I’m of the school of believing your clothing is an investment and that proper care can keep your “investment” looking it’s best giving you a great ROI. ROI? Well actually I’m talking about a much lower cost per wear…the measure of your wardrobe’s value.
Although it’s a law that manufacturers must include a care label on all garments, here are a few tips and tricks to help your clothes look great and last longer.
- Dry clean your clothes less often than you think they may need it. Dry cleaning is quite hard on clothes and shortens their life.
- If a garment has a stain, you definitely want to send it to the cleaners, but otherwise you can wear a garment several times before taking it in.
- Be sure to hang your clothes outside your closet overnight after wearing to air out. If you’re still unsure about their freshness, Dryell is a great solution.
- A steamer is also an easy way to freshen and get the wrinkles out of garments. It saves you time and saves your clothes.
- Is all this talk about dry cleaning making you wonder why I’m suggesting an additional errand? Many cleaners have pick-up and delivery services. While I don’t have clothes for them every week, I’m able to wear what I have rather than watching the pile grow. (Nor am I tempted to go buy new things because I haven’t done my chore.)
- Remove the dry cleaning plastic bags from your clothes as soon as possible to let them breathe and get rid of any chemical odors. (I use a Green dry cleaner but still take the bags off quickly.)
- Ask your cleaners to be extra careful when pressing your garments. It’s the hot iron that creates the lines at seams and causes fabric to get shiny. (Often times the synthetic fabric actually melts a little.)
On to laundry day…
- Hang clothes to dry. The heat of the dryer degrades fibers. Only our oldest clothes go in the dryer!
- Washing your jeans inside out and hanging them to dry prolongs the dark wash and keeps them newer looking. As I advised for dry cleaning you also want to avoid washing your jeans too often.
- Cold water prevents fading and reduces shrinkage. Be sure to use the delicate or hand wash cycle.
- If your washing machine has a second rinse cycle, be sure to use it especially on dark colors and whites.
These are my best tips for prolonging the life of your clothing. Follow them and you’ll not only save money, but you won’t have to make as many trips to the mall!
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Great advice- and I already do all of these suggestions. This winter I bought my first “detergent for “dark colors.” I do think it helped minimize fading, etc.- and would recommend people try it for their dark loads!
I’ll be interested to hear how you like the detergent, Janet.