Winter brings to mind images of beautiful white snow and clear ice. What you might not think about is the wear and tear it puts on your favorite clothes. Salt from road crews and the salt you put on your own sidewalk leaves behind disgusting stains on tights, pants, and longer skirts. Even ice and snow plagues with your clothes, by weakening the fabric. No matter what it looks like outside, you must properly care for and clean those clothes.
Skirts
Clean your skirts after every few wears by washing on a gently cycle with cold water. Velvet requires dry cleaning because when you wash the pieces yourself, you risk crumbling the texture of the fabric. Read the label carefully and dry clean delicate fabrics. In a pinch, try using a home dry cleaning kit. Even if you use a home kit, take the skirts for dry cleaning several times during the winter months.
Tights
If you are like many women, you might notice runs or rips developing in your tights and pantyhose after a single wear. Wear the same pair multiple times without cleaning and you will notice that the rips and runs become even worse. Real Simple recommends washing hosiery after every wear, or placing them in the dryer for a few minutes for a quick refresh.
Hand-washing the hosiery is your best option. Wash the hosiery with a delicate soap, such as the laundry soap from Woolite. Cool or cold water keeps the material from stretching or tearing during washing. Drape the tights or pantyhose over a flat surface and dry overnight.
Pants
Believe it or not, you do not have to wash your pants after every wear. Every time you wear the pants, the fabric stretches slightly, which changes the way the pants fit. Washing the pants once a week is appropriate, though depending on how often you wear the fabric, you can limit your washing to once every two weeks. Examine the fabric after every wear, looking for signs of damage or stains.
Sweaters
Sweaters are especially popular during the colder winter months. Like pants and skirts, sweaters do not require frequent washing. Washing the pieces after every three to four wears is acceptable. In-between wears, spray the inside of the sweater with an odor-neutralizer, such as Febreeze.
When you do wash the sweater, turn it inside out, which prevents pilling. Wash the sweater in cold water and air dry, or place in the dryer on the lowest setting. For materials like angora and cashmere, skip the home cleaning and take directly to a dry cleaner.
Jennifer Eblin - Jennifer Eblin received a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Dayton before re-enrolling and finishing a B.A. in History. During ...
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