Should we be washing our clothes less?Reader submitted

Just read a great little blog from Tullia Black about clothes washing. When I think about clothes and sustainability, my usual thought process is around where they're made, under what conditions, what they're made of, what farming practices have been used, what's the carbon footprint. Then I swiftly move to consumerism, and whether I can buy second-hand, reuse or upcycle something I already own, can I pass on something I no longer wear instead of it ending up in landfill etc.

But Tullia points out the first thing we should think about is how often we wash your clothes, and claims that when you look at the whole life cycle of a piece of clothing, everyday washing and drying damages our natural environment the most.

It's worth a read: http://theconversation.com/the-dirt-on-clothes-why-washing-less-is-more-sustainable-11531

It certainly got me thinking. Bet we don't need to wash our clothes anywhere as often as we do. Excluding the obvious, that we need to wash clothes when they are dirty or smelly, bet the only reason we wash them so often is thanks to marketing campaigns by companies who make machines, laundry powders and the like. I for one am going to make a more conscious effort to re-hang and re-fold clothes that are not dirty, and try washing them a little less.

Can't hurt.