Fabric and care

Fabric and care: keeping thin summer clothes alive

Polyester blends, cotton mixes, mesh and sequins all fail in different ways. Here is what each one needs and what will destroy it.

A twenty dollar printed dress can last three summers or one, and the difference is almost entirely what happens in the wash. Fast fashion fabric is not weak so much as unforgiving. It has no spare thickness to absorb rough handling.

What the range is made of

Polyester and spandex blends

The workhorse of this catalog. Holds print colour well, dries in an hour, resists creasing. Its weakness is heat: a hot wash or a tumble dryer relaxes the fibre and the garment comes out slightly larger and permanently limp. Cold water and a hanger keep it in shape for years.

Cotton and cotton blends

Softer, better in real heat, and it shrinks. Expect a couple of percent on the first wash even in cool water, which matters most on a garment that was already close at the waist. Cotton also holds a crease, so it comes off the line needing a shake or an iron.

Rayon and viscose

The drapey fabric behind most of the flowing maxis. It feels wonderful and it is at its weakest when wet. Never wring it, never hang a soaking one by the shoulders, because it will stretch out of shape in the direction of the pull and stay there.

Mesh, lace and fishnet

Fine and easy to snag. The enemy is other clothing: a zip, a hook, a jeans rivet. A mesh sleeve caught on a bag buckle tears rather than pulls.

Sequins, rhinestones and beading

Partly glued, partly stitched. Machine agitation loosens the glue and the trim comes away in the drum. These pieces belong in a basin.

Faux leather

A coating over a fabric backing. Water is fine on the surface and terrible for the seams. Heat cracks it. Never iron it and never leave it folded hard in a hot car.

A wash routine that works

Turn the garment inside out, which puts the print on the inside where the drum cannot rub it.
Sort by weight. Light summer fabrics with light summer fabrics, never with towels or jeans.
Cold water, gentle cycle, low spin. Thirty degrees or under.
Half the detergent you would normally use, and skip fabric softener on anything with spandex.
Take it out as soon as the machine stops. Creases set into synthetic fabric while it sits damp.
Hang or lay flat to dry, out of direct sun.

Wash by hand when

There are sequins, beads, rhinestones or fringe.
The fabric is mesh, fishnet or fine lace.
It is a swimsuit, which needs a rinse rather than a wash.
The colour is deep red, cobalt or black and it is the first wash.

Hand washing is five minutes. Cool water, a small amount of detergent, press it through rather than rubbing, rinse until the water runs clear, roll it in a towel to take the weight of the water out and lay it flat.

Colour bleeding

Saturated dyes on cheap cotton give up some colour on the first two or three washes. Wash new dark pieces alone the first time. If you are travelling and cannot, a colour catcher sheet in the bag is worth the space it takes.

Swimwear specifically

Chlorine destroys elastane faster than sun, salt or wear. Rinse in cold fresh water the same day, every day, before the suit dries. Do not leave it screwed up in a wet towel and do not dry it on a hot tile in full sun. Two suits alternated will outlast one worn every day by more than double.

Ironing and steaming

Most polyester in this catalog does not need an iron if you hang it damp. If you must, use the lowest setting with a cloth between the iron and the fabric. A hand steamer is safer than an iron on anything printed, and useless on faux leather, which should never meet heat at all.

Storage

Hang the woven pieces and fold the knits, because a heavy knit hung on a thin hanger grows shoulder bumps. Give sequin garments their own space so the trim does not catch on the piece next to it.