A wardrobe can be very expensive. Protect your investment by looking after your clothes using these tips. You can avoid fading, shrinking, napping and even dry cleaning if you properly take care of your clothes.
Vinegar can be your best clothing mate in the laundry room. White vinegar works great on brightening colors, preventing yellowing of fine lace or silk, and removing many stains. Vinegar can usually help remove gum, mold and grass stains. Keeping a spray bottle filled halfway with white vinegar and the other half water can be helpful for pre-treating stains. Add a half cup of vinegar just before the rinse cycle to help remove detergent residues from your clothing. It acts like a natural fabric softener, making garments fluffy and static free.
Nothing is worse than opening to dryer only to discover that your beautiful new red shirt has stained everything pink. To bypass the feared color run, wash red items with dark clothing. Wash them in cold water and use a laundry detergent that says something like,’safe for colors’,'color care’, or’inhibits dye transfer’ on the label. Some detergents are even made for dark fabrics and help the dye set in. Use the delicate cycle the first time so that red or dark items aren’t squeezed tightly against other fabrics.
If a tag says to dry clean only , then you possibly should follow that recommendation. But , if the fabric is safe to steam, you may be ready to avoid dry cleaning till the end of the season when you’re ready to store the garment. Put some vodka in a spritz bottle and spray areas that might start to smell. Your body can leave bacteria on your clothing and vodka safely kills the germs that cause the odor. You can let the garment air dry or use a clothes steamer to further freshen up the clothing. Steaming causes less damage than ironing and can be used on many fine fabrics.
employ a lint brush to get lint and pet hair off of suits, jackets and shirts. Use an adhesive lint roller if the fabric is more fragile. A lint brush can often make a fabric appear fuzzy, which is excellent for specific things, like flannel, but you may wish to use a lint roller for more delicate items.