drycleaning

Clothes Storage for the Closet-Impaired

by Kat on 09/21/2010 · 72 comments

in Fashion, Kat, Laundry, Lifestyle, Organization, Tool of the Trade

Natural Cotton Storage BagsReader F writes in with a timely question about clothes storage:

I am moving to NYC next year and will be leaving my lovely apartment where I have three closets all to myself, including 1 walk-in closet, and moving in with my boyfriend where the combined closet space is not even a third of what I have to myself currently. Do you have suggestions for places to keep winter clothes during the summer and vice versa? I’ve heard there are services for this, but wondering if you or your readers might have some good suggestions for places where my clothes won’t get eaten by moths or fall victim to the next bedbug disaster.

I say “timely” if only because I finally put away all of my spring pastels, and swapped them out for darker emerald and earthy tones just a few days ago. My own custom is to:

a) use large storage bags (such as the Natural Cotton Storage Bags from Container Store, pictured above) for off season clothes that should not be hung (e.g., sweaters) or clothes that I otherwise keep folded (socks, hats, workout clothes)

b) push everything that *is* hung either to the back of my closet or relocate them to a second closet, and

c) evaluate my clothes as I move them around for questions such as: 1) do they need repair? 2) will I ever wear this again? c) should I sell, give away, or trash? d) Can I fit into this *rightthisinstant*?

Weirdly, this is one of my favorite traditions each season. I love the fresh colors of pastels, and the darker, more somber colors in the fall.  I also love the feeling of rediscovering old clothes that I haven’t seen for a few months.  (In fact, I love it so much I’ve started putting away things that aren’t even necessarily seasonal — running t-shirts, as well as at least half my collection of black tops and half my collection of white tops.  It may even help me shop less!)  I also love that it helps me prune my clothes, and keeps my wardrobe looking fresher.

Now, a few notes about doing it right…

a) Do not pack away anything that is dirty or has been worn. Even if it’s a suit that you’ve only worn once and don’t want to get dry cleaned, I would advise keeping it among your “current” clothes until you dry clean it.  Ditto for winter coats and the like — get them dry cleaned first.  (Remove the plastic bags and paper, and let them air out for a bit before you pack them away, also.)

b) Cedar it up — places like Bed Bath and Beyond and Amazon abound in cedar moth balls, as well as hanging cedar sticks — it never hurts to stick a few in drawers, in plastic storage bags or hard-cased under-bed bins, or to hang in your closet.  Be sure to change them once every year or so — they’re not expensive, and it pays to do so.  Occasionally I’ll stick a used dryer sheet in the plastic case, as well as the cedar,  to give things a “fresh” scent.

c) Label! It doesn’t have to be fancy — I tend to just scribble on a piece of paper, “Kat’s Fall Clothes,” and stick away.  But you’ll be amazed how much you’ll completely forget what’s in there, or even that you have the clothes in there — so do your best to label.  (See my own lump of clothes, at right.)

d) For folded clothes, prepare for wrinkles. I still haven’t found a great solution for this — I often just hang things up while I’m taking a shower so they get a bit steamed.  While putting away my spring/summer clothes this year, I tried rolling instead of folding — I’ll let you all know how that works out.

e) A thought on Space Saver bags: when we moved recently, I bought a pack of these and was absolutely amazed by how much everything shrunk down.  Blankets, sheets, workout clothes, etc — with the air sucked out they were amazingly flat and packable, and I’m glad I had them for the move.  However, I will say that almost all of these babies have since leaked air and puffed back up to their usual size — so I’m not sure I would counsel investing in these things if you intend to use them for condensed space for several months at a time.

Fortunately, I’ve never had to deal with a bedbug problem — readers, please write in if you have.  Ladies, what are your clothes storage solutions?  Any other fun seasonal closet traditions?

{ 72 comments }

When Drycleaning Just Doesn’t Help

by Kat on 06/08/2010 · 61 comments

in Business Etiquette, Fashion, Laundry

Stinky BklynReader E has a fabulous question that we have always wondered about…

I just got some dresses back from the cleaner – a good one that I’ve been using for years – and noted that the underarm areas smelled less than fresh. What can I do about this, short of sending the dresses back to the cleaner (and possibly having them no fresher)? I’ve been trying to switch to washable shirts – detergent + Oxy Clean do a better job of getting rid of the stink. But meanwhile, what of the dresses?

Honestly, we’ve had this problem also, and don’t know what to say. (Pictured:  Stinky Bklyn, originally uploaded to Flickr by abbyladybug.) We’ve taken them back to the drycleaner, sprayed Febreeze, and more. We almost worry that once the clothes have been drycleaned the stink is, well, stuck on them.  We wish we could say the problem were limited to some particular fabric, but we’ve noticed it with natural fibers as well as polyester.  Perhaps there’s a secret trick we’re missing that a reader can clue us in on?

The best advice we can offer is to let your clothes airdry completely between wearings.  Hang them up outside the closet before you put them away, and do the same before you take them to the drycleaner.

But readers, we’re really curious — any other tips?

(L-0)

{ 61 comments }

Passing the Sniff Test: What to Do When You Belatedly Realize You Have B.O.

by Kat on 04/06/2010 · 138 comments

in Fashion, Laundry, Lifestyle

Today’s reader mail comes from a reader with a serious problem…

I happened to see my mother at lunchtime today and when I walked over to her, she had a strong reaction – she said I smelled! I had just come from work and was going back to work, so I was obviously very upset. When I inquired a little further, she said that I actually have a body odor issue, apparently on a somewhat regular basis. I was shocked. First because I truly had no idea; second because neither my mother nor sisters nor other close friends have ever given me any indication I had a problem. Now I’ve moved on to mortification. I’m reliving every moment of my professional and professional life and wondering if I’m thought of as the stinky girl.

I realize that I need to take steps like finding a stronger deodorant-antiprespirant (I thought my old one worked fine), dry clean my suits more frequently (I used to do it once every few months), etc. But is there anything I can do to address the negative impact this must have had on my image – professional and otherwise?

To give a little more background info: I’m nearly 32 years old and have been working in my current job for a little over a year. I just received a very decent raise at my review. I’m also happily married to a man who has never mentioned that I have any body odor issues. At the same time, I don’t doubt my mother’s word…we’re close and she’s said she’s hesitated telling me for quite some time. (I wish she’d told me sooner!)

I have vowed I will never be smelly again. Do you or your readers have any other advice for damage control?

Wowza — we’re sorry to hear this. We’ve already talked about antiperspirant and deodorants here (with tons of great recommendations from readers in the comments). In terms of other tips — we would guess that drycleaning once every few months is fine, so long as you’re wearing decent layers beneath the suit.  For example, if perspiration is a problem, don’t wear sleeveless shells — wear t-shirts or other pieces with sleeves.  We hate to say it, but you may also want to reconsider your underwear and your drycleaning situation — skimpier underwear might necessitate more frequent cleanings.  (We had a lot of good comments on specific brands of boy shorts on this post.)

In terms of other things that might be causing odor — if you can, give your shoes a “day off” in order to air out — there are also odor-eating things that can be placed in shoes.  If you wear sweaters or other pieces multiple times before washing, keep those clothes in a different spot than “clean clothes.” (For example, I try to wear sweaters at least twice in order to prolong the life of the sweater; I have a separate place where I keep those sweaters after I’ve worn them.)  You may want to consider putting a dryer sheet or two, or cedar balls, in that spot.

Finally: you may want to see a doctor — we’ve heard of instances where a body odor issue could be medically related.

Now, in terms of damage control – for our $.02,  do not say anything to folks.  First, it sounds like it hasn’t been a hindrance in your advancement (you got a new job in the midst of a recession, you just got a raise).  Second, what would you say?*  Just make the problem disappear and things should be good.   Readers, what say you?

Pictured:  196/365 Need new shoes, originally uploaded to Flickr by stuartpilbrow.

* This author’s personal backstory here is that I did a great job of screwing up my eyes a while back.  Allergies, dry office air, and overuse of contacts (paired with typical office blunders like staring at a monitor without blinking enough, working for really long hours, and so forth) — I had basically been exfoliating my corneas.  After I finally got on a good treatment course there was a serious concern about what, if anything, I should say to superiors I worked with.  After all, my eyes had been bloodshot for months — what if they thought I was on drugs, or that I was in my office crying all day?  My father and other friends pleaded with me to not say anything, and, ultimately, I didn’t.  Looking back, I’m convinced that was the right call for my situation.

{ 138 comments }

Reader Mail: How seriously do you have to take the “dry clean only” warning?

by C on 05/18/2009 · 23 comments

in Fashion, Lifestyle, Wear to Work

Today’s reader mail has to do with something near and dear to our hearts…

It drives me crazy when everything is labeled ‘dry clean only’. For wool and fine fabrics, ok. But synthetic tops labeled d.c.o.? Please. Am I correct in thinking this is butt-covering on the part of the manufacturer, and it’s safe to hand-wash these, and lay them flat to dry? This is what I usually do, and haven’t ruined anything yet, but they are huge pain to iron. This is why I hugely favor thin sweaters under jackets.

Agreed. When purchasing a piece of clothing, we often factor dry cleaning into the mix — that $50 dress at Filene’s starts to look a lot less reasonable when you think of the dry cleaning costs associated with it. First, there is a difference between “dry clean” and “dry clean only” tags — the ones that say “dry clean” CAN be washed in Woolite or by hand; it’s the “dry clean only” tag you’re supposed to pay attention to at your own risk.  So what should you risk?  Personally, we’ve always followed the dry cleaning instructions for our suits, jackets, and nice dresses — as well as for any other piece of clothing that we seriously love.  For everything else (which is most stuff), we have a “first year” policy:  for the first year we own a piece of clothing, we follow the instructions on the tag.  After that, we give it a whirl with Woolite.  Thus far, this policy has only netted us one shrunken going-out top (made of a synthetic material like polyester), but lots and lots of clean cashmere an wool sweaters, and even some trousers that have come out just as nice with Woolite.

We’ve experimented with Dryel, as well as hand washing, but mostly without success — Dryel didn’t seem to get the clothes as clean (although, let’s face it, sometimes a suit passes the point of no return and just won’t smell clean), and hand washing just was a huge, drippy mess and made us feel like the clothes were being pulled farther out of shape by either a) being rolled in a towel to dry them, or b) being hung up while still so wet.  Readers, what has your experience been?

Picture above:  SPARKLE!, originally uploaded to Flickr by arimoore

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Poll: How often do you dryclean suits?

by C on 06/04/2008 · 6 comments

in Laundry, Lifestyle, Organization, Polls, Suits, Wear to Work

Women’s suits: No one really knows how often to dry clean them. For men, the answer that is given time and time again is the same: Rarely. Once a season, maybe. The less the better. But then again, men’s suits fit differently than women’s, and the things men wear beneath a suit (the long-sleeved shirt, the undershirt, the boxers) are very different than things a woman wears beneath hers — our skin is in contact more with the suit. So let’s take a poll: how often do you dryclean? (Photo by uncleboatshoes, courtesy of Flickr.)

Except! Before we get to the poll, we’d like to pass along this advice from a recent Esquire article by Dr. Oz (he of Oprah fame):

De-plastic your dry cleaning. Right now. Go into your closet and remove the clothes from their plastic capes, then hang the clothes outside for an hour. There’s a toxin almost all dry cleaners use called perchloroethylene, or perc, and it’s not something you want in your lungs. So either find a dry cleaner who doesn’t use it — some now use liquid CO2 instead, which is good — or air out your duds every time. But not in your bedroom — then the perc inhabits your other clothes.

Ew. OK, poll time:

more at twiigs.com…

Our $.02: Dry-cleaning is expensive, bad for the environment, and bad for the clothes. Also, we never seem to be available when the dry cleaners are open to go pick up the darn stuff. Thus: We dry-clean our suits as soon as they begin to smell. For other items in our closet: We have a “first year” rule for cashmere, and will follow the tag directions for the first year of purchase, but after that we’ll give it a whirl in cold water with Woolite. (And, then air dry, of course.) (And we have yet to be disappointed with Woolite.) For dresses, we dry clean only if visibly dirty — unless we’ve borrowed a formal gown from a friend, in which case we dry clean it before returning.

Like our polls?  Click the new link on the sidebar and go take all of our polls, including our very first poll (about whether bare legs are appropriate in the office).

The Secrets of Style [Esquire] (scroll down, it’s there)
Dry Cleaning Your Clothes [Ask Men]

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