Know Everything About Suits Care
Suits are one
of the most expensive clothing purchases people make. With all the
money you invest in a good suit, it is important to be sure that you
care for it properly. However, exactly what is involved in caring for
your suit?
The first
thing you should do to keep your suit looking great is to hang it
properly. Over the years, cheap hangers will create permanent puckers
in the shoulders of the suit coat. Look for a good quality wooden or
padded hanger that is designed to hang a suit.
If you have a
wool suit, you should also be concerned about preventing moth damage.
Ideally, you should hang your suit in a cedar lined closet. However,
few people have a closet that is lined with cedar. One alternative is
to use mothballs, but they have a strong, distinctive smell that
lingers after the suit leaves the closet. A more pleasant alternative
is to keep your suit in a special storage bag, which is airtight and
keeps moths out.
Of course, one
of the reasons that moths and carpet bugs eat suits in the first
place is because they are put away before they are cleaned. If you
have a suit that is used only for one season, such as a lightweight
summer suit, you should never put it away without having it cleaned
even if it doesn't look dirty. This is because a suit may look clean
to you, but actually has sweat stains and skin flakes on it that
simply are not visible to the human eye. They act like bug magnets.
Most dirty
suits need to be dry cleaned, but sometimes people just don't have
time to run to the dry cleaners. Luckily, there are some products
that enable people to clean their suits at home.
1. Home dry
cleaning kits are a great way to freshen a suit that doesn't need to
have any deep cleaning done. However, you will need to be sure that
you don't end up shrinking a wool suit when you use these kits.
2. To spot
clean a wool suit, you should always be sure to test any spot
removers on a spot that isn't noticeable before you use them. Don't
ever rub at a stain, since you could damage the fabric. Instead, blot
the stain and then rinse it in cold water.
3. If your
wool suit has picked up an unpleasant odor, but you need to wear it
the next morning, try hanging it in the bathroom, turning on the
shower for a few minutes, and then leaving it to air out overnight.
Finally, don't
be afraid to press your suit yourself. Just make sure that you use
the steam setting and press the suit on the wrong side so that you
don't make the wool shiny. |
