exactly does KonMari clothes folding look like in practice?
Smooth out the shirt with your hands
Fold in the two sides of the outer garment, then arrange the sleeves
Fold the top in half, then fold it over two more times. For thicker fabrics, fold only one.
The result is a rectangle that fits snugly vertically. Put the resulting garment in a drawer or sorting box!
Traditional folding jazzed up
I don’t think anyone needs to be introduced to traditional folding. If you don’t feel like learning new techniques because it’s a quick and easy way to fold clothes, you should make the most of it, both in terms of storage and efficiency of the folding technique.
There are various tricks to make even traditionally folded clothes wrinkle-free and uniform in size.
This may seem like a really good trick for children who are just learning to fold, as experienced housewives can certainly fold clothes to perfection in a few seconds without any help. To keep traditionally folded clothes from getting mixed up on the shelf and to lift everything off easily, use a shelf separator! All of the clothes on the shelf are clearly visible when folded this way, but lifting the bottom piece can be tricky and clothes arranged in a column can fall over. With a shelf divider you can avoid this!
Having trouble with traditional folding? Follow these steps and tricks!
Lay the top down on a hard surface with the back on top
Find a book or folder about half the size of the top
Fit the book lengthwise to the neck between the shoulders of the garment
Then fold the dress in the traditional way. So fold the sleeves in, then fold the garment in half.
Flip the folded top over and carefully pull out the book or folder you used to help! This method makes folding clothes proportionally doable and easy for kids!
The easiest way to fold a top
If you’re looking for a way to get your child to fold their own clothes, you might want to try this method of folding that everyone knows well. You could also call it traditional folding, as it is a method that many people prefer. But what exactly do I mean? Here are the steps!
Lay the t-shirt out on a flat surface
Fold the garment in half so that the sleeves fit together
Then fold the sleeves back and fold the garment in half. If it’s a larger size, fold it in half once and you’re done
This is probably one of the easiest ways to fold a dress, but it’s not the best way to do it in terms of wrinkles and space. Still, for younger children, it can be a winner, as they can learn to fold their clothes easily and can put them away on their own.
Folding clothes in two seconds
Once a very popular folding technique, this two-second method once burst onto the internet. At first glance, the end result may appear to be the same as traditional clothes folding, so you can get the same results in terms of storage if you fold your clothes this way.
The advantage of folding, as the name suggests, is that it is very quick, but it also requires practice.
The disadvantage is that although the garment looks aesthetically pleated when folded, in fact when unfolded the folds are not proportional and symmetrical, so the outer garment wrinkles more. It’s a fun folding method, but it can only be done on t-shirts, which is also a disadvantage.
I recommend this method for teenagers and playful dads, because it really does feel like you can fold clothes magically, which can motivate them to put their own stuff away aesthetically!
Let’s see the steps of the two-second folding process! It may sound complicated at first, but the execution is simple!
Lay the T-shirt on a hard surface with the neck towards your left hand
Draw two imaginary lines. One halfway across the shirt, and the other half lengthwise along the left edge of the shirt, about 5 to 10 centimetres from the side of the garment, depending on whether it’s an adult or children’s shirt.
The two lines will meet at a point called point A.
The starting point at the top of the T-shirt is called point B and the bottom of the line is called point C.
Take points A and B, holding point B, bring your hand to point C and pinch it between your fingers, while keeping point A in your hand.
Your hands cross, but as soon as you lift the shirt up this changes. This will give you a shirt that looks like a traditional dress fold!
Rolling instead of folding
The advantage of roll-rolled dresses is that they take up little space. For this reason, they are most commonly used when packing a suitcase for travel. Some garments may wrinkle less when placed in the suitcase in this way, but storing clothes in this way may not be the best choice for long term storage.
If you have a very small wardrobe, you may want to try this folding technique, but always bear in mind that it is not good for the bottom of your clothes.
In order to keep the roll, a small part of the fabric has to be folded back, which can stretch over time, shortening the life of the garment.
What are the steps of the rolling process?
Fold back the bottom of a loose T-shirt about 3 to 4 sleeves thick
Fold the T-shirt in thirds in the usual way, i.e. fold the sleeves in with the sides
Start to roll up the T-shirt starting from the neck
Fold the rolled up part over the rolled up T-shirt so that the carefully rolled up garment does not open. Place the rollers in a textile drawer organiser to prevent them from rolling around in your wardrobe.
What technique do you use to fold your clothes? Do you have a tried and tested method or have I just shown you something new you’d like to try? The key to wardrobe organisation is to find a way of folding your clothes that allows you to create a sustainable system and find all the pieces easily without having to keep going through your clothes!
