Smart Laundry Tips for Maintaining Corporate Uniforms

Your outfit determines your professional image. Maintaining suits and dress shirts will elongate their life and keep you looking sharp in the professional environment.

Why Business Attire Needs Special Care

Business clothing is made from delicate fabrics. It may require different care than everyday clothing. Regular general washing machines can be damaging, causing shrinking or destroying the shape of structured pieces, such as blazers and dress trousers.

Reading Care Labels

Every clothing item has an included care label. This label will clearly instruct you on how to clean the item properly. Some common symbols you will see are:

• A triangle means you can use bleach
• A circle means dry cleaning is required
• A square with a circle in it means it is acceptable to tumble dry
• An iron means it is acceptable to iron
• A tub with water means you can hand-wash it or machine-wash it.

Always check these care labels before cleaning any business clothing.

Daily Maintenance Tips

After using a suit jacket or suit pants, it is best to hang it on a wooden hanger as soon as possible. Wood will do a better job at supporting the shape of the clothing than wire may. It is also recommended to let the clothing sit for at least 24 hours before wearing it again to allow for breathing. 

For removing dust from suits, use a clothes brush. When doing so, brush downward strokes based on the fabric’s natural flow. This fairly simple habit will extend the length of time between needing to have something professionally cleaned. 

Store dress shirts on hangers with the top button fastened to maintain the collar’s shape. Ties should be stored rolled or hung up so creasing does not become permanent.

When to Use Dry Cleaning

Instead of water, dry cleaning cleans your clothing with special solvents. This is important for wool suits, silk blouses, and jackets. You should dry clean most business suits after three to four wears, depending on perspiration and work environment. 

However, dry cleaning is also the worst thing you can do to the fabric over time. The chemicals in the dry cleaning solvent can break down fibers and fade colors. Do not dry clean after every wear, only when necessary.

Professional Laundry Services for Dress Shirts

Dress shirts highly benefit from the use of professional laundering services. They will launder and press the shirts smoothly. Perhaps the best part of any shirt being pressed by a professional is the starched, crisp collars and cuffs. It is difficult to replicate the sharpness you receive from professional pressing at home. 

Almost all laundry services will provide several different levels of starching. Light starch should provide a nice, clean, and professional look, while being slightly comfortable. Medium starch provides a stiffer, slightly more formal look. Heavy starch is used for formal events.

Commercial Laundry Services for Businesses

Numerous businesses employ commercial laundry services to look after uniforms and corporate clothing for their employees. This type of organisation can deal with large volumes of laundry at an efficient level.  If you’re searching for Commercial Laundry services near me, you’ll find that they often offer: 

• Bulk pricing for regular customers
• Same day or next day service
• Quality control for stains and damage
• Repair of loose buttons and small tears 
• Individually packaged items

Home Care for Business Clothes

Some dress clothing can be laundered at home successfully. Dress pants are made from cotton and polyester blend. It can typically go in the machine on a gentle cycle and in cold water. Turn clothing inside out to preserve the outside surface. 

Dress shirts that are made up of cotton and polyester can easily go through the washer and dryer. Always remember, when washing white shirts you must separate them from the colored ones. Wash colored shirts with cold water and white shirts with warm. Once washed and dried, hang them to prevent wrinkles formation.

Stain Removal Tips

If you get something on your clothing, just use a clean cloth and gently press on the stain, do not rub it! Rubbing could be worse because you will continually make the stain larger and rub the stain into the fabric. 

If you get an oil stain, place cornstarch or baby powder on the stain. Let it rest for several hours as that will give the powder time to absorb the oil, then brush it off the clothing. 

If you get a stain from something water-based, rinse under cold water. Be sure to pour the water from the back side of the fabric.

Conclusion

Keeping your business clothing in good condition saves you money. It also ensures that you look professional every day. In order to keep your clothing in great condition, everyday care, properly washing, and having your clothing cleaned professionally when needed is important. If you do these things, you will extend the life of your business clothing and will be assured that you always look good.

Call Jim’s Laundry today for Business Attire Laundry Services at an affordable price. Your clothes deserve it!