A normal day in the life of a high school student includes school, sports, social activities, and most importantly sleep. With busy schedules and a lot to do, most girls don’t have time to wash their uniform skirts. Have you ever thought about how often you wash your skirt?
Many students like to wash their skirts every week, but some students can not remember the last time theirs made it to the laundry. What most people do not realize is that a girl’s skirt tells a story about their lifestyle. Some girls take more classes than others, many play multiple sports, and some girls value their social lives. All of these factors play into how much free time someone has. Washing a skirt is most likely the last thing a busy high schooler would think about. Most girls want to spend their down time doing things they enjoy. For example, scrolling through TikTok is a lot more appealing than doing laundry.
There are also benefits to not washing your clothes as often. Excessive washing can cause shrinkage, fading, and overall wear and tear. Some girls do not want their skirts to lose their quality because they can be expensive. Skirts are also not an item that gets super dirty or sweaty which makes people feel that they do not need to wash them as much.
When asked about washing her skirts, Gracie Wilkinson (12) said, “The reason you only need to wash your skirt once every school year is because it doesn’t get very dirty. Do you wash your shoes after every wear? I assume no, but shoes actually pick up way more germs than your skirts do.” Hira Janjua (12), Lilly Robbins (10), and Kate Scott Loftin (9) all believe that washing their skirts once a week is enough to keep them clean.
As stated in a National Library of Medicine article about bacteria on clothes, “The median survival times for all the tested bacteria and fungi were as follows: 26 days on cotton, 26.5 days on cotton-polyester, 28 days on silk, and 30 days on wool. Among the bacterial species tested, E. faecium had the longest survival time on cotton-polyester fabrics.” Hutchison’s school skirts are made out of polyester and therefore hold onto bacteria for long periods of time. This bacteria can travel when you sit on your bed, in the car, or even just throughout your room. Students may think that their skirts are not very dirty, but in reality they contain lots of bacteria. Next time you go to do your laundry, consider throwing in your uniform skirts to keep them clean.
