Summer is more or less officially over, and with that comes the end of drying laundry outdoors and the beginning of finding handy spots to dry clothes indoors. It’s no easy feat, particularly if you have a small utility room with limited room for a clothes horse, but there’s a traditional feature making a resurgence: the laundry maid.
Pulley-operated clothes airers are no new discovery, but why fix something that isn’t broken? This clever laundry system originated in the late 18th century as an efficient way of drying laundry while keeping it out of the way, but lost popularity when the tumble dryer came to be.
With energy prices as they are, it’s time to go back to basics with a budget-friendly utility room idea that is super functional too. While the best heated airers will get your clothes dry in a flash, a pulley-style airer is ideal for small spaces.
Cosy, cottage-inspired interiors are a huge hit in kitchens and utility rooms too, and a laundry maid leans into this classic look perfectly. Here’s why you need this handy laundry idea.
Why you need a laundry maid
(Image credit: Lifestyle Floors)
Aside from providing a handy spot for drying laundry, these pulley-style airers are also a practical way to create a traditional scheme in your utility room.
‘There is a strong design logic,’ explains Richard Davonport, managing director at Davonport. ‘The traditional ‘pulley maid’ has roots in Victorian sculleries, so it sits naturally with in-frame cabinetry and painted timber, yet a black powder-coated frame or simple ash laths look clean in a modern scheme too.’
However, as with any utility room or kitchen planning, practicality has to come first in anything you choose.
‘Ceiling-mounted clothes airers are back because they are genuinely useful. Warm air gathers at ceiling height, so a pulley rack dries laundry faster than a freestanding horse on the floor,’ Richard continues.
(Image credit: Future PLC/Clive Doyle)
Adding a laundry rack can do wonders for the layout of your utility room. A utility is usually always a small space with cabinetry on the top and bottom to maximise storage, so that leaves little room on the walls or floors for a standalone clothes airer.
By optimising your ceiling height, you don’t have to find extra storage for an empty rack and you won’t be faced with the cumbersome eye sore of laundry drying in the middle of a room.
(Image credit: Future PLC)
‘You load it at a comfortable height, raise it out of the way, and let gravity soften creases so there’s less ironing. It’s kinder to fabrics than a tumble dryer and it gives you your floor back, which matters in compact kitchens and busy utility rooms,’ adds Richard.
Particularly as we get further into the winter months, finding space to dry clothes without constantly having the tumble dryer running is crucial if you want to save on electricity. Less ironing is an added bonus that we can certainly get behind, too.
Shop pulley clothes airers
Lakeland Extendable Ceiling Airer
This handy airer has extendable poles so won’t take up too much room when it’s not in use.
For a traditional Victorian-inspired look, choose this style from B&Q that comes in many different sizes.
Metal & Bamboo Wall Mounted 4m Drying Rack
If you have a super compact utility room with low ceilings, this wall-hung style will offer an alternative spot to hang laundry.
Garden Trading
Chalford Ceiling Dryer Natural
For neutral, pared-back interiors, this Garden Trading airer is the ultimate choice.
John Lewis
John Lewis Wall-Fixed Bamboo Airer
I love how this wall-hung airer pulls out for much more sought-after laundry storage.
LOWENERGIE
Lowenergie 7 Lath Pulley Clothes Airer
This large airer from Amazon is the perfect quick fix for drying clothes now that the rain has started.
Do you fancy trying this traditional technique?