We all know horror stories of adult woollen sweaters coming out of the drier… ready for your 3 year old child to wear… or nice white dresses gone pink, thanks to that lovely red sock… Fabric care is very important… clothes are our second skin, they represent who we are – so no wonder we want to treat our fabrics like they’re our most precious possession. If you sometimes feel overwhelmed by all the possible fabrics, instructions, do’s and don’ts etc… don’t sweat it. We would like to share some tips that will help grow your ‘laundry confidence’!

The Prepping

Let’s start at the very beginning… preparing the laundry:

Empty your pockets, your laundry machine isn’t a piggy bank; -Unroll the sleeves and unfold the socks;
Turn all trousers (especially jeans) inside out to make sure the colours won’t fade;
Close all zippers and hooks and bind all ropes, you don’t want to damage your textiles;
Check for stains and pre-treat whenever necessary (but ideally you have done this right after the stain was made). Never rub, but pat stains, they love to be treated with care. And get the stain wet before applying the stain remover. ;
Sort your laundry: make piles of whites and colourfast, darks and brights (purples, reds, oranges) and potentially also towels;
Try to avoid buying clothes that aren’t colour fast… they will cause you headaches. In general clothes that aren’t colour fast often carry the message: ‘wash separately’. If you want to be a 100% sure and don’t want to end up with a pink dress (instead of a white one) because you accidentally added those red socks that weren’t colour fast, you can use the following trick: take a bucket of water, dip in your garment for a few times… if the water stays clear, then your colours have been fixated. Never use bleach on fabrics that aren’t colour fast!;
Unless you’re adventurous you will also have a ‘specialty pile’ . These are the clothes that require special attention: wool, non- fixed colours, silk etc.;
Wash really dirty clothes separately, because this dirt can fixate to the other clothes in the machine; -Be sure to wash your lovely Victoria Secret bras in a separate bag to avoid them from getting damages or damaging other clothes in the machine.;
Make sure you remove cufflinks and collar stiffeners from shirts.;
Keep in mind the specific care labels and washing programs;

Getting started

Don’t over-fill your machine… your laundry needs some space to twirl and swirl and your laundry detergent needs some breathing space too in order to dissolve. You should leave a ‘fist of space’ between the top of your laundry and the top of the machine. Always follow the care-instructions of your garment. When you mix different types of clothes, always choose the lowest recommended temperature and a short spin program. With Ecover laundry products you can rest assured you’ll have excellent results at 30°C!

Closing the deal – drying

Once the washing cycle has ended, take out your wet clothes as soon as you can. Leaving them in the machine too long will turn your lovely smelling clothes into a stinky (and finally mouldy) pile of damp textiles.

Here are some drying tips for you:

Very economical and ecological alternative is hanging the wash out to dry. Your clothes prefer it too! And you’ll get that lovely natural and fresh smell. ;
If you do need to use the drier, don’t overload it as that can damage your clothes and machine;
Check if that lovely t shirt or skirt can be dried in a drier… this isn’t always the case. Your woollen sweater for example will turn into a dolls jumper if placed in the drier.;
Check your care-label for the appropriate drying information;
If you take out your clothes out of the drier once the cycle is over, you will be able to fold a lot of the washing immediately… So instead of ironing everything, you’ll have some time to invite a friend for a nice fresh glass of wine!;