DIY Laundry Folding Board

You may be asking yourself, how is a laundry folding board a travel item?  Well, you get back home and dump all of your clothes in the wash and end up with a ton of clothes to fold.  What a way to be welcomed home!

You might remember my post from a couple weeks back where I shared my closet and my folded clothes.  I promised a mini tutorial to DIY a folding tool, and here it is!

By the way, I made this after seeing an infomercial for a similar tool but didn't want to spend the $30 + S&H.  This ended up costing about $2, and is completely customized to my drawers!

What you will need:

• Foam core board (any size that will fit the clothing you will be folding)
• Measuring tool
• Pen/pencil/Sharpie
• Box cutter
• Tape (clear packaging or duct)
• Fabric or decorative paper (optional)

1.  Measure the drawer you will be using for your clothes.  Divide this measurement by the number of columns of clothes you will be store in your drawer.  Take this number and subtract 0.25" or so, to give space between the columns of clothing.  This will be Measurement A!


* My drawer width is 29" and I want 3 columns of clothes, so my equation is as follows:
    Measurement A = 29"/3 = 9.33 - 0.25 = about 9"

2. Measure the height of your drawer for Measurement B.  Make sure you leave a bit of space so your clothes don't get stuck!

* My drawer is roughly 7.5" tall.

3. The foam core board will have cuts as follows.  The space between the red vertical lines will be Measurement A.  Both spaces between the horizontal red lines will be Measurement B.  Mark the lines that you will cut, remeasure, and then make the cuts using your box cutter!

Here is a close-up of my board with the measurements: 9" wide x 7.5" high

4. On the front of your board, tape all four sections back together, with the board laying flat.  The blue lines is where you will be taping your board back together.

5. With the board in the same position, fold each section over and tape while folded.  You will have to do this in the same four sections as you taped previously.

6. Use your board!  The instructions to using your board are below.  :)

* You can also cover your board with fabric, decorative paper, or contact paper, but make sure all sections of the board can fold completely.  I just tuck mine away in the corner of my closet, so it doesn't need to look pretty.

Folding Your Clothes

1.  Lay your clothing flat against the board as shown, centered with the edge of the item against the top of the board.

2.  Fold the right and left sections inward.

3.  Fold the first middle section forward.

4. Fold the entire middle section forward.

5. Pause to admire your neatly folded clothing, before repeating way too many times.

6. Place your finished item in with the rest of your folded clothes with the same exact measurements!

I hope this tutorial works out for you, and please let me know if you make one of your own.  I'm sure this works pretty similarly to the ones sold in the stores, but I didn't have to spend nearly as much!

Also, if you have smaller drawers for children you will have to make a second board, but since it's so easy and cheap it'll be no problem!

Has anyone else ever copied something they saw in an infomercial?