What does 2 kids under 3, a lazy mummy and an overworked daddy lead to? Yep, we’re drowning in clothes. Sleepsuits, bodysuits, dinky jeans, adorable dresses, tights, leggings… In fact, both children’s drawers are literally bulging.
Most sane, rational and generous people would be lugging bin bags to the charity shop, or offering the baby clothes up to friends on Facebook… but I just can’t seem to bring myself to throw anything I’ve loved away. I’m not a hoarder. I’m the most brutal thrower-awayer that ever existed. But when it comes to dinky clothes, I’m Miss Haversham; They’re not leaving my house.
I desperately want to make them into something. Maybe a quilted blanket, or some sofa cushions. Failing that, I’ll use them as a reason to make more babies. In any case, I have dozens of boxes in my loft that are marked with black marker “Craig: Hands off”.
When Packmate mentioned they were looking for bloggers to review their products, I couldn’t resist. I was just about to do another drawer-cull and was dreaming up ways of hiding the latest batch of baby clothes without asking Craig to pop them in the loft (there are some big old spiders up there!).
They sent me 2 Extra Large High Volume Vacuum Storage Bags to review (available from Amazon for £19.99, they should shrivel down to proportions of 60 x 90 x 30cm - so fit neatly under the bed or in rigid storage boxes). They looked so tiny when they arrived I almost wrote them off as being useless, but given the website insists these are perfect for storing “bedding sets, bulky clothes and towels”, I figured I could stash a whole season’s kiddies clothes in there.
They’re not wrong. I’m amazed how much you can fit in these bags!
I knew they’d be effective. We’ve all fallen asleep drunk in front of the telly and woken up during the adverts for similar products “available from JML” - but I’ve never seen them up close before. To say that every household needs one sounds incredibly salesy, but it’s true. They’re so useful!
To use you simply do the following:
- Fold your clothes up and place inside the bag (leave a inch or so of space between your clothes and the zipper)
- To close, hold the corner of the zipper and push the white slider across several times to ensure it’s completely sealed.
- Pop your vacuum hose inside the hole and zap out all the redundant air from the bag (TIP: “Gently press on the top and the sides of the bag when vacuuming out the air to help form the shape, or use a box to help. This will make it easier to stack with other bags”)
- To open the bag, grasp the material either side of the seal end of the bag and gently prise open
It’s that simple! Here’s a finished bag of ours so you can appreciate the dimensions for yourself.
There’s also 5 year guarantee - so you can keep rotating your clothes etc as you need to.
I can’t recommend this clever storage from Packmate enough. It’s a simple, easy-to-use and effective product that provides storage for all manner of soft furnishing and clothes. Further still, it would be an amazing product if you were moving house or traveling.
To try it for yourself, head over to packmate.co.uk to find your nearest stockist, or say hello on Twitter!
