Susan in TN Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Our bath towels are coming apart and I need to get new ones. Dh considers this more urgent than our toaster issue in which everything within 3 feet is burned to a crisp. Since we have 3 full baths, my idea is to buy towels in 3 colors so everyone will always know which towels go where after being laundered and no one will end up with all the towels...(glares at 16yods). Dh doesn't like the idea and thinks we should buy all one color so it won't matter what towel ends up in which bathroom. What says the hive? Do you have a better suggestion? And now where can I find nice quality bathtowels that don't cost $39 apiece :eek:. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Our towels are color coded by person. DH and I share some cornflower blue ones, Oldest ds is green, dd is aqua, and youngest son is red. That way I always know who leaves their towel where it shouldn't be. I'm also teaching the kids to do their own laundry so this way they can easily pull just their towels out of the bin to wash them on their laundry day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Our bath towels are coming apart and I need to get new ones. Dh considers this more urgent than our toaster issue in which everything within 3 feet is burned to a crisp. Since we have 3 full baths, my idea is to buy towels in 3 colors so everyone will always know which towels go where after being laundered and no one will end up with all the towels...(glares at 16yods). Dh doesn't like the idea and thinks we should buy all one color so it won't matter what towel ends up in which bathroom. What says the hive? Do you have a better suggestion? And now where can I find nice quality bathtowels that don't cost $39 apiece :eek:. In our house, I'd say whoever does the laundry would get to make this call about the towel color. Aaaaaand that would be me. :D Believe it or not, I bought several bath towels on sale at Meijer for like $3.99 each about three years ago. They've held up just as well as much more expensive ones we've had from Linens N Things and Kohls and whatever. So, I honestly think it's a crap shoot. That's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 The kids have their towel colors, we have ours. It works great. All the kid colors go to the upstairs bathroom, all the parent colors go to the downstairs bathroom. I'm no help on good towels though...ours are Wal-mart special :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Costco sometimes has good deals on quality bath towels. I really like the bath sheets better--they are bigger! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myeightkiddies Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We had specific colored/design towels for specific bathrooms (3 bathrooms). Now, all I want are plush, white towels. With just white, I can bleach them a little to keep them white (or add bluing), and they can go anywhere and match. I really got tired of policing towels - moving, telling others that x doesn't go in y bathroom, etc. It became too much work. Well, it wasn't that much work but over the years it was increasingly annoying. Now, with all white, I don't even think about it. They look nice and clean and match, and they can go anywhere. When one looks a bit rough, I just buy another fluffy white one to replace it. Easy to match new ones to existing ones. Plus I can paint or redecorate any of the bathrooms without getting a new towel set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We like the towels from Costco. We have master bath towels and kid towels. Each girl has their own color. As a PP mentioned, it is easy to tell who leaves their towel where it doesn't belong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunD Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Try a Burlington Coat Factory if you have one nearby. I would go with different colors for different bathrooms because I've done the all-the-towels-are-in-the-other-bathroom-and-now-I'm-soaking-wet thing myself. And I have no one to blame! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I vote for different colors for the different bathrooms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I vote by color-code by person. Have at least 2 in each color. When you (meaning ideally the towel user) put one in the wash, get a new one out. If there are no new ones, ask how you can help with laundry. Everyone keeps their own towels in the bathroom they are most likely to use. Use another bathroom, go find a towel first 'cause yours aren't going to be in there. I'm tempted by the white towel approach, but I think it would work best if you are a use-em-once household (and have no teen girls;)). If you're a multi-use household, then color-coding is essential, IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photo Ninja Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We have done one color of towels for dh and me, and different colors for each dc. That worked well, and we knew which bathroom the towels went in, and who left one laying on the floor... Then I painted the dc's bathroom, so I went with one color for the towels there, since we needed new ones anyway. Their bathroom looked a bit better with all the towels matching (the dc each had their own towel rack) and we could still tell which towels went in which bathroom. I would probably choose a different color towel for each bathroom because I like variety. I have used Costco towels, and they have held up well as far as not fraying or getting holes, but the color fades after about a year, so I am looking for a different kind of towel now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We had specific colored/design towels for specific bathrooms (3 bathrooms). Now, all I want are plush, white towels. With just white, I can bleach them a little to keep them white (or add bluing), and they can go anywhere and match. I really got tired of policing towels - moving, telling others that x doesn't go in y bathroom, etc. It became too much work. Well, it wasn't that much work but over the years it was increasingly annoying. Now, with all white, I don't even think about it. They look nice and clean and match, and they can go anywhere. When one looks a bit rough, I just buy another fluffy white one to replace it. Easy to match new ones to existing ones. Plus I can paint or redecorate any of the bathrooms without getting a new towel set. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeacefulChaos Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 :lurk5: I had never considered different color towels for different people. Ours were matching with the bathroom. Then I changed the bathroom. Twice. :) Now we have all different colors. And I'm constantly fussing at the boys for using my hair towels for drying off! (They're just the right weight and size for doing that turban thing on top of my head...) Now I have to consider color coded by person for the next time we need towels. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb in NZ Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 2 towels / person here in their color ( toothbrushes, etc. are in the same color ;) ) I bought cheap bath sheets a few years back when the towels we were using looked worse than rags. They were hand-me-downs from my m-i-l & were over 50 years old. I only wash towels 2-3 times a week, so having a color / person keeps who's towel is who's simple & I can tell at a glance who has left their wet towel in their room & not hung it up to air :glare: The cheap towels won't last forever, but should last until most of our dc have moved out. Then I plan to get nice towels for dh & I that match the bathroom :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Keep it simple. Buy all one color, the cheapest you can find, and get twice as many as you need so you can quit worrying about not having enough. Really, life is too short to spend much time worrying about towels. I also bought myself a toaster at Wal-Mart for $6 about a year ago and it's been great, so you can probably take care of that problem too if you go there for your towels ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindergretta Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 (edited) I didn't read the replies because I am being lazy... <bag> My dh and I have white towels. They are *our* towels, no one else is allowed to use them. Ds17 has navy blue, dd15 has hunter green, and dd11 has plum. The younger 3 have "kiddie" towels, kwim? We all used to have white towels, but then dh and I could never find a clean towel for ourselves as the teens were using them and then leaving them on the floor of their rooms, their beds, etc. Now they are strictly limited and *forced* to hang them up as they only each have 2 towels. Towels are washed twice a week, so they have to be wise! :lol: eta - :lol: Went back and read; nothing new in my post! Color coding is popular! (And we did the all white thing for the exact same reasons, too! But when people have to be twits... LOL! I love my white linens - sheets and towels and Costco is awesome for that! I also don't spend much on towels as I figure I am going to have to replace them anyway!) Edited December 31, 2011 by cindergretta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golfcartmama Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 FWIW, I went all white and LOVE it. I can bleach if needed and they're easy to put away. They're also easy to replace piecemeal if needed. Also, most of the major stores have white sales in January. If you can wait a few days, they'll be on sale wherever you shop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Our towels are color-coded by bathroom: Cream and tan in the master, green in the downstairs, dark blue in the boys' and light blue/purple in the girls'. Our exchange students have separate towels (per the exchange program): Light green downstairs; a different shade of light blue upstairs. It makes it really easy to get the right number of towels in each bathroom, because I never have to remember which bathroom needs towels and which doesn't. And our exchange students always have their own towels. :) Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love2read Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 All one color but from different companies so that trim or something else is obviously different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Tara~ Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We color code by person too. Dh and I share colors in our bath, but the kids each have their own so I know who to yell at, er, kindly remind, to pick up their stuff. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Another one who has color coded the kids towels. Each got towel and face clothes in the same color of their choosing. Dh and I have the same color. This has kept lots of squabbles from happening and I know right away whose towel was left on the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hmvaughan4 Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 No advice on color, but I usually get towels from Kohl's when they're on sale. (When is Kohl's not having a sale?!) I get them on Black Friday, but they may be just as cheap during other sales. My brother ordered some really nice ones from Overstock.com, but I have no idea how much they were. They're very fluffy and thick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjgrubbs Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Dh and I have towels that match our bathroom and kids have towels that match their bathroom, but I had their names monogrammed on the ones in their bathroom. They have short names and it cost me only $3 each. We really only have 1 towel for each of us. There are 2 yellow nice yellow towels (match kids bathroom) that I get out when my in-laws or parents come. DH and I do have a backup set (but not as big or absorbent) so generally I just make sure to wash towels every other day so no one is using theirs more than twice. I do have a little head wrap thingy for my hair that MIL put in my stocking 10 years ago - love that thing! Of course, my oldest is 11 so we haven't hit the teen years yet! I will definetly be keeping all these ideas in mind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Next time I buy towels I'm buying all white. I wanted to do that when dh and I got married but everyone poo-pooed it and I gave in. I can't tell you how many towels have been ruined because someone had done something odd with them. If I were able to bleach them this wouldn't be a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfamilygal Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I want to buy all white towels so we can bleach the crap out of them. Ours always smell musty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarreymere Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I also color code the kid towels. Kid towels go in the kid bathroom and are usually from Walmart or someplace like that. Kids wash the kid towels. Mom and Dad towels are a completely different color and style, nicer and bigger, bathsheets not towels, not that DH cares but I do! Woe to the child caught with a Mom towel! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MHowell Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 You all don't bleach colored towels? I wash all towels together, and once the tub is full I add 1/4 cup bleach watered down with 3/4 cup water to the wash. Nothing gets bleach spots but they stay nice and never get any moldy smell. Some of the brighter ones have faded a bit, but not more than they usually do. DD had a bright pink one that si still bright pink. I buy towels at Target, the brightly colored ones for the kids (they pick) and any color for us, we're not picky. But we've been happy with the softness of the towels and they've held up fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalicoKat Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Our bath towels are coming apart and I need to get new ones. Dh considers this more urgent than our toaster issue in which everything within 3 feet is burned to a crisp. Since we have 3 full baths, my idea is to buy towels in 3 colors so everyone will always know which towels go where after being laundered and no one will end up with all the towels...(glares at 16yods). Dh doesn't like the idea and thinks we should buy all one color so it won't matter what towel ends up in which bathroom. What says the hive? Do you have a better suggestion? And now where can I find nice quality bathtowels that don't cost $39 apiece :eek:. This is what we did. In theory it's a great idea. Maybe when they're older the boys will remember. We have 6 different colors (dh & I share the navy colored towels) dd 12 is purple dd 11 is pink ds 8 has light blue ds 6 has green dd 4 has yellow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2cents Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We color code our towels! I wasn't keen on the idea at first since it didn't really fit in with my color scheme but the kids loved picking out their color. It works out great since I know who to get on when a towel isn't hung up or when we find we're washing them too often. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
readinmom Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We also color code by person. Dh and I share, each dc has their own color. We stock up every year when Kohl's has their after Christmas sale. It has worked out fairly well for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 You could get the same color for everyone who shares nicely, but a different color for your one teen offender. "These three towels are Johnny's. Johnny, if you want towels, you will hang these blue ones up. You are banned from the white ones." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I should add that we keep our old towels and washcloths in the laundry room to be used for cleaning up whatever you don't want to clean up with your good bath towels/washcloths. While not everyone does this every time, it does help to have a system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usetoschool Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 When the kids were all young my mom "made" towels for them. The towels were all white but she would put a different color ribbon or trim on them so they could be bleached, but we could still tell who left their towel on the floor. She made pillow cases with the same trim as well. I bought towels at Walmart (and some at Bed, Bath and Beyond) and they shredded quickly but I have some good towels that I bought 10 years ago and they are still looking good. I have some really good ones that I got from my mother-in-law's house when she passed away and they are hanging in my bathroom right now. They have to be 20 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Ours are color coded by bathroom. When my oldest son went through his phase of not bringing the towels back, he got pool towels and those were HIS. If they smelled like mold-his fault for not putting them in the wash (I wasn't going ot find them-you bring it to me, I'll wash it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maus Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 We've only got one bathroom (well, there's a half-bath/mudroom that needs replumbed). Some prior owner installed hooks, instead of a towel rack, so I get our towels from IKEA so that they have a loop attached halfway through the towel. We've just switched to color-coded by family member for the house, because we were using color-coded in our RV and it worked really well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myeightkiddies Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I should add that we keep our old towels and washcloths in the laundry room to be used for cleaning up whatever you don't want to clean up with your good bath towels/washcloths. While not everyone does this every time, it does help to have a system. We do this as well. Since I use fluffy, white ones for our bathrooms, any towel that is a color is a cleaning towel (or wash cloth). I bleach them as needed and don't care if they fade or spot. It's easy to differentiate which towel is for use and which is for cleaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 My towels are color coordinated for different bathrooms. I love the idea of all white towels and am considering it for the bathroom we just remodeled, however, if I had kiddoes helping with laundry, it would be hard to know which bathroom needs the towels when you are folding them. Unless of course, your supply is limitless. My favorite towels are either from Costco, and they have held up really really well, or The Big One from Kohls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeacefulChaos Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 You all don't bleach colored towels? . I do! They don't have bleach spots or anything on them from it, and I throw in a little every time I wash them. they also haven't faded noticeably. We have towels from just about everywhere - we got some from JCP when we got married in 2001 that have held up well. My 'hair towels' are some that I bought at an outlet before I went to college in 2000. DH and I use bath sheets that we got at Value City, I think... and MIL got us some from WalMart that are junk. She got hand towels, wash cloths, and towels (random Christmas gift :lol: ) and we just got them last Christmas and the seams are all falling apart already! Ridiculous. Thats why I don't buy WM towels. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly in IL Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 White washcloths do not come clean after mascara. Don't ask... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 You all don't bleach colored towels? I wash all towels together, and once the tub is full I add 1/4 cup bleach watered down with 3/4 cup water to the wash. Nothing gets bleach spots but they stay nice and never get any moldy smell. Some of the brighter ones have faded a bit, but not more than they usually do. DD had a bright pink one that si still bright pink. I buy towels at Target, the brightly colored ones for the kids (they pick) and any color for us, we're not picky. But we've been happy with the softness of the towels and they've held up fine. I do have colored towels, blue, purple, and turquoise. I bleach very infrequently, if at all. We just hate bleach. BUT, when I do use it, it doesn't wash out the towels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coffeemama Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Maybe I'm mean, but the way i separate towels is old ones go in the kids bath, newer, nicer ones in my bath. ;) I've been slowly changing over to all white towels, i pick up two every few months when I see a 50% off sale. When the ones in the kids bath become pretty ratty, they go to the garage or to MIL to use for her dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 There are no good towels any more. They all ravel out like crazy if you simply pull a thread. There's no help for it. If you buy three colors, you really need to wash them separately or they'll end up with different colored lint all over them. If you buy the same color, you can wash them all together and simply cull as some get into too bad a condition for use.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in TN Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 You could get the same color for everyone who shares nicely, but a different color for your one teen offender. "These three towels are Johnny's. Johnny, if you want towels, you will hang these blue ones up. You are banned from the white ones." Hmmmm...there's an idea. "Johnny" is the only one who uses the downstairs bathroom, unless someone is staying in the guest room. I should add that we keep our old towels and washcloths in the laundry room to be used for cleaning up whatever you don't want to clean up with your good bath towels/washcloths. While not everyone does this every time, it does help to have a system. Great Idea! My dd also suggested that we could cut them into strips and crochet them into bathrugs. We had specific colored/design towels for specific bathrooms (3 bathrooms). Now, all I want are plush, white towels. With just white, I can bleach them a little to keep them white (or add bluing), and they can go anywhere and match. I really got tired of policing towels - moving, telling others that x doesn't go in y bathroom, etc. It became too much work. Well, it wasn't that much work but over the years it was increasingly annoying. Now, with all white, I don't even think about it. They look nice and clean and match, and they can go anywhere. When one looks a bit rough, I just buy another fluffy white one to replace it. Easy to match new ones to existing ones. Plus I can paint or redecorate any of the bathrooms without getting a new towel set. This is very tempting. Especially one post's suggestion of buying way too many towels so you just won't run out. My only hesitation is that dh CAN NOT stand even a hint of bleach smell. And most of my kids do their own laundry, so the white towels would probably be washed with all the other clothes/colors. And my bathrooms are already white except the shower curtains. And I don't want to paint. ever. again. Maybe I can go with a nice light blue color for upstairs and another color for the downstairs bathroom. I don't think I could handle 8 different towel colors. I don't know. Fluffy white sounds so nice right now. Must be a new year. I'm waaaaaay overthinking this. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAR120C Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 I've been really happy with JCPenney's towels -- they were $7 apiece for bath towels (on sale, but not an unusual sale), I've had them for four years now, and they're still looking good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PinkInTheBlue Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Our towels are color coded to go to the correct bathroom. LOVE IT! We had the same problems you mentioned and this is much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellers Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 DH and I use "bath sheets" in our bathroom, all other towels are for the kids. Most of the kid towels are at least 10 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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