**Hermes Chat**

#16,666
Etriers said:
Lol! Well, I guess it wouldn’t be the end of the world if something tragic happened to them, but in the interest of adventure, I’d like it to turn out well, and I’m trying to do less dry cleaning overall to reduce chemicals etc. I’m wondering what would make unlined pants significantly different from a sweater? Do you suppose it’s just the weave? As you say, knit vs. woven?
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I am hesitant to endorse washing wool pants. What I would advocate is, once you get them clean again, to lightly brush them after wearing to help maintain their clean state. Does the wool need freshening or is it actually soiled? If it needs freshening, hang the pants for a few days in a bathroom which is also used for showering. With climate change I'm wearing more corduroy than wool. But my sense about wool is that it's easy to spot clean, whether you or a dry cleaner does it. It's not a fabric like polyester that magnetically attracts oily salad dressings from across the room. Spot cleaning and light brushing can preserve the overall cleanliness of wool pretty well. Well treated, in my opinion wool wears like iron.
Also, if interfacing is fused onto the pants to strengthen stress areas like pocket openings, that might pose a problem. If hand washing loosened or shrunk the interfacing I don't think you'd ever get it to look right. Bubbled fused interfacing can really ruin the look of a garment.
Supposedly, people who sew (c'est moi!) are supposed to test for shrinkage by taking a swatch of fabric, cutting out the exact same size in paper, clean and iron the swatch and see how it compares to the paper original. You would have to take a piece from a hem to get a swatch of any size and there goes the hem!
Can you call the manufacturer, get their opinion? If these were my pants, I'd get them dry cleaned maybe one last time and then maintain their cleanliness by spot cleaning and light brushing.
Also, garments that have some spandex (stretch) in them are IMO less liable to shrink when washed. But don't rub the wool, you don't want friction to start pilling. Just gently soak them in cool water, whatever Woolite says.
 
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#16,667
Back when people had far less money, wool garments were rarely cleaned, in particular the suits that a man wore to work (and unless one was a "blue collar" worker, a man wore a suit to work). Many men had what was called a "suit valet" <https://www.scullyandscully.com/fur...CMIzIo0qERd-iLxTBF9EyV8rT-NlP6ahoCmYkQAvD_BwE>

A man came home from work, went upstairs to "wash up", hung his jacket on this caddy to dry from any sweat in it, removed his tie, and if it was winter, put on a cardigan over his dress shirt and was ready for the evening. Some left their tie on until after dinner.

At bedtime, the trousers were carefully folded over the suit caddy, making sure the creases were neatly lined up.

In the morning, his wife took a clothes brush and gave both the coat and trousers a good brushing. They'd already had a good "airing out". And the suit was re-hung in the closet for another wearing. If the man had spilled something, he forewarned his wife of this and she spot cleaned it.

Suits were only dry-cleaned after multiple wearings. Wives even re-pressed their husband's trousers, using a press cloth.

When women started going to work, this all ended and men started putting their suits in the dry cleaning pile after only one or two wearings. Of course, this dry-cleaned the very life out of them. It made the wool dry, and all that tailoring and interlining, was never quite the same again.

If you don't believe me, ask your grandparents, or watch an old episode of Downtown Abbey or Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. A wealthy "gentleman" had a valet who did this for him. The rest had wives.
 
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#16,668
India said:
Back when people had far less money, wool garments were rarely cleaned, in particular the suits that a man wore to work (and unless one was a "blue collar" worker, a man wore a suit to work). Many men had what was called a "suit valet" <https://www.scullyandscully.com/fur...CMIzIo0qERd-iLxTBF9EyV8rT-NlP6ahoCmYkQAvD_BwE>

A man came home from work, went upstairs to "wash up", hung his jacket on this caddy to dry from any sweat in it, removed his tie, and if it was winter, put on a cardigan over his dress shirt and was ready for the evening. Some left their tie on until after dinner.

At bedtime, the trousers were carefully folded over the suit caddy, making sure the creases were neatly lined up.

In the morning, his wife took a clothes brush and gave both the coat and trousers a good brushing. They'd already had a good "airing out". And the suit was re-hung in the closet for another wearing. If the man had spilled something, he forewarned his wife of this and she spot cleaned it.

Suits were only dry-cleaned after multiple wearings. Wives even re-pressed their husband's trousers, using a press cloth.

When women started going to work, this all ended and men started putting their suits in the dry cleaning pile after only one or two wearings. Of course, this dry-cleaned the very life out of them. It made the wool dry, and all that tailoring and interlining, was never quite the same again.

If you don't believe me, ask your grandparents, or watch an old episode of Downtown Abbey or Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. A wealthy "gentleman" had a valet who did this for him. The rest had wives.
Click to expand...
This is what I was describing, minus the wardrobe valet (the back of a chair works pretty well, too): brushing, airing and spot cleaning to minimize the need for a thorough [dry] cleaning. I have very low garment dry cleaning bills, mostly it's scarves from resellers. I could hand wash those but I can't figure out how to starch them w/o the starch burning. I think I have to buy a bottle of liquid starch, not spray starch. The bottle facilitates saturating the scarf with the starch. And supposedly reducing the heat of the iron so I don't scorch the fabric. Does anybody do anything like this?
 
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#16,669
eagle1002us said:
I am hesitant to endorse washing wool pants. What I would advocate is, once you get them clean again, to lightly brush them after wearing to help maintain their clean state. Does the wool need freshening or is it actually soiled? If it needs freshening, hang the pants for a few days in a bathroom which is also used for showering. With climate change I'm wearing more corduroy than wool. But my sense about wool is that it's easy to spot clean, whether you or a dry cleaner does it. It's not a fabric like polyester that magnetically attracts oily salad dressings from across the room. Spot cleaning and light brushing can preserve the overall cleanliness of wool pretty well. Well treated, in my opinion wool wears like iron.
Also, if interfacing is fused onto the pants to strengthen stress areas like pocket openings, that might pose a problem. If hand washing loosened or shrunk the interfacing I don't think you'd ever get it to look right. Bubbled fused interfacing can really ruin the look of a garment.
Supposedly, people who sew (c'est moi!) are supposed to test for shrinkage by taking a swatch of fabric, cutting out the exact same size in paper, clean and iron the swatch and see how it compares to the paper original. You would have to take a piece from a hem to get a swatch of any size and there goes the hem!
Can you call the manufacturer, get their opinion? If these were my pants, I'd get them dry cleaned maybe one last time and then maintain their cleanliness by spot cleaning and light brushing.
Also, garments that have some spandex (stretch) in them are IMO less liable to shrink when washed. But don't rub the wool, you don't want friction to start pilling. Just gently soak them in cool water, whatever Woolite says.
Click to expand...

India said:
Back when people had far less money, wool garments were rarely cleaned, in particular the suits that a man wore to work (and unless one was a "blue collar" worker, a man wore a suit to work). Many men had what was called a "suit valet" <https://www.scullyandscully.com/fur...CMIzIo0qERd-iLxTBF9EyV8rT-NlP6ahoCmYkQAvD_BwE>

A man came home from work, went upstairs to "wash up", hung his jacket on this caddy to dry from any sweat in it, removed his tie, and if it was winter, put on a cardigan over his dress shirt and was ready for the evening. Some left their tie on until after dinner.

At bedtime, the trousers were carefully folded over the suit caddy, making sure the creases were neatly lined up.

In the morning, his wife took a clothes brush and gave both the coat and trousers a good brushing. They'd already had a good "airing out". And the suit was re-hung in the closet for another wearing. If the man had spilled something, he forewarned his wife of this and she spot cleaned it.

Suits were only dry-cleaned after multiple wearings. Wives even re-pressed their husband's trousers, using a press cloth.

When women started going to work, this all ended and men started putting their suits in the dry cleaning pile after only one or two wearings. Of course, this dry-cleaned the very life out of them. It made the wool dry, and all that tailoring and interlining, was never quite the same again.

If you don't believe me, ask your grandparents, or watch an old episode of Downtown Abbey or Bertie Wooster and Jeeves. A wealthy "gentleman" had a valet who did this for him. The rest had wives.
Click to expand...

Fascinating, and much food for thought! Presently I have them dry cleaned about every third time I wear them unless I’ve had them on all day, then they go to the cleaners directly. I imagine there’s no way around drycleaning, but one of these days I may try washing an old pair and I’ll be sure to report back. :smile:
 
#16,670
eagle1002us said:
This is what I was describing, minus the wardrobe valet (the back of a chair works pretty well, too): brushing, airing and spot cleaning to minimize the need for a thorough [dry] cleaning. I have very low garment dry cleaning bills, mostly it's scarves from resellers. I could hand wash those but I can't figure out how to starch them w/o the starch burning. I think I have to buy a bottle of liquid starch, not spray starch. The bottle facilitates saturating the scarf with the starch. And supposedly reducing the heat of the iron so I don't scorch the fabric. Does anybody do anything like this?
Click to expand...

Amazon and Wayfair have suit valets that are far less costly than the one I posted from Scully & Scully. It just came up first and I was in a hurry. Having the molded hanger is key as is using the one that came with the suit or sports jacket. That’s how a jacket keeps the shape tailoring gave it! Wood is nicer but even the molded plastic ones that come with less expensive garments, will do the trick!
 
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#16,671
Johannap said:
I've manage to accumulate a nice collection of scarves from Hermes, in silk and cashmere. I'd love to wear them more often, but there is a silly thing holding me back: fear of damaging my scarves with makeup and skin care. :-s Unfortunately, the skin on my neck is super dry so I often use a little heavier creams, which means no scarves very close to the neck area.

How do you others balance this?
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I don’t have a large collection of silk cashmere scarves but love them. I used to be so afraid of getting something on them that they didn’t get much love. One thing that has freed me from this worry is that I now wash them myself. I don’t trust dry cleaners as I have had several things ruined by them in the past. I wash all my LV and Hermes scarves in cold water using baby shampoo. I lay them flat until they are nearly dry then iron them avoiding the rolled edges. They come out beautifully soft and new looking. Knowing that I can take care of them myself has made me use them with much less concern.:flowers:​
 
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#16,672
etoupebirkin said:
I'd like your thoughts on an encounter I had at an engagement party I went to last weekend. It was an informal affair; dressing polished was appropriate..

DH and I went to the Washington Ballet earlier in the day. I wore Mother jeans, black Vince tee, Brunello Cuchinelli cardigan, boots and some Van Cleef rose gold Alhambra and Perlee pieces on. I looked good. The monli beading on my cardigan was rose gold colored and matched the Van Cleef. I think about what I wear to coordinate looks. It's something I care about. I like to look stylish.

I approached two friends, they were talking about one woman's son — a very talented singer/actor auditioning on Broadway amongst other locales. He got a hold of his scorecard and found out he needed to up his game style wise. So we got into a discussion on clothes and style. The women said, "Look at you!" (meaning me)! You are just wearing a black tee shirt!!! They were admiring my style in a zoo-animal sort of way.

They asked me where I shop. I said "Saks." "Why do you shop THERE!!!" I said I like the quality and service. I understand tailoring and quality. So, I don't shop in places like Marshalls or Kohls, the places where they said they shop. These women are both practicing attorneys, so I know they have money, if they choose to spend it. They asked me whether I think about how I dress when I pick out clothes. I said yes.

I build my wardrobe around my jewelry and handbags. I've put too much of an investment in these pieces to do otherwise.

It was just a weird, weird encounter. I hope I did not come across as snobby. I was merely stating my views factually. If you know good tailoring and craftsmanship, it's hard to purchase poorly made items. Whenever I have purchased something at Marshalls, it ends up being donated to a clothing drive shortly thereafter. It's a waste of my money.

I own some inexpensive clothes from Target. They occupy a useful space in my wardrobe. They are just not things I wear when I want to look my best, e.g. party clothes.
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I have always loved fashion, and of course beautiful handbags and accessories. My appearance is extremely important to me. Twenty years ago I moved from a city to a small town where everyone dresses like they just rolled out of bed lol! They don’t dress up for anything, baby showers or sometimes even weddings. I like to dress thoughtfully for everything, dressy or casual. The dentist or grocery shopping. I stick out like a sore thumb and have been asked why I’m so ‘dressed up’ when I’m wearing a simple pair of slacks and a turtleneck. I learned right away that the LV monogram elicited such looks and comments that I sold all my LV bags and accessories. Nobody notices my Hermes. This brand is unknown out here. My poncho does get a lot of stares though. :lol:
 
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#16,676
Chagall said:
I have always loved fashion, and of course beautiful handbags and accessories. My appearance is extremely important to me. Twenty years ago I moved from a city to a small town where everyone dresses like they just rolled out of bed lol! They don’t dress up for anything, baby showers or sometimes even weddings. I like to dress thoughtfully for everything, dressy or casual. The dentist or grocery shopping. I stick out like a sore thumb and have been asked why I’m so ‘dressed up’ when I’m wearing a simple pair of slacks and a turtleneck. I learned right away that the LV monogram elicited such looks and comments that I sold all my LV bags and accessories. Nobody notices my Hermes. This brand is unknown out here. My poncho does get a lot of stares though. :lol:
Click to expand...
I get your preference totally. Totally. Totally. Totally.
 
#16,677
I have a question and hopefully I’m posting it in the appropriate place. In regards to selling an hermes bag, will it ever get back to the SA somehow if it’s sold to fashionphile or a similar website that posts photos I’d the serial numbers? I have a couple of bags that I regret purchasing simply because after using a few times I discovered them to be cumbersome to open and close. I don’t want them to just sit for years collecting dust and I wouldn’t mind having the money to spend on a bag I’d love more. I just worry that somehow my SA would find out. I wonder if they have a database and actively track this since is a quota bag etc. maybe I’m paranoid but any suggestions/advice or knowledge is welcome!
 
#16,678
ChanelCelineLaurentLover said:
I have a question and hopefully I’m posting it in the appropriate place. In regards to selling an hermes bag, will it ever get back to the SA somehow if it’s sold to fashionphile or a similar website that posts photos I’d the serial numbers? I have a couple of bags that I regret purchasing simply because after using a few times I discovered them to be cumbersome to open and close. I don’t want them to just sit for years collecting dust and I wouldn’t mind having the money to spend on a bag I’d love more. I just worry that somehow my SA would find out. I wonder if they have a database and actively track this since is a quota bag etc. maybe I’m paranoid but any suggestions/advice or knowledge is welcome!
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I do not believe Hermès has someone checking serial numbers on bags in the retail market. Employees have better things to do with their time.
 
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