5 Things You Should Know About Drycleaning!

Its true! Care labels are wrong the majority of the time.

A recent online article from the UK tested 5 dryclean only garments and found that 4 of the 5 washed just fine. Check out that article here.

I could have told you that without all the time and effort. At our cleaners, well over 80% of items we process are washed or wetcleaned (wetcleaning is just a way of describing a extreme control of detergents and agitation during cleaning, similar to hand wash at home, if you know what you are doing).

So here are a few secrets you may not know about drycleaning: -

1. Care labels are often wrong. We often test clothes before cleaning to ensure care labels are correct. - 
2. Cashmere sweaters wash (hand wash) beautifully. We dryclean them because the water creates a time consuming requirement of blocking and drying flat. If you have the time, go for it. However washing cashmere well at home takes tender loving care, patience and a little practice. - 
3. Odor does not come out in drycleaning. Its true! If a drycleaner wants to remove an odor, they must wash it or use a textile deodorizer. So if you take a garment to the drycleaner with the hope that the odor will be removed – LET THEM KNOW. Your drycleaner should thank you for the information. They want you to be happy with the result. - 
4. Wash structured garments at your risk. In the article she washed a wool jacket. This is what we drycleaners call “structured garments.” I would never recommend washing that at home. 
5. There should be no dryclean odor in your clothes.  The only reason to air out your clothes after drycleaning is because the plastic is a petroleum product - DO NOT STORE YOUR CLOTHES IN DRYCLEAN PLASTIC! 

There was also little mention in the article regarding the finishing of the garments. Your drycleaner has very specialized equipment that can remove wrinkles, set finish and shape garments easily and quickly after cleaning. I wonder if she just got lucky with the items she chose – silk typically needs finishing (it is normally quite wrinkled after cleaning – even when line dried) and cashmere must be blocked and dried properly to minimize wrinkles and shrinkage.

So it comes down to How much time do you have? Where do you want to be spending your time? How much expertise to you have? (stain removal, pressing) How many items are you willing to risk? 

A good drycleaner is a trusted resource. We study stain removal, garment construction and fibers and weaves. The trick is to find a good drycleaner