When my son dropped a glass bottle on a subway platform in Osaka several summers ago, a man appeared out of nowhere to sweep away the shards—and we learned firsthand how Japan earned its squeaky-clean status. The same fastidiousness extends to people’s homes—the slippers-only policy indoors is the law everywhere (we were even reprimanded for entering the foyer of a gym in our street shoes). So I wasn’t surprised to learn that doing laundry is a favorite chore that often gets tackled daily (“we don’t like to keep dirty clothes in the house,” a Japanese friend explained). Though many people own washing machines and dryers, the latter are rarely used—air drying is far preferred, as just about every apartment balcony attests.
My interest was piqued while visiting artist-confectioner Mio Tsuchiya in her narrow Tokyo house dubbed the Vertical Alley: on the rooftop terrace she had towels drying on collapsible steel hangers and socks dangling from metal clips. Mio shared the Amazon links to these household staples, and that got me started on a Japanese laundry solutions hunt.
Here are my favorite finds. Note that since washing spaces are tight everywhere and particularly in Japan, these designs are made for keeping in clean in compact quarters.
Laundry Bags, Baskets, and Hampers
Washing Machine Shelving
Collapsible Drying Rack
Laundry Hangers
Laundry Carts
Ironing Boards
Laundry/Bathroom
Here are some other well-designed household tools from around the world:
- German-Made Cleaning Essentials
- 12 Favorites from the French Scullery
- 16 Made-in-Italy Kitchen Essentials
- 11 Scandi Kitchen Essentials, High to Low
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