There is one bright spot in the drudgery surrounding the neverending laundering of tiny My Little Pony and Barbie cotton undies and the hubby’s work pants and shirts.

It’s the rack. Racks, actually.

Don’t worry, I haven’t gone all soft on you. I still despise doing laundry and Mount Clean But Wrinkled Clothing taunts me daily.

Years ago my mother gave me two large vintage wooden clothes drying racks and when my girls were both babies I loved to hang out their tiny cotton print sundresses and infant gowns and cotton pjs on the racks and set them in the hot summer sun to dry lickety split. Today I still dry a lot of things in the summer, although Hello Kitty has replaced soft Carters prints. One of my nicer hand washable work skirts and blouses and our bathing suits from this weekend are hanging on the rack on our back patio today. Our clothes smell wonderfully fresh and infused with sunshine, with the bonus of saving a few pennies (the clothes dryer is the second biggest energy hog of the household, according to this article on the California Energy Commission’s website.)

Hey, I may hate ironing, but I don’t mind the rack.

Here are some resources on the Web with more information about wooden drying racks:

Amish handcrafted racks from Amish Home Place

Wooden drying rack from Stacks and Stacks

Let It All Hang Out

Reclaimed Wood Drying Rack From Green Feet

12 Laundry Tips for Maximum Energy Savings from Care2

Do you ever line dry clothes? What kind of set up do you have? For vintage drying racks like mine, try eBay, garage, and estate sales.