Cutting Your Dry Cleaning Bill

[serpentstooth]

 .

[SavingMon(k)ey]

That's how my mom washed all wool clothing. I learned it from her! :) I had woven wool sweaters she washed that way, and I have washed one too like that. No problems for me.

[Greg]

Sounds cool.  I cheat and just have things I can machine wash, but for a couple of suits.

[KimPossible]

I wash all of my cashmere in my washing machine (front loading) on the hand wash cycle.  It works very well.  I've gotten rid of all my dry clean only pants, and wash all tops in the machine.  I don't like dry cleaning :)

[blake201]

I do the same thing for my socks and sweaters and tights (both handknit and thrifted)! I use Eucalan too... saves money AND my pretty woolens don't stink like toxic dry-cleaning chemicals. Plus I love the smell of wool soaking in a gentle little bath in the sink... mmmm!

One additional tip... when I buy woolens from thrift stores, I was told that immediately sticking them in a hot dryer for 60 minutes (DRY—if you stick them in wet they will shrink!) kills any potential bedbugs or other beasties.

[StarswirlTheMustached]

I've been thinking about investing in pant stretchers for wool trousers.

https://www.lehmans.com/p-1111-pant-stretcher.aspx

I imagine drying on the frame will keep shrinking and wrinkles to a minimum, but I might be crazy. What do you think?

That still leaves me with suits. Except for my 100% knitted wool tweed jacket, which might be amenable to your Euclan method, I think I'm stuck there.

[SnackDog]

We got rid of all those clothes ages ago...

[StarswirlTheMustached]

We got rid of all those clothes ages ago...

Sorry, there's nothing that beats real animal fibers for warmth and durability. Cashmere is the best stuff ever, particularly bought used and cheap on Ebay.

Cashmere? Heresy! Everyone knows merino wool is Best Fibre.

[naners]

Pro tip: Use your salad spinner to get water out of your hand-washed clothing before hanging them up! They dry much faster like that. Since it's not really stretching or deforming the clothes it doesn't damage them.

[blake201]

We got rid of all those clothes ages ago...

Sorry, there's nothing that beats real animal fibers for warmth and durability. Cashmere is the best stuff ever, particularly bought used and cheap on Ebay.

Cashmere? Heresy! Everyone knows merino wool is Best Fibre.

The problem is, ever since the advent of cheap cashmere from China, nobody makes good merino sweaters any more, because for only a little bit more money than good merino you can get poor quality cashmere and charge an extra $30-50 for the finished garment. I have two merino cardigans from Books Brothers and they are *lovely*, but rare as hen's teeth. I love all my handknit merino socks, though. I really should get on making myself more sweaters.

I'm in camp merino (though I do adore my cashmere thrift store finds, they really aren't as sturdy). Merino diaper covers, merino hand-knit socks, merino tights, merino bike jerseys (you can make them from thrift store sweaters, too), merino toddler hoodies... It's like MAGIC fiber—wicks sweat, absorbs baby pee and turns it into soap, breathable and warm even when wet...

I only have two hand-knit merino sweaters so far but I'm working on #3.

[ZiziPB]

I wash all of my cashmere in my washing machine (front loading) on the hand wash cycle.

That's what I do as well.  One thing to add: after your hand or machine washed sweaters are dry, make sure to iron them with a steam iron.  It makes for a nice professional finish - my cashmere and wool sweaters end up looking as nice as if they were professionally cleaned.

[StarswirlTheMustached]

We got rid of all those clothes ages ago...

Sorry, there's nothing that beats real animal fibers for warmth and durability. Cashmere is the best stuff ever, particularly bought used and cheap on Ebay.

Cashmere? Heresy! Everyone knows merino wool is Best Fibre.

The problem is, ever since the advent of cheap cashmere from China, nobody makes good merino sweaters any more, because for only a little bit more money than good merino you can get poor quality cashmere and charge an extra $30-50 for the finished garment. I have two merino cardigans from Books Brothers and they are *lovely*, but rare as hen's teeth. I love all my handknit merino socks, though. I really should get on making myself more sweaters.

I'm in camp merino (though I do adore my cashmere thrift store finds, they really aren't as sturdy). Merino diaper covers, merino hand-knit socks, merino tights, merino bike jerseys (you can make them from thrift store sweaters, too), merino toddler hoodies... It's like MAGIC fiber—wicks sweat, absorbs baby pee and turns it into soap, breathable and warm even when wet...

I only have two hand-knit merino sweaters so far but I'm working on #3.

The part in bold? Brilliant! Thanks for the idea. I've been lusting after one of those jerseys for far too long. I'll have to keep my eyes open next time I make it to the thrift shop. I found one of our city's few bike lanes goes right by two of our few thrift shops, too, so I've no excuse.

[greenmimama]

So why can I wash and dry all my merino wool socks normally and they are nice forever?

I don't own hardly any clothes that are DCO, my hubs has one suit, but thats it.

[BZB]

For the ladies on this thread: have any of you used dress shields (armpit protectors) to protect your suit jackets or nice dresses from needing to be drycleaned so often? Soon I will start a suit job in a hot and humid climate, so I will be wearing suit jackets and blazers daily. I'm looking into this option - I've seen disposable ones and also ones you can safety pin into the garment and then remove for washing. For men I suppose the undershirt and long sleeve shirt absorb sweat under the jacket, but many women's dresses and blouses are sleeveless and you would sweat right onto the jacket.

[rosarugosa]

I wash all my cashmere sweaters in my top-loading washing machine.  I put them in mesh bags and use the hand-wash cycle and my usual detergent.  I do wear a lot of suits for work and those need to be dry cleaned.  They keep the office really cold at work, so I guess the postive side of that is that sweating isn't much of a problem!