I machine wash my silks, cashmere, wool, etc.

#31
I hand-wash my wool sweaters and sweater coats using The Laundress Wool/Cashmere Shampoo. My sweaters come out better, and no more of the dry cleaner cracking my buttons.

For bras, I put them in a mesh bag and wash with my regular laundry, and then hang them to dry. I hang dry most of my clothes, except for house clothes or stuff I don't really care about (except for my cotton Drkshdw hoodie, since its too heavy to air dry properly).

Certain things like my nicer structured jackets/coats I take to the dry cleaners as needed. Sometimes I'll spray them with water/vinegar mix then steam to freshen them up. Though I have seen on The Laundress' website, they've machine washed Chanel jackets and wool blazers, but I'm not so brave!

I don’t wear silks, but the one silk piece I have I don’t really care about, so I toss it in with my regular laundry. Nordstrom Delicates Wash has high reviews, but I haven’t tried it personally.
 
#32
renza said:
I'm bumping this thread to ask what may be a very basic question:
If a silk blouse says "Professionally dry clean" is that the same as "Dry clean only"? I ask because if a garment tag just says "dry clean" but not "dry clean ONLY" then I would just hand wash it, but I'm not sure if "professionally dry clean" means I would ruin it by hand washing.
Click to expand...

it should be the same thing. but you should also be able to handwash silk.

i did more recently semi-ruin a silk shirt by washing it in the washing machine, even with small mesh. it doesn't feel the same silkiness as when i first bougth it. maybe i should have used a lesser harsh detergent =/ but i mean it was ok tho.
 
#35
My mum has a top of the range washing machine that shrinks nothing - so if something does go wrong I take it back!!

But that hasn't happened for a long time now...

I'm getting to be a better shopper after years of disasters!!!
 
#36
Growing up my mom would almost always hand wash her silk, silk chiffon (often times with beading, trim, sequins), brocade, organza, cashmere items. A lot of friends of hers had beaded/embellished items ruined at the dry cleaners (usually from the heat/press). There was even a time when my family got into the dry cleaning business and she would still hand wash those items.

I hand wash mostly everything except for my down coats. I've accidentally washed silk in the washer and it didn't get ruined or anything (looked fine once I steamed it). I usually don't pay attention to the instructions on the label - I feel many manufacturers (to avoid any damage claims) state dry clean for items that don't really need it (like rayon, poly blends etc).
- Use woollite to wash wool, cashmere, silks. I've heard some people using baby shampoo for wool/cashmere
- If I'm really lazy and have a few items to wash, I use the delicate cycle on my washing machine but take the clothes out after they are agitated (before spin)
- Line dry or use drying rack
- Steam silks when they are about 90% dry
- Try to wash items only as needed or spot clean
- Steam items if I want to refresh them
 
#37
I avoid dry cleaning for several reasons:
- The chemicals. They're not good for you or the fabric. Even with today's bio/green cleaners you're still exposing yourself to a certain degree of chemicals + there are no guarantees to know what a place is "really" doing with your clothes. I realized later that most clothes at dry cleaners get laundered not dry cleaned (even if you request it).
- I'm lazy. It takes more for me to go to the dry cleaners than to wash it on my own
- Its so expensive. Living in Chicago, most places charge a lot more than what I was used to paying a few years ago in Texas.
- My Jiffy Steamer changed my life. I hate ironing an found myself dry cleaning things when I really didn't need to. I steam in between washes if I want to refresh the item or get rid of wrinkles (so quick too!)
 
#38
I trust my mum and her top of the range washing machine for everything as I can't afford to buy expensive clothes and pay dry-cleaning bills.

She hasn't ruined anything yet lol:smile:
 
#41
faerie87 said:
Hey all!

So i am really lazy and i machine wash my delicate fabrics. I know i am not supposed to but i have not noticed anything wrong with them after multiple washes, but is something horrible happening to my nice clothes that i am not noticing?? Does anyone do this as well?

I use a top loading washing machine
I use environmental friendly laundry detergent, target brand.
I wash in warm water
I put each one in a ultra fine mesh bag, the holes are really small, you can pretty much only poke a needle through it.
I line dry them
I steam them to straighten out wrinkles.

I want to know what exactly is this method different than handwashing my silk? I feel that my mesh bag protects it really well and i think drying delicates is the worst culprit.

Or maybe i should start washing in cold water?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

If you have a really good machine, with a delicates program, you should be able to wash your pieces - but it's a risk as you've no comeback if it goes wrong.

I agree that drying is what can really ruin delicate clothes...:smile:
 
#43
kristinlorraine said:
i tried to hand-wash my Equipment silk blouse but it shrunk and ruined the texture. i'm impressed of you girls who hand wash delicates without any problem.
Click to expand...

what kind of silk? chiffon or satin like silk?
the chiffon type...even dry clean changed the texture a little.
you can bring to the dry cleaner to have them press the blouse for you. should be a little cheaper than dry clean. the dry cleaner's iron is so much more powerful.
 
#44
kristinlorraine said:
i tried to hand-wash my Equipment silk blouse but it shrunk and ruined the texture. i'm impressed of you girls who hand wash delicates without any problem.
Click to expand...


Silk is really hard to hand wash...when I used to wear silk blouses I always dry cleaned them as I couldn't wash them either.

Now I wear cotton shirts that are all machine washable.:smile:
 
#45
it's a chiffon type navy blue Brett silk blouse. i used woolite and a warm water. the color started to bleed and the texture kinda turned rough. also the sleeves shrunk. maybe i should use a cold water instead?

juneping said:
what kind of silk? chiffon or satin like silk?
the chiffon type...even dry clean changed the texture a little.
you can bring to the dry cleaner to have them press the blouse for you. should be a little cheaper than dry clean. the dry cleaner's iron is so much more powerful.
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top
Back