Sturdy Wooden Clothespins – Kevin’s Quality Clothespins
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I love the smell of laundry fresh off the line – but I don’t love cheap, flimsy wooden clothespins. They launch themselves off the line in pieces or drop wet items on the ground below the line.
Since our laundry line is on our elevated deck, when laundry drops, it really drops, falling over ten feet down. Back in 2014, I was hanging clothes and thinking, “It sure would be nice if someone started making heavy duty wooden clothespins again.”
Ask and ye shall receive, because the next time I checked my inbox, there was a message from Hilary of Kevin’s Quality Clothespins. They sent me a sample of their heavy duty, American made wooden clothespins for review.
7 Reasons Why Kevin’s Quality Clothespins May be the Best Wooden Clothespins You’ve Ever Used
- Kevin’s Quality Clothespins are hand-crafted from solid maple hardwood, specifically end pieces from a local mill that supplies wood for guitars. I like that they are able to re-purpose what would otherwise end up as scrap. The wood has a light colored grain and will not bleed tannin onto clothing.
- The clothespin springs are heavy duty stainless steel from an American manufacturer, so there’s no rust or corrosion. They are much larger and stronger than standard imported clothespin springs.
- Kevin’s Quality Clothespins are made in America with materials sourced from local suppliers.
- Each clothespin is treated with natural linseed oil before assembly to help them resist weathering. You won’t find any treatment on the nekked cheapo clothespins.
- These clothespins are big enough to go where other clothespins can’t. They are large enough to tackle heavy rugs and quilts on a standard clothesline. They can even open wide enough to accommodate a 1/2 inch dowel. No more items slipping off drying racks.
- No slip grooves at the end of the pins make it easier for the user to operate the clothespin.
- These pins are crazy strong! I tied up a 5 pound weight in an old sock and tacked in on the clothesline with one of Kevin’s Quality Clothespins. It hung there like a boss – no slipping or sliding. I didn’t even attempt hanging the weight with the imported pins out of fear for the windows located right near the clothesline.
Clothespins That Last
I had a bin in my junk drawer dedicated to holding parts of dead clothespins. Every so often the boys would go through and try to piece them back together.
The thing is, once the springs have been stretched, they never work quite as well. Usually they ended up right back in the junk bin after the next load of laundry. Since I switched to Kevin’s Quality Clothespins, that bin only gets working bag clips and clothespins, not broken ones.
As long as you take them off the line when you gather the laundry, these clothespins should be around to hand down to your children and grandchildren. These wooden clothespins are made like things used to be made – to last.
They are more expensive than imports, but less expensive than similar clothespins in a Mother Earth News article. (Those pins were also out of stock when I checked the website.)
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These clothespins are nice enough for gifts, especially if you paired them up with something like wool dryer balls or a handmade clothespin bag.
Buy Your Own Set of Heavy Duty Wooden Clothespins
You can buy your own set of Kevin’s Quality Clothespins here.
*Update May 2021: Sadly, Kevin passed away, but his wife has taken up making wooden clothespins.
I received no compensation for this review, only a set of clothespins. I liked them so much I bought more for myself and some for friends.
Update: This review was originally posted in October 2014. It’s now December 2023, and I’ve used these clothespins for over 9 years. They still work great, and not one has busted.
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This article is by Laurie Neverman. Laurie grew up on a small dairy farm in northwest Wisconsin, and now lives on an 35 acre homestead in northeast Wisconsin.
She and her family combine the best of old and new for more sustainable living. They use solar water heating and line drying, root cellaring and freeze drying, annual gardens and permaculture. There’s always more to explore!
Last updated in 2023.
These are so great! I want to install an outdoor clothesline soon and these are what I want to use!
I have never had good clothespins…just dollar store stuff 🙁
Not sure I’ve even seen nice ones anywhere.
I love hanging laundry – would be awesome to use decent pins for the first time!
we use clothes pins for practically everything…. closing up food bags, holding papers together, coupons for the store, etc. would love to see how these hold up to others! 🙂
I need some clothes pins that are strong enough that when the dog tugs on the pant legs or sleeves they don’t come right off the line.
We always hung out clothes to dry when I was growing up and I don’t ever remember our clothespins breaking like the ones today do. These look like very high quality clothespins and I would love to have them!
I used to use clothespins all the time, but have been so frustrated with them lately that I don’t even use them anymore. Would love to try these!
I used spray sealer on some cheapy clothespins, not very helpful, these would be so much better!
Would love a set of these.
When they’re not being used to hang clothes on the line, clothespins can be found keeping busy holding pantry bags closed.
So far I’ve just been using clothespins to close bags of food, and I’ve had several break on me recently. I would like to start hanging laundry to dry outside once I get a clothesline. These would be awesome!
I use clothes pins to keep bags closed (cereal, snacks, etc.)
would love some decent clothes pins that I can use to dry heavier items such as quilts or denim! Just like everyone else has already stated: clothes pins that don’t have splinters after 1-2 uses, don’t fly apart when trying to use them!
Nothing like real American made products for sure! To bad it’s hard to find them. This would be great to win!
I really need some that are sturdier than a chip clip. Right now have a baby goat indoors and blankets to wash everyday and the clips dont stand a chance in the wind !
Yes! We’d definitely use these. My mom prefers to hang things outside to dry and is constantly battling with the little clothespins commercially available!
We used to play a game in cub scouts with clothes pins. We knelt on a chair, then tried to drop clothespins into a bottle on the floor.
I would love the chance to win a set of these! After waiting for 2+ years, I just got my clothesline built & put up this weekend!! 🙂
I would love to win these! My lovely lil puppy managed to chew up most of my good clothes pins. To buy new ones … well I haven’t done that yet … they just look and feel so cheaply made. :-/
Love findings items that are Made in America. . . much better quality
I use clothespins all the time for chip clips, sack clips, tent closures, you name it. I’m afraid my children would confiscate these immediately for their room tent building if they saw them, so I’ll have to keep them out of sight!