Washing silk question - Midge!

[amandainvermont]

I bought this tie because the silk was obviously of very high quality. The label is “Frontline Zurich.” Googling shows me this company is known for their luxurious and expensive silk and cashmere. Their current ties list at $150 each. How it ended up in a tiny thrift store in northern Vermont is a ???

The wedding dress that Carrie Bradshaw wore in the Sex and the City movie was by Vivienne Westwood and made from Frontline silk.

The tie has what appears to be water spots on it, as shown in the close-up. I have been told not to wash silk and I have also been told not to send it to the dry cleaners, as they often press ties incorrectly. (I do not have a good dry cleaner anywhere near.) Any thoughts on how to approach this flaw?

Frontline has some nice scarves for $350 and up.

 

[Jonathan]

Not even polyester ties wash well, let alone silk.... I think you have a sell 'as is' item.

 

[MyVintageCocktail]

Nice tie, Amanda; quite a find for your neck of the woods!

White vinegar is "supposed" to take up water spots, but I've had sporadic luck with it. However, it hasn't damaged anything or left a worse spot. I think I'd do as Jonathan says and leave as is. But if you're brave, you could take a flat toothpick, dip the broad end in white vinegar, dab onto one of the spots, immediately blot with white kleenex, and see what it looks like when it dries. I sometimes use a blow dryer on these areas once I treat them so that they dry more quickly--which reduces the chance of any adverse effects. Sometimes this course will at least mitigate the spots, if not eliminate them.

My "How to Clean Everything" book recommends dampening the entire item with water (including silk and rayon) by sponging or by shaking it in steam from a teakettle--not too close to the spout--then pressing the garment while still damp. Or alternately, rubbing the material gently between the hands. These solutions are if the spots are indeed water spots. If they're not, I'd try the white vinegar if they really bother you. But I'd do a test spot on the back of the tie first.

 

[Midge]

What a find, Amanda! As I just wrote in another post, I haven't been posting for a bit as I've been either bizzy or not much at home. Working between the holidays wasn't too much fun - oh well, I hope it's over by the end of this week...

Anyway, yes, Fabric Frontline is quite a name here and I think they probably sell to all the world. The company's owner is a well-known character - a bit flamboyant I guess you could say. He also owns an expensive restaurant here in town.
Zurich has a history of fabric and silk production, and the small country-town where I grew up used to have a silk-weaving factory too.
In fact, Switzerland still produces a lot of the highest quality fabrics. St. Gallen is well-known for their lace production, and there's a few companies there that came out of this, who produce fabrics for the Haute Couture collections. There was an exhibition here at the National Museum a few years ago about St. Gallens fabric-making history, where they displayed creations by names such as Westwood, Lacroix and Chanel where these fabrics have been used. I think especially Christian Lacroix gets most of the extravagant fabrics he uses from St. Gallen.

Karin