Fabric Care 101

My mom was meticulous about laundry. She folded fitted sheets with the ease of magician on stage. She taught me about thread counts, hang drying and maximizing longevity. She was born during the Great Depression and very much lived by the adage, want not waste not. There was nothing luxury in our house (unless it had been thrifted by chance). Quality was queen.

As a result I am also very particular about fabrics and how and what is laundered. Washing your whites with your colours sends a shiver through my spine. The horror! But! If your mom did not drive fabric care into your core being, fear not! I’m gonna decode it all for you here:

Sort it Out

Keep colours with like colours.

Denim should never ever (eeeeever) be washed or dried with whites and be careful tossing it in with any lighter hues. I also prefer to hang dry my denim but I know we’re all tight for time so find something that works for you!

Know What’s In There

Cottons, polyblends, rayon and more. Be aware of fabric contents. One quick little hack: use the image search feature of your phone’s camera to look up all those cryptic symbols before washing.

Dryer Beware

Dryers are great. So fast. So warm. But they are tough on clothes. And as more and more clothes are made of synthetics I do find that our beloved “soft” fabrics tend to pill quickly so do consider a hang dry here.

Keep in mind also that stretch fabrics (elastin, spandex, lycra) will loose elasticity when subjected to the heat. Consider hang drying any of these fabrics to keep them fitting their best.

Wool You or Won’t You

We already went over knit care here so take a peek back for a refresher. The cole’s notes: hand wash where possible, use a no rinse detergent and lay flat to dry

And that’s it! Google Image search those symbols, keep your whites away from your colours and hang dry when you have time and space.

Happy washing!