Caring for your 100% Belgian Linen Garment
You have just paid a very high price for your 100% Belgian linen garment, so I’m sure you’ll want it to last as long as possible.
So I’ve listed some suggestions to help you.
You have just paid a very high price for your 100% Belgian linen garment, so I’m sure you’ll want it to last as long as possible.
So I’ve listed some suggestions to help you.
WASHING:
Hand washing is highly recommended, most especially if you have lace on the garment. If you use a washing machine, know that this only shortens the life of the fabric due to the agitator constantly scraping against it. This wears down the fibers of the linen and is very rough on the lace. Putting it in a mesh garment bag will help tremendously.
If possible, you may use a front loading machine because they do not have an agitator. But again, it is not recommended if you have very delicate lace, unless it is in a mesh bag.
Using cool water is best. Use a mild detergent. Avoid strong detergents, especially concentrated forms or ones with optical whiteners, bleach, or alkalis. ABSOLUTELY NO BLEACHES!!!
Stains should be treated individually. Soaking a garment in Oxi Clean should only be done if and when absolutely necessary.
DRYING:
Hang/air drying is recommended; however, not on a wire hangar and not in the intense, direct sunlight if drying it outside. If you insist on machine drying it, make sure to use a cool setting, a gentle cycle, and don’t leave it in for very long. Just as in a washing machine, this will wear down the fibers and shorten its life.
PRESSING:
It is best/easiest to press the garment while it’s still a little damp. lf this is not possible, you can spray it with water. It’s much handier if you have a spray bottle of water rather than using it from the iron.
Use a hot iron on the "linen" setting. Avoid letting the iron remain on one spot to avoid scorching. Move the iron in a constant, but gentle motion. Begin with the neckband/shoulder bands. Next iron the sleeves – both sides. Then do the skirt last.
Be careful not to keep ironing for too long of a period of time, as the iron needs to be set upright every so often. If you keep it down for too long, it will start spitting out water. And this is not good because that water usually has some calcium in it and may put a stain on the fabric. So, if you feel you’ve kept it down for too long, make sure that as you lift the iron up, you move it away from the fabric so the water that is spitting out will go on the floor instead of on your fabric. If it should happen that this water did spit onto your fabric, DO NOT iron over it!!! Heat sets a stain! Immediately treat it by using Shout or Spray-N-Wash or something similar. Rub it gently. Rinse it well. Press between towels or washcloths to absorb the excess moisture. If it’s still too wet, don’t iron over it just yet. Finish the rest of the garment and come back to that spot. If you iron over it while it’s still too wet, it will scorch easily. Then you’ll have another stain to treat!!! Or if the stain did not get completely removed, treat it again BEFORE ironing it. Heat sets a stain!!!
Let it hang until it is completely dry. You’ll notice that is still looks a bit wrinkled even after ironing it and hanging it to dry. You can leave it as it is because it’s really not that bad. However, if you want it really sharp and crisp, iron the garment again, but do not spray with water. Use just the iron on linen setting with NO steam - in other words, a "dry" iron.
And as always, if you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
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