Caring For Vintage Clothing
Vintage threads have quickly become one of the hottest style trends of the decade, with fashionistas falling head over heels for the retro designs, passé panache and of course, rock-bottom prices. Yet unlike their contemporary counterparts, vintage clothing requires special care. Whether you own a couple of pieces or an entire wardrobe of pre-loved threads, read on for our complete guide to keeping your garments in tip-top condition.
Dry clean when necessary
While you can sometimes get away with hand washing modern clothing tagged with a ‘dry clean only’ label, rules must be adhered to when vintage garments are concerned. Older fabrics are far more delicate and often much less synthetic than contemporary store-bought items which means that dry clean only means exactly that!
Hand wash
Always take the time to hand wash your vintage garments using washing liquid designed for delicate garments. Gently swirl around in a sink or bucket, then rinse and dry in the shade.
Don’t spray with perfume
While it can be tempting to spritz your vintage clothing with your favourite perfume this can be incredibly damaging to older materials, particularly silk, velvet and linen. Instead, keep the fragrances to your wrists, neck and hair.
Be a conscious wearer
When you’re rocking your vintage clothing always try to remember to be a conscious wearer. This means no sitting on rough surfaces that could pull or damage material, no wiping dirty hands on pants and no eating messy foods that could stain.
Go easy on seams
The seams are usually the weakest part of any garment. Due to the fact that vintage wear is not brand new, wearers should pay extra attention not to put necessary stress on seams. If you do start to notice a seam pulling apart or unravelling you can either launch a DIY repair job or take your garment to a professional tailor for repairing.
Pin with care
Adding vintage brooches to blouses and dresses is a great way to pretty up an outfit however don’t’ forget that sharp objects can be damaging to materials, especially if they’re heavy. The last thing you want is to unpin a brooch at the end of the day, only to find that you’ve put a gaping hole in your gorgeous silk blouse.
Be a savvy storer
Vintage fabrics need to breathe so always try to hang them up in a wardrobe rather than fold them up in a drawer. Silks, chiffon, organza, bead work and taffeta should all be hung on padded hangers to prevent piling and unnecessary wear. Keep moths at bay by hanging lavender bags around them!
