Handkerchiefs are one of those old things that have got lost in time and are now a bit unconventional. Which is unfortunate because handkerchiefs are awesome! Now, you may be feeling the same way about handkerchiefs as I previously did, “Ew! Gross! Why on earth would I want to blow my nose on a dirty piece of cloth that has a weeks worth of snot crusted onto it?!”
I pity my uneducated, uninformed self of the past. To my surprise, using a handkerchief actually isn’t gross at all! I use a clean hankie each day, and DON’T actually blow my nose on the same section of the hankie twice (until it’s washed that is). I wish I’d known how cool they are sooner!
Handkerchiefs have been around for many, many years. Aside from the obvious use of personal hygiene, they have been used in ceremonies, for signaling, in dances, and to carry things in etc. But that all changed in the 20th century.
The downfall of the handkerchief. In 1924 the Kleenex was introduced as a way for women to remove cold cream. Within a few years they were being used and marketed as disposable hankies. (You can read more about the history of Kleenex here, it is actually quite interesting. You could also google “kleenex 1920’s advertisements” to see some cool adverts.) Society had become germ-a-phobic and saw handkerchiefs as unsanitary. Which is understandable considering they lived through the Spanish influenza outbreak of 1918.
Benefits:
• Handkerchiefs are softer and more durable than tissues. Trust me, your nose will appreciate this!
• They are way better for the environment. The negative impacts of disposable tissues on the environment could be a whole blogpost of its own. To keep it simple… by using handkerchiefs you’ll; save trees, save water, avoid processing plants pollution, chemicals, and toxins, and produce less waste etc.
• Save money! Lets assume your household buys a pack of 13 handkerchiefs for $13 instead of using a $2 box of tissues per month. The hankies will pay for themselves in less than 7 months, and can be used for years to come. You’ll have even more savings if you make the handkerchiefs yourself.
• It’s chic and chivalrous. Imagine sitting at the movie theater, crying over some romantic film. Wouldn’t you rather dry your eyes with a beautiful embroidered hankie with lace trim, instead of a tissue that shreds to pieces in your hand? Or if you are a guy you can kindly come to a ladies rescue by offering her a clean hankie of your own. I could go on and on with examples, but I won’t, because I think you get the idea.
• They are multipurpose. Blow your nose, wipe away tears, use as a towel to dry your hands, wipe sweat from your forehead, or on a hot summer day you can dampen it with cold water and place on the back of your neck to cool down. The Rural Economist has a really great blogpost called 30 Reasons to Carry a Handkerchief. You should check it out for more info.
I wash my handkerchiefs either with bath towels, or a load of clothes. It hardly effects the laundry load size. They dry very quickly on a clothe’s line or in the dryer. It’s really not a big deal to launder them. I don’t bother with ironing them like some people do though. Ain’t nobody got time for that.
There are so many handkerchief options on Amazon. Absolutely beautiful women’s hankies, plain white ones, dapper manly hankies, organic cotton and other eco-friendly options. You might be able to find some at a local store, or you can always make your own.
I’m embarrassed to admit that I was really nervous to start using handkerchiefs. Donovan and I have been using them for a year now and have zero regrets about making the switch. We wish we would’ve started using them years ago!
Friends, it’s time to stop wasting your money on those scratchy tissues and start using a hankie! Together we can nix the misconceptions about using “snot rags” haha.
