From all the clothing we have in our closets, coats are perhaps the hardest to maintain. A coat’s durability depends almost solely on its correct – or incorrect – maintenance. Coats and jackets should be treated differently, according to their materials, including wool fibres, leather jackets, wool coats. The list is endless, which makes the task even more challenging. In this article, you’ll read more about how to take the best care of your winter companion.
Different Materials, Different Needs
Washing your coats too often can wear them out. Washing them too rarely can also damage them because of the ammonia in your sweat. To avoid over-washing them, a good rule of thumb is when brushing and airing are not restoring their fresh and clean look anymore, it is time for a cleaning. It’s crucial to know how often you should clean each material and if it can be washed in the regular washing machine, is dry clean only, or perhaps it has to be hand washed in cold water. It may well be the case of resorting to a professional dry cleaner if you’re afraid of damaging an expensive coat. Always read the care on the item of clothing before proceeding to any of those methods.
Some of the most common winter garments should be cared for as follows:
- Wool coats and leather jackets: Once or twice a season, depending on how often you use it.
- Suit jackets: Four or Five times maximum.
- Rain jackets: Once or twice a month, depending on how often you use it.
- Fleece jackets: Six or seven times maximum.
Waterproof Jackets
Those jackets can have their waterproof coating worn out with time. This coating is restorable, using a waterproofing spray or a wash-in waterproofer. The process is simple and can be homemade. It should be done whenever you feel it’s not insulating correctly anymore.
How to Store Your Coats?
Again, it’ll depend on materials and sizes. Anyway, proper storage is as necessary as the correct cleaning process for prolonging durability, regardless of the coat type.
Storing them not completely clean or storing them the wrong way can compromise your coat for the next season. Still, some rules apply to all of them. Here’s a short list:
- Never store your coat if it’s still wet or damp.
- Never store your coat without cleaning it.
- Use a resistant hanger, so it’ll keep its shape.
- Don’t store them in basements or attics, where the temperature fluctuation tends to be extreme.
- Don’t hang it on a hook, it’ll deform with weight.
- Let them air-dry before putting it into the wardrobe.
How to Deal With Stains
Stains should also be dealt with differently, depending on the garment and what caused the stain. While some fabrics can take a more abrasive stain remover, it can be the disaster of a more fragile material, such as wool. Particularities aside, vinegar can be one of our best allies, removing stubborn stains from almost any fabric*. They can also pre-treat the stain if some heavier cleaning is needed. In some cases, it can even solve the problem alone. In the worst cases, only a professional dry-cleaning service can help.
My Butler is the #1 mobile dry cleaning Sydney service. Get in touch with us today to book dry cleaning for your coats.