In our incredible Luxury Exchange community is a wonderful group of people who adore buying and selling luxury clothing. The better you look after your clothing (and accessories, but that's for another post), the more money / store credit you will receive for them when you go to sell them on again! So knowing how to properly care for these items is hugely important, making this quick guide the perfect first Luxury Exchange blog post!
Lets start with what they tell you...
The easiest way to know how to look after any item is to know how to read the care label properly. The care label is usually found inside the clothing item.
You'll find you only really need to know the main few and then which ones basically mean 'dry clean only'!
Most often you will see;
Machine wash.
Machine wash, 30 degrees, no spin.
Hand wash.
Do not tumble dry.
Here is a visual guide to what each symbol you may see means;
Hand washing;
To hand wash an item, simply fill a basin with water (not hot) and some gentle detergent, being sure to use a detergent that works in colder water. Swirl the item around a few times and let it soak over the course of an hour, you may be surprised at how the colour of the water can change even on an item that you thought was relatively clean!
When you pull it out of the basin, gently squeeze out the water but be careful, most items that are hand wash will be delicate and therefore wringing the item (twisting it tightly to get the maximum amount of water squeezed out) can damage the shape, so be careful not to do this to your more delicate items! Instead, lie the item over a *white towel, roll the item up inside the towel, like a clothing sushi roll, and gently squeeze, you'll see all the water will start to get soaked up by the towel, for extra wet items you could even go again with a second towel when the first one becomes saturated. Follow up by hanging the item to air dry or air drying flat, depending on the item.
*If the item is dark and you don't want any colour transfer onto your white towel, you may want to use a darker colour towel but the colour from the towel can also transfer onto the item so do not use a dark towel for a light item.
Knitwear
Mohair, cashmere, merino wool... we all love cuddling into cosy knitwear but if you own it, you'll be aware that it can be annoying to wash! Washing and drying cashmere incorrectly is one of the main causes for 'piling' , little bumps and balls that form over the cashmere, which reduces the resale value. Piling is also caused by the cashmere rubbing against itself or something else, which is why it's most common on the sides / sleeve areas.
If you notice piling, you can remove it with a cashmere comb.
N.PEAL Cashmere Comb €6.50 - https://eu.npeal.com/products/new-cashmere-comb?variant=43077560434845¤cy=EUR&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=Cj0KCQiAzeSdBhC4ARIsACj36uGvUY7MyYdhET2iClYHXw48J7mXpxOs_5KLNJQn1Sf6Fl0mbekPdGoaAgqwEALw_wcB
When washing delicate knitwear, be extra careful and gentle. A luxury fashion buyer once gave me the tip to use antibacterial clothing sprays on knitwear and other delicate items to reduce washing, these sprays kill bacteria and any odours, meaning you can wash them less, which is better for the clothing and time saving! At the time, the sprays were quite hard to find, however now there is plenty available online from Rituals to Dettol. The only one I have tried and still currently use is the TANGENTGC fabric spray with yuzu perfume (€20) , it's very gently, smells gorgeous and neutralises odours. Always test on a small patch of the item first if you are unsure!
https://tangentgc.com/products/tgc082-yuzu-fabric-spray
Vanish
If you're like me and are always wearing fake tan and make-up, you'll have seen your fair share of beige tinted collars and the likes! Vanish products are incredible for getting make-up and tan marks off white clothing, they have a range of various forms of application so take a look to see which suits your situation best, you can get them in most supermarkets!
Dry-cleaning
Some items may read dry clean only, some people risk hand-washing some of these items depending on the fabric composition but this is at your own risk and not advised! Do note that most dry cleaners will do spot cleaning, so if you have an item that is fresh but has a stain and is dry clean only, for example, the collar of a coat has makeup on it but the coat itself is perfect, you can drop it in and ask for a spot clean on the collar, this is cheaper than a full clean and can be a great alternative to constantly getting a full dry clean.
Makeup
I felt the need to give makeup stains and washing its own section! Makeup wipes are a great solution to makeup stains, as is a gently soap and warm water mix. Shaving cream left on a makeup stain for ten minutes and then wiped off also works well!
If you get loose powder on your clothing do not wipe! Instead, use a hair-dryer to try and blast off the powder.
Hairspray (containing alcohol) is a known hack for lipstick stains, but, it can take off the colour of certain items, especially leather, so be careful if trying this.
Drying Racks
Even when items can technically go into the tumble dryer, I still use my drying rack for almost everything! It's a lot better for the clothing, they smell much fresher, it's more economical and more sustainable for the environment too!
Minding your clothing is the number one way to achieve the best value when re-selling it into the future. It's also an important step in making our wardrobes more sustainable as the longer the life-span of an item, the better it is for the environment!
So many people from our Luxury Exchange community have told me how their clothing-care habits have changed since purchasing and selling pre-loved, so I decided to create this post as a small guide, but I am always happy to help answer any questions via DM.
Thank you so much for reading, we can't wait to create more posts.
Cait
Founder
Luxury Exchange