Garment Care
Respect Your Clothes: The Sketchley Guide to Garment Care
There are as many ways to clean a garment as there are types of fabric. Exotic and unusual materials require specific care. To help our customers understand how we work, we’ve compiled the following information on garment cleaning and care.
VINYL OR LEATHER
trimmed garments are common in today’s fashions. Because the dry-cleaning process can occasionally result in cracking, peeling, hardening or cause dyes to bleed into adjacent areas, we explain these possible risks to customers and ask that they sign a form indicating that they understand them.
BEADS AND SEQUINS
attached to fabric are often not colorfast. They can change or lose color, shine, or their “pearl effect.” Such materials may also melt or peel, or the glue that attaches them to the fabric may dissolve during cleaning.
SOFT WOOL (REGULAR WEAVE)
Wool comes in an ever-increasing variety of qualities, thicknesses, patterns and blends. The term “soft wool” describes wool with a very soft-to-the-touch surface or finish that’s usually slightly napped, such as flannel and gabardine. Soft wool is prone to pilling, matting and shrinking, loss of nap and extra wear around collar and pocket areas. These changes normally reveal themselves after several cleanings. In addition, weakened areas or small holes caused by moths and other pests can be made more noticeable after dry cleaning. Holding a garment up to the light can reveal such areas./
ANGORA, MOHAIR, CASHMERE AND BLENDS
Angora is a luxurious fibre made from rabbit hair and is used exclusively or as a wool blend. Mohair is from the wool of the Angora goat and is often combined with other fibers. Cashmere is a soft, luxurious and durable wool, used alone or blended. All of the above materials are prone to shrinkage and matting, which can occur simply from wear, especially in areas affected by perspiration. Distortion or tightening of yarns may occur in elbows, cuff and other heavy wear areas. Always dry clean garments made from any of these materials.
VELVETS AND CORDUROYS
Or pile fabrics made from cotton, acetate, silk or blends, should be examined for loss of pile and for permanent shine marks. These are normally caused by improper pressing or home washing. To maximize the life of their original finish, velvets and corduroys should be dry-cleaned.
LOOSELY WOVEN WOOLS
Should be examined before purchase for quality of nap, signs of matting, pulling, and wear. Soft naps are found in loosely woven wools such as crepe or jersey fabric. These fabrics should be dry-cleaned at all times.
RAYON AND RAYON BLENDS
Are composed of manmade fibres derived from cotton or wood pulp. Rayon garments, whether plain or printed, should be examined at purchase for fading, streaks, loss of luster and color on the outside and reverse. Rayon should always be dry-cleaned.
COTTON
Ranges from paper-thin weaves to ultra heavy knits. Always read washing labels to determine appropriate laundering methods. When home washing cotton garments, always matching pieces together to avoid color fading, loss of color due to staining or wear shrinkage or permanent wrinkling.
SATIN
Is made from polyester, silk and other fabrics. It has a smooth, lustrous surface on one side. When purchasing satin garments, check for snags, lustre loss, etc. To avoid loss of surface luster and body, satin must be dry-cleaned.
CHIFFON
And other sheer fabrics are made from silk or synthetic fabrics. The delicate nature of the fabric makes it subject to damage from pulls, yarn slippage and other fabric distortions. Chiffon garments can be hand-washed or machine-washed on a very gentle setting.
SILK AND SILK BLENDS
Are made from a natural luxurious fibre. Raw silk is very susceptible to color and lustre damage and yarn slippage. Silk blends are susceptible to damage from perspiration, stain, and color loss. Both types of silk should be dry-cleaned at all times to prevent damage. Even on garments whose labels recommending hand-washing, shrinkage and yarn separation can occur.