More and more consumers are becoming increasingly discerning in what products they buy. Whether they are looking for Italian luxury clothing brands, high end gifts or cruelty free fashion, people have options for just about every need. For people who buy luxury clothing items, there is the need to keep it looking its best. Here are some tips for the proper care and feeding of your luxury fashion items.
- Pay attention to the label. The people who know best how to take care of any kind of clothing or item are the people who made it in the first place. That means the information on the labels on your attire (and furniture and just about everything else that you buy) is not just for show. If the instructions say you should only hand wash an item, sending it for dry cleaning or use certain temperatures, you should pay attention to that advice.
- There are some times when that first rule can be bent. The rule of following the manufacturer’s instructions for your luxury clothing should not be broken but it can be bent a bit. For example, “dry clean only” may also mean you can wash it by hand. There are a lot of garments for which this is not true. It really depends on the material that was used to make it. If you are not sure, talk to your dry cleaner. Also if your items are a mixture of different fabrics, have ornate attachments such as beads, adornments, sequins or other glittery items, you should not try to wash them in your machine or at home.
- Store your seasonal attire. If you live in a part of the country that has seasons, you have clothing for different kinds of weather. Your clothing will last longer and look better if you take it and put it away in a safe and secure place. It should be kept dry and away from direct sunlight. The cooler this place is, the better. Make sure all of your items are fully dry before you place them in storage. Any moisture at all can do a lot of damage to all of your items. Whether you have cruelty free fashion items or not, water is not your clothes’ friend when it is in storage. If you have access to a cedar chest, that can be the best place to store your stuff.
- Pay attention to what you wash with what. If you are cleaning your items at home, you should not dry all of your items together in the dryer. If you have a number of luxury clothing items you have some that are made from lighter fabrics and some made from heavier fabrics. Like weights of clothing should be dried together. If you keep your lighter fabrics in the dryer along with the heavier items, you run the risk of shrinking them.
- Pay attention to the temperature settings. Many of your luxury and cruelty free fashion items should be dried in a cooler drier under less harsh conditions. This is especially true for your lingerie. The heavier items in your collection can handle hotter temperatures and harsher conditions. You also need to watch the order. You can put your light weight fabric items into a dryer and set it for cool and low but if you just dried your heavy items, the machine is still hot and can damage your items.
- Be careful about over packing your washing machine. There are some fabrics that are used for luxury and cruelty free fashion that are ok to be washed in your home washing machine. Some can take the heavier cycles and some cannot. The main thing, other than setting the machine on the right cycle, is to avoid putting too many items into the wash at the same time.
When you buy specialty items such as luxury clothing, unique furniture pieces or higher end pieces of any kind, you want them to stay looking the way they did when you acquired them for a long time. When you take the time to learn about your items and what they need to stay healthy and happy, they can last longer.