by Daniel Parker, RDPFS Intern
It’s no secret that dealing with laundry can be a challenge for those with visual impairments. It can be hard to remember which clothes and colors can be washed together and which items should be laundered separately from everything else. Some may react to this by grouping things more indiscriminately than is recommended. There are, however, many resources around the web to help, most found with a simple Google search, such as these laundry tips from VisionAware. This article lists suggestions applicable when doing laundry at home or in a laundromat. Highlights include:
– Use different hampers or bags for sorting;
– Safety-pin matching socks or buy all white and/or all black socks with different textures;
– Use the cap of the laundry detergent to measure or, alternatively, detergent pods;
– Consider different methods for determining washer and dryer settings, e.g., listen and count clicks, make labels, or contact the manufacturer for a Braille label or overlay
A list of tips from the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired South Carolina offers different but complementary advice, including using a color catcher in every load in case of incorrect sorting.
More information can be found in both above articles, but there is a plethora of other posts, podcasts, videos, and more, accessible via a web search.
