Do you have FANCY shirts?

My favorite shirt at the moment is Robert Graham. . . But preferences change quickly.  What I do know is often these cotton shirts can cost $200, $300, $400+ each!  That is quite an investment.

The best deal at your local drycleaner is cleaning a standard men's cotton dress shirt.  In the industry it's known as a "commercial laundry."  However, I learned a long time ago that everything has a trade off.  In this case it is the wear and tear on your shirts.  And if you have fancy shirts, you may want to reconsider having them cleaned this way.

Better cleaners will scrub the collars and cuffs before putting your shirt in the wash.  All cleaners will wash the shirts (detergents may vary) and then press the shirt.  I do not call it ironing because it is not ironing.  These shirts will not go into a dryer.  They are dried by the pressing process which is a big hot metal plate, the size of a standard mans shirt, that clamps down on the shirt.  This results in a crisp smooth finish that many people love.  However it is hard on the shirt.  The life of the shirt that is cleaned this way is between 36 and 52 washings.

Any shirt with fancy buttons or snaps, tapering, loose plackets can be damaged by this process.  Many shirt materials such as corduroy, linen, seersucker or flannel cannot be processed this way without being damaged (or looking really bad) and only shirts that fit on the special machine can be processed this way.
  
When I was first entering this industry I had the opportunity to visited the New York Turnbull & Asser store (where they make fancy shirts.)  I asked them "why they put those little bubble in the tip of the collar,  when all commercial laundry equipment just flattens it right out?!"

By the look on the associates face, I had just said something horrible. 
It was clear he thought the drycleaner (me!) was irresponsibly cleaning their shirts.  The Turnbull & Asser people fully expect that every shirt would be cold water wash, gently dried and hand ironed.  This service is often 3 times as expensive, or more!

So here is a HUGE disconnect between the maker of the clothes and the cleaner.  I believe in an effort to provide value, the cleaner has unknowingly done a disservice to their customers.

So how much should you pay to have your shirts cleaned?
Well, that depends on your preferences an how long you want them to last. 

What is your time worth?  Hand ironing takes time, and time is one resource that we can't get back!
When in doubt, ask your cleaner - we are here to help you take care of your wardrobe.

Clothing Storage Tip

Last night I was at dinner and the subject of drycleaning came up.
We were discussing the basics when I mentioned that you should never store your clothes in the plastic bag that the drycleaner puts over your clothes. That bag is just meant to protect your clothes on the journey from the cleaners to your closet.

My friends were so surprised by my statement, I thought maybe I should tell more people.

I can think of three major reasons why you should never to store your clothes in plastic (drycleaners call it poly)

1. The plastic that drycleaners put on your clothes is a petroleum product. It is a chemical that outgasses. These gasses can and will permeate your clothes. I have had customers bring clothes back because of the unpleasant odor. They believed it was a residual drycleaning solvent smell. I had to assure them that we do not use traditional drycleaning solvent - so drycleaning chemicals were not the cause of the odor.

2. The plastic captures moisture that can foster the growth of molds and/or mildew. These can ruin your clothes and infest your closet!

3. The bag can trap atmospheric gasses that can cause color change on your garments over time. Fume fading often hapens in closets over time - but leaving your items in the plastic will accellerate this process

How should you store your items?

If it is heavy, like a bulky sweater or knit dress. Don't store it on a hanger. Gravity does a lot of damage! I like to roll the items with a piece of acid free tissue and wrap it in a clean peice of material - like an old pillow case.

In the closet, that same pillow case works wonders. Cut a hole in the top and put it over the item - it protects it from light and dust and will cause no harm. A clean sheet will also do the trick.

And perhaps the most important question. . . . what to do with all that plastic?
Film plastic is not currently being recycled in most areas - so before putting it in the recycle bin - you may want to call and make sure it is being accepted and not just put in the land fill. I always recommend giving it back to the cleaners. The better ones have a recycling plan, and if they don't - the more people that return the plastic, the more likely they will be to consider it.

Check out my blog "take the plastic back" from a few years ago:

Take the Plastic Back!

Thanks - and have a great day!

Men's Wear Classics

Fashions come and go, but laughing makes you feel great!

So you think all Drycleaners are the same?

A new customer asked why he should pay me more than his usual dry-cleaner to have his $2,400 hand-made suits serviced; a good question in these times. While I don’t like to answer a question with a question, I asked him why he had this wonderful suit on my counter and not on that of his normal dry-cleaners. His reply was “Well, the suit has lost it's shape, feel and body”, so I answered his question:

"The difference you pay for is experience and investment in equipment, materials and staff, and the overall quality that produces. We always make sure we are up-to-date with developments within the textile industry – manufacturing and materials, and cleaning techniques and products. When it’s worthwhile we invest in new equipment and ensure our staff know how to maximize its capabilities."

I find that this is a common thought. You grab your dirty suit or dress and run to where ever the nearest drycleaner is located. Its just a drycleaner, right? They all do the same thing, right?
Here are 6 reasons I could think of why All Drycleaners Are Not the Same!

1) Did you know that there are no requirements (other than a business license) to become a drycleaner? You can pretty much just put up a sign and be open for business, with zero knowledge or experience! Drycleaning is one of the few businesses I can think of with NO requirements. There are many trade associations that help drycleaners educate themselves - I would never choose a cleaner that was not affiliated with at least the DLI (Drycleaning and Laundry Institute).

2) Textile care is complicated. The drycleaner has no control over how a garment was made, how it has been cared for in the past, or what sort of stains and soils are on the garment. We often don't recal spilling that 7up on our favorite blouse when we are dropping the blouse at the cleaners a week later. Or perhaps all those shirts have been sitting in the back of a car baking for a week while on route to the cleaners.
And care labels are notoriously inaccurate - you can imagine the trouble an inexperienced cleaner could have.

3) Experience, training and on going education is crucial! Drycleaning machines come with “factory standard” computer templates. A good drycleaner will have those programs customized for they types of clothes (sweaters vs cushions) and the weather (hot dry weather verses rain). It takes experience and training to customize key aspects of the cleaning process: rotation of the drum, spin speed, solvent temperature, drying temperature etc. A good operator will also distill 80% of the solvent with each load; this is more expensive but it makes sure the solvent is perfectly clean and pure each time we process clothes.

4) The kinds of equipment available to drycleaners is as varied as the drycleaner operators. There are high tech wetcleaning, drycleaning, tensioning, the list goes on and on. Some of this equipment is very complicated and expensive. Knowing how to use the basic equipment properly is one thing, but investing in the best equipment shows the quality of the operator.

5) Then there is the soap! The soap we add to the dry-cleaning process is the best you can buy in Europe, not the cheapest. This affects the “feel” of the garments, improves their antistatic properties, enhances the brightness of the colors and also offers better stain removal properties. Without getting too technical, it aids dirt particle suspension properties - the soap helps to suspend the dirt particles in the solvent and stops them being re-deposited on to other garments, causing “greying”.

6) Tracking software: A cheap drycleaner can use a regular cash register and staple tags to each garment, then manually assemble and bag an order after cleaning. A better cleaner will use a high end technology that prevents human error (and mis-assembly's), allows you to sign up, pay and check orders on the internet, and use less resources for the packaging process.


So the next time you are considering using a discount cleaners - think about all the things they must be neglecting in order to keep that price low. And try asking a few questions.

A Consumer Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Drycleaning

I just read a great article in a Miami newspaper and wanted to share.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-drycleaning-guide-20110304,0,1866198,full.story

This article does a good job of talking about manufacturing issues where the drycleaner is often blamed, color loss during cleaning is one example. They also talk about a few instances when the manufacturer was fined. One note: in the US, all wearable garments are required to have one method of cleaning on the care label and a content label. It is NOT required to be correct.

I recommend that you look for a cleaner that does not rely on the care label. He should read the care label, but the cleaning method should be based on the Drycleaners experience and testing the garment before cleaning.

Care labels are often wrong and any drycleaner worth their salt will use a care label as a guideline only!

Why going to the cleaners in the rain can ruin your clothes

Where I live we have been having more rain than usual. I commented to a friend that people don't go to the Drycleaners when it's raining. She quickly corrected me. According to her, once we are used to the rain, it no longer deters us from things we need to do.

I began to think about why I thought rain and Drycleaning was not a good mix. . . True, water can cause spots on some silks. I always recommend to my wedding gown clients NOT to bring in their gown on a rainy day unless necessary. . And I insist on protection! Why do I feel so strongly?

So, there you are at the cleaners. You get out of your car with your lovely cashmere sweater or wool suit, and dash into the cleaners to avoid getting drenched. The clerk behind the counter takes your garments, gives you a receipt and puts your items in a bag.

It's done, right? It's out of your hands. . . Or is it?

Here is the danger. . . Drycleaning is "dry". This means there should be no water or moisture in the process. If your cleaner is sub par, and does not air dry your clothes before cleaning, shrinkage, color damage and wrinkling will occur.

So today's tip, don't take wet clothes to the cleaners.