12 DIYs That Will Transform How You Do Laundry

1. How is it running a business as a wife-and-husband team, with five children no less!

We capitalize on each other's strengths, and we help each other grow in our respective areas. I try to get comfortable with the things that he's good at and he tries to get comfortable with the paperwork – and the things that I'm a little bit more good at, and being aware of those responsibilities. So as long as we do that, things work out well.

2. What’s a recent small win for you and your business?

My husband recently learned how to repair a lot of different things. He paid attention to what the repairmen we hired to do the work were doing. Our top loaders, our most popular washing machine, takes a lot of wear and tear. They're not the easiest to maintain. My husband has learned how to fix them. That's a small win.

The second one, because I said I capitalize on his strengths and my strengths, is I've been much better about working with accounting software. I used Verizon Small Business resources to learn how to make our books easier.

3. Who is a woman in business that you look up to and why?

My husband and I both agree that the women who contract with us for our wash/dry/fold – who we were able to springboard with support from the Verizon grant program – have inspired us because they were homeless coming out of the pandemic. They were able to come into our establishment and start their own small business, and that's something that we are super proud of these women for, for taking the steps that they did to start their own small business.

4. What's a book, podcast, or resource that has made an impact on you as an entrepreneur?

Before 2018, my husband bought this DVD set by Danny D'Angelo, the KING of Laundry, and we were able to learn about the business just from sitting down and listening to him. A few years later, my husband was on his podcast! He was really, really inspirational to us.

5. How has the Verizon Small Business program helped propel your business forward?

The free resources are always a benefit because you're not obligated to do anything other than taking the time to seek out information. We're just real people and I feel like Verizon is a partnership with us in small business, supporting us, and believing in us. We've been able to expand our business because Verizon gave us a shot to do that. And that's amazing.

Learn more about the free Verizon Small Business Digital Ready Program and Team J&S.

Illustration by Daniela Jordan-Villaveces.

Prior to buying this clothing rack, I had a larger one that featured three shelves and matched my former office's aesthetic. Unfortunately, it was damaged when we moved to our current apartment, so I took it as a sign that I needed to downsize.

After doing a ton of research on Amazon, I came across my current clothing rack — a simple, yet aesthetically-pleasing design that would match my white and gold desk perfectly!

Besides that, this clothing rack makes it 10x easier for me to wash clothes because I'm able to truly see what I want to wear for the next week or so. If you would've taken a look at my closet before I decided to find this more organized solution, you honestly would've screamed. There were clothes, shoes, and accessories covering every inch of it...to the point I'd often get overwhelmed by own my stuff. That used to make laundry day a pain in the butt, but I've put that behind me with this clothing rack!

But aside from the aesthetic, more obvious functionality, and the price (let's be real), the cute little features are truly what sold me on it more than anything. Let's get into the features and how they help me truly keep it together during laundry day.

My Favorite Features on Amazon Clothing Rack

Side Hooks

My hat obsession is real, so the first thing I knew I needed in a clothing rack is an area to store the ones I typically reach for on a routine basis. Though this clothing rack doesn't have built-in shelves on the side, it does feature two hooks that you can hang your lightweight coats, bags, or hats on.

Depending on my mood, I alternate between which of them I'll hang on the hooks. My goal is to never place more than 50 pounds on each hook, so if I have a coat on one side, I'll keep a hat and a bag on the other hook. Organization aside, with these hooks, I don't have to scramble to look for the coat I've been wearing regularly when I can easily see it hanging on the clothing rack.

Though it's under $30, the hooks on the clothing rack are pretty sturdy and haven't popped off in the year I've had it.

Sturdiness level: 5 out of 5

Two Anti-Slip Beads

My former clothing rack didn't have anti-slip beads ,so I'm going to be 100% honest when I say this: I don't think they really help me minimize the chaos of laundry day. They're nice if you're afraid your clothes are going to slide up and down your clothing rack, but I don't feel like they do anything that's groundbreaking.

Rating: 2 out of 5

Bottom Shelf

This clothing rack only has one shelf, so I use it to home the heels I tend to wear the most. I actually have a separate shoe rack that stores my sneakers and sandals, but it was mandatary to have something with a bit of extra storage — I can't help it that Carrie Bradshaw taught me how to love a shoe! Jokes aside, I'd say that the wire port of the bottom shelf isn't as sturdy as what I'm used to, but it's ability to hold platform heels upright and well definitely says a lot.

Before I actually started placing my overflow of shoes here, I used the bottom shelf as a place to store my dirty clothes so I'd know what needed to be washed. I'd fold them so they weren't thrown haphazardly in my laundry basket so I could see what was being washed in case I wanted to do an outfit repeat (no judgement!).

Rating: 4 out of 5

Sywhitta Clothing Rack on Wheels

Overall, I think this is a great clothing rack that budget and space-friendly! It's not going to give you all the features that a more expensive one will, but don't count it out! It'll help you keep track of your favorite clothes and accessories while making laundry day less chaotic.

Is Meryl Streep in the Narnia cast?

Meryl Streep is reportedly in talks to voice Aslan in Greta Gerwig's Narnia movies. The casting rumor first broke on March 31, leading some people to wonder if it was an early April Fool's Day joke, until Deadlineconfirmed the rumor on April 3. Fans of the book have called the choice everything from "interesting" to "cruel," and the conversation revolves around one particular question: are they making Aslan female?

A lot of Narnia fans were taken aback by the rumor about Meryl Streep because of the fact Aslan is an allegory for Jesus (referred to in the Bible as the Lion of Judah) — especially since Aslan's mane is such an integral part of the series, and lioness' typically don't have manes.

When the White Witch sacrifices Aslan on the Stone Table in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, she shaves off his mane in an attempt to shame him and strip away his identity as King of Narnia. Lucy Pevensie hiding her face in his mane in Prince Caspian plays a huge role in bolstering her courage and faith, and the mane even comes into play during The Last Battle before (spoiler alert) Narnia gets destroyed.

'Narnia' fans have a lot of opinions about a female Aslan.

The most iconic visual of the Narnia series, arguably more than the wardrobe or the lamppost, is Aslan's mane. "If it’s true that Aslan has been changed to a female lion in the upcoming film, it’s deeply troubling that the filmmakers would make the choice to visually distance itself from The Chronicles of Narnia as it has always been known to its fans and the public imagination," one Narnia fan wrote on NarniaWeb. "It would be hard to look at a decision like that and not think that they were deliberately disassociating from the Narnia canon."

Another fan on NarniaWeb points out that having Meryl potentially voice a male Aslan "would be a fine way to convey the genderless nature of the soul. Aslan transcends all of that and was never bound by the idea of duality in the way that the ‘fallen’ believe they are."

@bereckerwentviral for his claim that fans who are upset about the casting simply "hate women" (yes, some of the backlash to Meryl's casting rumor has been atrocious). "I would like to officially say that if I die, I would be more than honored if Meryl Streep were to play me in my biopic, she’s the greatest to ever do it," he said in the comments.

"Meryl was hired based on merit. She’s the best," another Instagram user said in the comments.

However, Netflix hasn't confirmed Meryl Streep as Aslan.

Let the record show that, as of writing this story on April 7, Netflix hasn't actually confirmed anything about the movie outside Greta as director and Atonement cinematographer Seamus McGarvey as Director of Photography. Whether the film is a The Magician's Nephew adaptation, whether Daniel Craig is playing Uncle Andrew, and whether Meryl Streep is actually voicing Aslan are speculation at this point.

As one viral tweet puts it, "Increasingly convinced Greta either has no idea what she wants to do with this movie or has a vision so incredible nobody else can see it." Stay tuned for official casting announcements!