The first wave of pandemic struck the world in the summer of 2020 and people have been making memes about it since then!
With the everyday life of people restricted to the geographical confines of four walls, there was a huge wave of DIYs.
Right from baking your own bread to making your own masks, pretty sure most of us learnt a couple of self-reliant activities.
However, most of the working professionals met with a different kind of dilemma- work from home! And with it came the next big question- to wear or not to wear!
Since people had already made themselves way too comfortable with pyjamas and tees, it became a herculean task to even decide what to wear.
Now would you part with your favorite cashmere and woollen sweaters just because there are no dry cleaners open outside? Certainly not! Confused? Excited? Curious? Well, blue illusion is happy to help.
Reading in Between the Lines
One of the most common fusses over dry cleaning is the choice of fabric. Most apparels that you get from high-end stores are labelled as ‘dry clean only’. Is it though?
Well, the trick lies in reading in between the lines. The washing instructions in all your delicates are of two kinds- dry clean and dry clean only.
The latter is for clothes which must be sent to the dry cleaners or else you run the risk of damaging the fabric.
However, the former is written merely as the best practice which means that while it is advisable to hand it to the dry cleaner, there is nothing wrong in washing it at home.
Precautions first
Your nervousness to dry clean some of your most expensive wardrobe all by yourself is pretty understandable but with the right steps, you will have another feather to add to your hat during this quarantine!
However, before sailing off with your ship Magellan, here are some precautions you would like to take-
- Before anything else, always make sure to do a patch test on your delicate. This is done to ensure that the fabric will not lose colour upon dry cleaning. Take the inside of the fabric which is hard to see and use some detergent to clean it gently. Check if the colour is fading If it does not, you are good to go!
- Another underestimated precaution is the method of cleaning involved. You can choose to either clean the entire fabric or just a part of it in the form of spot cleaning. The latter is usually done when you only have a small part to take care of.
- Always, I repeat always, use a mild detergent to clean the fabric. Now, the temperature of water hugely depends on the fabric you are washing. Go for cool and cold water for silk, wool, lace, and cashmere and use warm to hot water for cotton, synthetic and linen.
Tackling the Stains
You don’t need anyone to tell you how that tiny translucent blot looks on a pearl white sweater, isn’t it? If the mere thought of a stain in your fabric makes you flinch, here are some essentials to remove a stain-
- Always pre-treat the stain. For the record, this is not a wrestling match so you don’t need to keep your moves up your sleeve. Never leave the stain for the last moment because this will mean soaking in your clothes for way too long in water and rubbing them too hard. So, use a dish wash soap and dab it gently on the stain. Use your fingers to clean the stain
- Don’t wring or squeeze the fabric at any condition since it causes the fibres to stretch, thus loosening the material.
- In addition to detergents, there are certain kitchen ingredients that can be incorporated to remove the stains. Vinegar in its diluted form is an effective ingredient to remove the stains. You can also use baking soda, cornstarchand salt to deal with tough stains. However, a patch test is always advisable.
So, now that you have already learnt some little trade secrets, go on and unleash your inner Monica Geller for you!
