Caring For Clothes

Caring for clothes is essential if you want them to look bright, fresh, and in great shape for as long as possible.  And let’s face it, with kaftans as pretty as ours you’re going to want to wear them season after season!  But how, exactly, should you care for them?  Is it possible to wash your clothes too much?  And what do all those clothes care symbols really mean, anyway?  Here’s everything you need to know about caring for clothes.

In this photo:  Kua Bay Long Kaftan Dress

Caring For Clothes – Rinse Your Swimwear

If you spend your summers living on the beach or by the pool then this first caring for clothes tip is for you: rinse your swimwear every time you wear it!  Whether your swimming in the ocean or the pool, saltwater and chlorine will both break down the fibres and the elasticity of your swimsuit, leaving them much more prone to damage.  Even a quick rinse in cool water will go some way towards mitigating this risk, helping your favourite suit to last longer.

Caring For Clothes – Air Dry Where Possible

Caring for clothes during the cooler winter months might be easier said than done, but air drying your clothes will always be better for them than using the tumble dryer. Dryers break down the fibres in fabrics, particularly delicate fabrics, causing them to shrink and age much faster.  By contrast, air drying clothes on a coat hanger allows them to breath and will prevent any pulling or wrinkling at the same time.

In this photo:  Makena Short Kaftan Dress

Caring For Clothes – Read The Care Labels

Learning to read the care labels on your favourite items of clothing is essential, but it can sometimes feel like learning to read Japanese without any lessons: almost impossible!  Clothes care symbols will tell you exactly how your piece should be washed and dried.  To make this easier, here is a quick breakdown of the most common ones:

• Caring For Clothes – Washing – If a garment can be washed in a washing machine then the label will show a bucket filled with water.  Hands over this bucket signifies that a piece is hand wash only, whilst numbers inside the bucket indicate the preferred washing machine temperature.

• Caring For Clothes – Drying – A circle shaped symbol indicates that a garment can be tumble dried at any temperature you prefer.  If this circle has one dot in its centre then it can only be tumble dried at a low temperature whilst two dots mean it can handle high heat.  A square with a circle inside and a cross over the top of it is designed to indicate clearly that something should not be tumble dried.

• Caring For Clothes – Ironing – Ironing symbols depict an iron with dots inside representing the maximum temperature that you should use to iron the garment.  One dot means you can iron at a low heat, two at a medium heat, and three dots mean a piece can be ironed at a high heat.  If the iron has a cross over it then you shouldn’t iron the piece at all.

Caring For Clothes – Don’t Wash Your Denim

It might sound a little disgusting, but many denim purists believe that jeans should never be placed in the washing machine.  Instead any marks or stains should simply be spot cleaned by hand, making them the most low maintenance piece that you can have in your wardrobe!  Denim isn’t delicate, so you don’t have to store it, fold it or iron it in any specific way: if you’re short on time then the jeans you threw over a chair will look just as good as those you folded and pressed.

In this photo:  Kandolhu Short Kaftan Dress

Caring For Clothes – Handwash Your Delicates

Those delicates are, erm, delicate, so we always recommend that you handwash your underwear where possible, especially your bras.  Underwiring in bras can become misshapen in a washing machine, which can also affect the support that the bra will offer you.  Ultimately, this will affect the line of your silhouette and impact on the overall look of your outfit.

Caring For Clothes – Hang On To Good Hangers

Finally, caring for clothes isn’t only about washing or drying them.  One of the most important things you can do is invest in good coat hangers.  Flimsy and narrow wire or plastic coat hangers often stretch the shoulders of the pieces that are on them, and can leave you with pulls, marks and mishappen outfits.  Not a good look!  Heavy wooden or padded coat hangers may be a little more pricey, but they will do a much better job of protecting your favourite pieces and, ultimately, helping them to last longer.

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