Wash and Care Guide

Washing and caring for your clothing can increase its lifespan considerably, meaning your favourite pieces stay in your wardrobe for longer. This is one of the simple ways you can contribute to a better fashion industry.

Caring for your clothing in a Conscious way can include using less water and energy in the laundering process as well making more informed decisions like choosing a 'green' dry cleaner. These practices can help to reduce your impact on the environment and the climate.

Discover below how to best care for our most popular material types and remember to always consult the care label on your garments.

One of wool’s best qualities is that it doesn’t need to be washed very regularly, only put it into the wash when it is dirty or stained. Machine wash your wool garments on a lukewarm gentle cycle, and use wool-safe laundry detergent.

Remember to lay wool items flat while drying and if you need to, pull gently while damp to reshape them. When storing, fold them to retain the garment’s shape.

Ramie calls for very similar care to that of linen. Machine wash in cold or lukewarm water and use a gentle cycle. Ramie garments dry quickly and aren’t likely to shrink, however, you should always follow the care label to ensure the best result. If you wish to iron ramie, make sure to use the warm setting.

Make sure to machine or hand wash your linen items in cold or lukewarm water without harsh detergents or fabric softeners.

Choose a cold, gentle cycle when washing recycled polyester items or hand wash them in cold water. Always, remember to quickly remove these garments when the cycle finishes and hang them out. This can help to avoid creasing.

You can wash your denim, but you should only do so when the garment is stained and/or smells. Try hanging your denim outside to freshen them up and when you do wash them ensure you use a cold water cycle.

Don't put demin in the dryer. Line dry denim inside out for best results.

Use a cold, gentle cycle when washing cotton garments. Washing in cold water lessens your carbon footprint and is better choice for most natural fibres. Line dry cotton items, this will help to retain the garments shape and prolong its lifespan, meaning more wears and less waste.

Make sure to be gentle with your viscose items. Wash these styles in a garment bag on a gentle cycle or better yet, hand wash them in cold water. Remember to line dry these pieces and always use a warm iron on the reverse of the garment.

Only wash vegan leather garments if necessary and never iron them. Instead, store them on a hanger to avoid creasing. Rain shouldn't damage vegan leather; however, you should store these items dry. Refrain from putting them away while still damp.

If treated with care, leather items can stay in your wardrobe for years to come.

Do:

Follow the care label
Take items to a leather specialist dry cleaner
Store in a cool, dry space
Spot clean with a damp cloth
Use a leather protectant/conditioner, ensure you do a small spot test first. For a suede finish, use a suede-specific protector
Make sure you hang up leather garments between wears in a cool, dark spot. Use a suitably shaped hanger to avoid stretching

Don’t:

Expose or store close to a direct source of heat
Iron

Invest in a Guppyfriend washing bag and help to end micro plastic pollution in our oceans. Plenty of our favourite styles are made with synthetic fibres and unfortunately, they can shed in the laundering process, creating micro plastic waste that ends up in our oceans. The Guppyfriend is a 'green' solution to this problem and can help to lessen the impact we have on marine animals and plant life.

Read on and discover tips and tricks for caring for your clothing. Following this advice can help to extend the life of your garments as well as lessening your impact on the environment.

Wash Less

We know it sounds almost too simple, but only washing your items when they are stained or dirty is a great way to save water and energy. It’s easy to ‘over wash’ and fade the colour of your garments so choosing to wash them less helps increase the lifespan of your clothing.

Colour Coded Laundry

We understand that you probably already sort your laundry by ‘lights’ and ‘darks’ but if you go one step further and sort by colour group this can help to increase the longevity of your clothing; slowing the fading of fabrics and guarding against colour bleeding.

Short And Cold Cycles

Most clothing can be washed on a colder temperature than indicated on its care label. Choosing to wash most of your garments on a cold cycle means you use less energy. Remember, 90% of the energy used in a laundry cycle is just spent heating up the water.

Washing Detergent

The amount of laundry detergent you use can actually make a difference, for both the environment and your clothing. Too much and you can ruin your garments, coating them in laundry detergent residue, too little and your clothing might not come out smelling fresh and clean. To avoid this, make sure to always follow the instructions and use the recommended dose.

Use A Guppyfriend

When you wash synthetic garments, microfibres shed into the water, these plastic particles then travel and find their way to our oceans and waterways. Microfibres can harm our marine life. When you wash your synthetic garments in a Guppyfriend bag, you can stop microfibres entering our waterways.

Don’t Rely On Your Dryer

Dryers use plenty of energy; a more sustainable option is to hang out your wet laundry as much as possible.

Storing Garments

Beyond washing and drying, storing clothing correctly helps to increase its lifespan. Proper protection from damp and moths is important, in addition to allowing enough room in your wardrobe for your clothing to hang comfortably. Stuffing your wardrobe and drawers full means your clothing will rub and crease more easily. We think this tip is a great motivator for doing a wardrobe spring clean.

Say Goodbye Responsibly

When clearing out your wardrobe it is important to dispose of unwanted or unwearable items responsibly. Depending on why you’re saying goodbye, clothing can be donated, recycled, or sold. This way, you can extend the lifecycle of the garment, pass it along to someone else to enjoy, and most importantly, keep it out of landfill. We encourage everyone to consider the below options while clearing out their wardrobe:

Can you repurpose or repair your garment? You can use old clothing to create new items, you can repair a button, or take the clothing item to a tailor, you can fashion pants into shorts and so on. There are many possibilities for an old garment to be transformed into something new.

Can you sell your clothing? Using marketplaces like Depop and Poshmark can help you pass clothing over to a new owner while making a little extra cash.

Can you donate your clothing? If your garments are in good condition, you can easily donate them to a local charity/op shop. This is a great way to be conscious of the environment as well as giving back to the community.• Can you recycle your clothing? Order a pickup service from a recycling organisation like Upparel and take comfort in the knowledge that your old clothing will be made into new items.

Pilling is the formation of fuzzy balls on the surface of clothing. It is caused by friction from the fibres rubbing together and tangling during wear. This often occurs around the underarms, elbows and sides of the garment.

Pilling can cause a worn-in look, which may be undesirable, but is not an indicator of a lack of quality. It is easy to remove and have your garments look brand new again.

Pilling can easily be removed by taking the below steps:

Remove any pills with your fingers by gently pulling them off the garment so as not to disturb the rest of the knitted or woven structure and fibres.

For knitwear, you can purchase a depilling comb, which can be used to remove pills. This should always be done on a flat surface. Hold the garment down firmly and make small strokes in one direction, from top to bottom, working only in the areas where pilling has formed.

Battery-operated or electric depillers and fabric shavers also work well at removing pills and are cost-effective. Ensure the garment has been laid on a flat surface and work in small circles, applying gentle pressure. Don’t press too hard or you may cause damage.

How To Minimise Pilling

Pilling is a natural occurrence on many fabrics and generally cannot be prevented. However, it can be minimised by following these steps:

Turn your garments inside out before washing. This will minimise pilling occurring on the exterior of the garment.

Separate and sort your laundry – separate any abrasive and heavy-weight materials like denim from your delicates.

Always follow the care instructions when laundering garments. This will ensure that they are not damaged in the process. In general, wash your clothes on a cold cycle and air dry to minimise friction.