When it comes to sustainable fashion, I feel there is one topic that often gets overlooked in the conversation: the importance of taking care of your clothes. It’s without a doubt one of the most efficient ways to extend the lifespan of a garment and prevent textile waste. The best part about it? It’s surprisingly simple and saves you big bucks.
The art of not ruining your clothes
Stop Fighting with Your Washing Machine
Even though we own sophisticated washing machines, nobody seems to know how to do laundry anymore. The first step toward better clothing care starts with understanding your washing machine. Those mysterious symbols and program names aren’t just for show. Take a few minutes to read your machine’s manual and learn what each setting does. A delicate cycle, for instance, uses gentler agitation and slower spin speeds to protect sensitive fabrics.
Beyond machine settings, there are a few other tips you should know:
- Avoid running empty or near-empty loads, as clothes need other garments to act as buffers; without them, the fabric fibers can become damaged from excessive mechanical action.
- Be mindful of detergent use too. Using too much doesn’t make clothes cleaner, but rather leaves residue that can attract dirt and wear down fibers over time.
- Pick the right detergent. You don’t need to buy fancy ones but different detergents do different things. Universal detergent does a lot but it might not be enough to tackle your smelly gym clothes. Instead, use “sports” detergents which contain enzymes that help detach the oils from the fibers. “Whites” detergent generally contain oxygen bleach which brightens white fabrics but might fade darker colors.
- Ditch fabric softeners. They leave residue on fabric (and your machine) that actually locks sweat and bacteria into the fibers, resulting in a permanent odor. Use white vinegar or baking soda with a few drops of essential oils instead.
- Keep the temperature low. While hot water might seem like the best way to get things clean, high temperatures can damage fibers and fade colors, so stick to cold or warm water unless you’re dealing with heavy soiling or need to sanitize items.
- Run a cleaning cycle monthly to keep your washing machine in top condition. This prevents buildup that can transfer onto your clothes and ensures optimal performance.
- Skip the dryer and save it for towels. The high temperature and friction caused by machine drying damages fibers.
Taking care of your clothes vs. the care label.
A lot is being said about the proper way to wash clothes and it can get complicated, depending on where you look. Doing laundry is far from being my passion and I’m sure it isn’t yours either so let’s keep things simple.
- Sort your laundry. Growing up, I remember ads heavily marketing color catcher sheets as the ultimate solution to make laundry easy. Spoiler alert: they’re not. They don’t really work and they might clog your machine. If you want to keep your lights light, just separate your light fabrics from the dark ones.
- Read the clothing labels. This is common advice but most people assume they should refer to the washing instructions on the label. More often than not, those are generic and trust me, I have washed stuff that said “do not wash” successfully. What you need to check is the fabric composition. Cotton, synthetic fibers and viscose or lyocell handle machine washing well whereas wool, linen or silk will tend to shrink, even with a delicate cycle. For those, opt for a gentle hand wash.
- Wash inside out. This helps prevent fading by allowing the inside of your garments to take the brunt of agitation that occurs during a wash. This is particularly important for printed t-shirts.
- Wash less often. Not everything needs to be washed after one wear, unless you’ve been sweating excessively or doing something messy. As a general rule, it’s only underwear, shirts/tops, active wear and clothes that are in direct contact with your “sweaty” parts that should be washed after each wear. For everything else, trust your eyes and your nose.
- You barely need to wash wool. Whether it’s merino, alpaca, cashmere, mohair or angora, wool is anti-bacterial and odor-resistant thanks to the oil repelling properties of the fibers. Most of the time, a wash or two every season is enough. If your knits smell, airing them outside will do the trick. If they are stained, you can spot clean.
When the damage is done:
I’m all for prevention but sometimes accidents happen. We’ve all shrunk a sweater or permanently stained a shirt, right? I wish I could tell you the shrinking was reversible, but it’s not. Instead, I can give you tips for other types of damage.
- Soak your clothes to get rid of odors. Prepare a mixture of water and baking soda or white vinegar with a few drops of dish soap and let your clothes sit in there for at least an hour, then toss them in the wash.
- Spot treat stains. There are many household products you can use to remove stubborn stains from your clothes: white vinegar, baking soda, rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide and dish soap to name the most common ones. You can also buy commercial stain removers.
- Experiment with dyeing. This can be a great solution to revive faded colors or permanent stain as well as simply changing the color of an old garment you grew tired of.
- Learn basic mending. Everybody can sew on a fallen button, patch a tear, or fix a small hole. These simple skills save money and extend the life of your clothes
- Find a tailor or seamstress for trickier repairs such as broken zippers, fallen hems or large tears. Dry cleaners sometimes offer that service too.
Keep your wardrobe happy between seasons
- Clean everything before seasonal storing – even if it looks clean, invisible body oils and food particles can attract moths and damage fabrics. Add cedar blocks or lavender sachets instead of mothballs – they’re natural pest deterrents without harsh chemicals.
- Store winter coats and sweaters in breathable garment bags or natural cotton storage bags, never in plastic which can trap moisture.
- Choose a cool, dark, dry space – moisture and direct sunlight are fabric enemies Avoid storing clothes in basements or attics where temperature and humidity fluctuate.
- Fold knitwear and store it flat instead of hanging it.
- Choose the right hangers. Use padded or wooden hangers for delicate items and suits, clip hangers for skirts and pants to prevent creasing and avoid wire hangers which can distort shoulders.
Leave a Reply