Can I hand wash this?

D

Dee Dee Hall

Registered Guest
65 % Acetate, 35 % Rayon. Tag states to dry clean only. Is it possible to hand wash this in cold water?
 

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Hello--
I would be super afraid to hand wash that.
I would try to spot clean only-then get it dry cleaned.

But please wait to see what the less chicken have to say.
 
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Ok, thank you so much for all your help. I almost hand washed it! I will just wrap up as is and send. I just ruined this lovely 1970's Don Luis De Espana dress and don't want that to happen again. Yes beautiful garment. Had no cleaning instructions. Thought it was okay to hand wash. Not! I ruined an very nice outfit that was very expensive back in the 70's. I've included a picture of that outfit so you can see what was this lovely outfit.
 

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Oh, that's a pity Dee Dee - I've ruined lots of beautiful things as I clean everything so I've learnt the hard way. I like to think that I've saved more than I've ruined though, as I can advise on the best way to care for your treasure.

You might like to read my blog post on dry cleaning vintage fashion - laundering is always my default option as it's the nicest way to clean I think, as well as being environmentally friendly but there are some things that should be dry cleaned. If in doubt: dry clean. You can also ask your dry cleaner for advice, or come see us at the VFG!
 
I usually assume that if there are no cleaning instructions it's OK to handwash gently so I'm afraid I'd have washed the Don Luis de Espana outfit too :-( My local supermarket dry cleaners won't even accept garments without cleaning instructions. I do wash a lot of things with labels which advise dry cleaning, but I think you're probably right in this case to obey the label: if washed it would probably crumple horribly and take a lot of time and effort to rectify.
 
There are two reasons why this item should be dry cleaned, not laundered:
  • As Ruth said, the tailored construction - a tailored garment like this will contain layers of different fabrics. By washing it, there's a good chance that one or more of these layers will shrink slightly. This isn't a problem in most garments but tailored garments are very precise in their construction and by the shrinkage, the garment will no longer sit or wear as well. It will throw the balance out. You can often tell when a tailored garment has been washed, as it looks "used" and sloppy. You can't reverse the effect.
  • As Mary Jane said, the satin will likely become crushed and lose its crispness.
Older garments rarely have cleaning tags and by refusing to clean them, the dry cleaners are protecting themselves from claims. If you ask, they'll usually let you sign a disclaimer saying that you will take responsibility for any damage. It's best if you can avoid damage by understanding a little about the fabrics. I also recommend repairing garments prior to any cleaning (as per my blog post linked above) as a damaged item is likely to be even more damaged from the process.
 
This outfit also bled when I hand washed it. So not only shrunk in the jacket but bled also. Curiously though the skirt did not shrink, only the jacket. Same material as you can see. The only thing I can think of it the jacket had a lining in it. The skirt did not. Thanks for the link on cleaning.
 
I did read that info on the post for dry cleaning vintage. I would like to add that I had this dress that accidentally fell on a dirty table and it got two long stains on it. I took it to the dry cleaner and pointed it out and asked if they could get the marks out. It came back still with the marks. I took it and used a soft wet paper towel to get it out, with gentle soap. It worked and did not harm to the piece, but every piece is different. Why not dry cleaning I don't know. I knew though that I was taking a risk by doing that but I had nothing to lose at that point and instead of washing a whole piece that has a stain or mark I will try and just work on that part with a cleaner. Sometimes it works, sometimes not.
 
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