6 Tips for Looking After Dry Clean Only Clothing

If you have clothes with “dry clean only” on the tag, it can be daunting knowing how to look after them. You know you need to find a professional dry cleaners in Haywards Heath, but how often do the garments need to be cleaned? And how do you care for the items in between services? In this post, we’ll share with you our top tips on looking after dry clean only clothing.

Stick to a Dry Cleaning Schedule

Dry cleaning is a much gentler process than regular cleaning, so sticking to a regular schedule is best to keep your clothing fresh and lasting longer.

Having said that, you don’t need to get a garment dry cleaned after every use unless there are clear signs of dirt, sweat, or staining.

For dresses, you’ll need them dry cleaned after one or two wears. However, blouses are usually fine to be worn three or four times. Items like trousers and skirts can be worn as many as four or five times before needing a refresh of dry cleaning.

Dry Clean Garments Before Storing Them

Valuable items such as wedding dresses or vintage clothes should always be dry cleaned before they go into long-term storage.

Even if they seem clean, body oils and other materials can damage the garments when they’re in storage, so it’s best to get them as clean as possible before storing them away.

The last thing you want to do is get them out of storage and find they’ve become discoloured.

Change Your Clothes When You Get Home

Since you can’t put your dry clean clothes in the washing machine, we suggest taking them straight off when you get home to keep them as fresh as possible between trips to the laundrette.

Hang them back up to avoid wrinkling and keep a note of how many times you’ve worn it so you can book in for dry cleaning as needed.

Prepare Your Clothing for Dry Cleaning

Check any clothing you’re sending for dry cleaning for stains or marks, and let us know this information when you bring it in. When we know what stain we’re dealing with, we’ll be much more efficient at removing it.

Also, check if any garments having holes or missing buttons – this is something else we can fix during dry cleaning.

Don’t Treat Stains Yourself

We never recommend treating a stain yourself on dry clean only clothing. You might end up damaging the material, shrinking it, or stretching it out.

Instead, give us a call and let us know what’s happened. We’ll either be able to give you our professional advice on what to do or we can book you in to get it professionally dry cleaned and taken care of.

Take Garments Out of the Plastic

It might seem like you’re protecting garments by leaving them in plastic bags, but over time these can actually break down the fabric and cause deterioration. They also cause moisture to build up on your clothing which will lead to mildew.

Instead, take the clothing out of plastic bags straight away and store them on hangers in a well-ventilated cupboard.

Need a professional dry cleaners in Haywards Heath?

At Sarah Lacey Dry Cleaning we specialise in vintage clothing, wedding attire, and valuable items that need a professional touch. If you’re unsure how to look after your dry clean only clothing, call our team today for professional advice: 01444 416 644