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 the best clothespins! I live in Oklahoma and they keep the clothes on the line no matter what way the wind blows.
Hi Laurie, I saw the picture for the heavy duty clothespins in your latest newsletter. I too have a couple of dozen of these pins made in New Brunswick, Canada. I just sent the “Clothespin Lady” (Sandra Christopher) a message asking if she treats hers with linseed oil as well. She just replied that she uses a small amount of mineral oil because she says that linseed oil can have a strong smell. I really love them, they work so well I had a quilt wrap the clothesline around so that I could not reel it in, good thing I could reach it from the ground!
Mineral oil is a good neutral oil. I’ve never noticed any issues with the linseed being stinky on the pins, but no matter which oil is used, treated is better than untreated for the life of the wood. We’re back to highs below freezing at least part of the coming week and snow in the forecast 4 days out of 7, so I’m back to indoor drying for a bit.
I have been searching (far to long) for information on if I should be treating my old dolly clothes pegs with oil and if so how.
I soaked them in a water/bleach solution yesterday and now they are so DRY looking I really feel like I HAVE to. The wood really looks like it needs it.
The very little I can find about it, it looks like mineral oil would be the way to go but I am concerned the oil could transfer to my clothes and I can’t find even a single article or video explaining the steps.
How long do I soak them? Or, do I just dip them? How long do they need to dry? Should I be wiping them all down after? I would appreciate any help you can offer!
If your clothespins are dry, yes, you should oil them, or they will crack, just like any wooden tool.
The linseed oil coating on my Kevin’s Quality Clothespins is still holding up, so I haven’t had to oil mine.
Mineral oil is a good choice because it won’t go rancid. If you have enough oil, you can dip or soak the pins, or you can just give them a good coating. I would plan to dip or rub them down with oil one morning, and then let them rest until afternoon, and coat them again. Then, I’d wipe off any excess oil before bedtime. By the next morning, any residual oil should be well absorbed and there should be little to no risk of staining your clothes.
Very dry wood can only soak up oil so fast, so using two dips/two coatings will give the oil more time to soak in.
Again, I have not treated my clothespins because they are still holding their original finish, but I do something similar to this for wooden spoons.
My daughter gifted me w/Kevin’s clothespins. She lives in always-windy west TX, I live in AL. I have NEVER had clothespins as great as Kevin’s. They do the job of hanging onto the clothes perfectly…no drooping, no slipping along the line despite strong winds, & most importantly, they keep their grip on thin & thick material. I wouldn’t trade them for anything!
I’ve even used them to spread tree limbs on young trees. They are very well built.
I love hanging out the laundry and quit buying new clothespins over ten years ago because, like you said, the new ones are lousy! Kevin’s look great, though the cost is pretty high. I’m blessed to have inherited some clothespins from my grandmother, and I’ve also bought old pins off Ebay. They’re the good, strong, old-fashioned ones and pretty affordable.
Real made in the U.S.A. ones are hard to find (not just assembled here but MADE here) I am one of very few American family craftsmen making clothespins that are 100% Made in the U.S.A. Kevin’s quality clothespins is in the pacific northwest, The Deliberate Agrarian in Moravia, Ny and myself are three family craftsmen making good stuff- LOCALLY! I encourage you to check us all out! http://www.meffordendeavors.com and http://www.meffordendeavors.blogspot.com
I have a bunch of dollar store cheapies but a single very old heavy duty one, where it came from I do not know. It keeps on going. If it could only talk. I keep a bunch in the kitchen to close up plastic bread or chip bags, or hold together glueing projects. They’re not just for laundry.
I use clothespins to help hold lights and cords around my chickens and chicks.
I’m a new reader and really enjoying it!
My tip: I had a project to do on my “desk”, a wooden folding lunch tray table. It was going to be messy and wet, so I grabbed a plastic kitchen trash bag and laid it flat on the table. It immediately slid to the floor. I wanted to be able to use the bag later, so did not want to tape it. I keep a hanger with clothespins on it handy for drying wet gloves. I borrowed 4 pins off of it, pinched a little of the bag at each corner of the table. They made great, light weights that did not tear the bag. Pinching them pulled them a little under the table, so they didn’t catch on anything. I put a couple of sheets of newspaper over the bag cover and splashed away,
I use a water, vinegar, and essential oils mixture as a fabric refresher.
I use clothespins constantly as bag closers in the kitchen and to keep mail together in the mailbox. I’d love to hang laundry again but alas, no line at the moment. Hope to have one again someday!
We just moved and I told the hubbs we needed a clothes line. Winter may be around the corner but I still want one.
Fabulous product… I wish I still had my grandmother’s clothespins!
We use our clothespins to mainly hang up clothes but sometimes they are also used for potato chip bags, hanging washed out baggies, or just last week I used one to close the hole in the bread bag (I accidentally put it on a warm stove).
Funny but true…..I once used a clothespin to hold up my sweat pants while chasing one of the children around the yard. Would love to win a set and give these a try!
These look like quality clothes pins. I would love to try them. Clothes pins are also handy as a clamp when gluing small craft projects.
Our little farm has a clothesline that seems half a mile long…..I never knew there were alternatives to ordinary clothespins!
Thanks so much for the review. Now I know where to get a quality product made in the USA. I love hanging our clothes out on the line to dry it is meditation therapy for me.
These would be excellent for airing out quilts or hanging out rugs to beat, I’d bet.
Somethiny Gramma used to do was after Granddad had mowed the clover, she’d hang quilts out to air. They smelled wonderful when they’d come in, just like the fresh cut clover.
I collect clothes pins – would love these
Wow, I am excited to even be reading about quality clothes pins. I line dry year round and have 2 buckets of crummy pins. Now I know a source :). Thanks for this post Laurie!!