Basic Storage Do's and Don'ts For Vintage Clothing

Do keep items with thin or fragile shoulder areas folded over by the waist or shelved. Gravity pulls on hung items, eventually causing hanger humps.

Do keep clothes away from light if they're not being worn. Ultraviolet light deteriorates fabric over time.

Do stay alert to fabric pests. If you see an unknown pest in your house(especially in closets or carpets and other warm, dark areas), find out what it is. Silverfish, clothes moths, and carpet beetles are likely culprits. Pests are best deterred by cleanliness of garments and their environment.

Don't ever store vintage items in plastic bags or containers. Natural fibers naturally expand and contract with changing temperatures, and if they are trapped in plastic, they can't breathe.

Don't hang knits because they're stretchy. Gravity has a greater effect on them. Fold them and place them on shelves.

Don't let worn clothes sit unwashed. Even invisible stains (like perspiration) will show up after many years. If you don't allow the stain to set, it won't leave any trace.

Don't wear a vintage item that is too fragile. Chances are, if it's that fragile, it is pretty rare and not worth the risk of damaging. If you have an item that isn't as rare and could be worn for an important event, think about the activity you will be doing while wearing the item first and be prepared for accidents.

Basic Practical Tips for Daily Care

Preventative Maintenance:

• After wearing, hang your garments inside out before they're washed. This will allow the garment to dry out if it's had perspiration. If they're left in a hamper, garments can mildew or get mingled odors that may set in.
• Ideally, you should wash a garment just after taking it off. The less time you give stains and odors to set in, the more likely they will vanish during washing.
• Be careful when wearing any type of vintage item. Unconsciously, people wipe their hands on their clothes, drop food on them, and brush garments against cars and walls that can cause dinginess and stains.
• If you need to pin a neckline closed, or you'll be wearing a brooch, make sure that the pin's thickness is not gouging the threads of the fabric. A fine fabric can have its threads broken and begin a hole that will not repair.
• For long gowns, the inevitable holes from caught heels and dirt markings are not necessary with short trains. Practice walking with your skirt lightly pulled up in one hand and remember that there's fabric behind your heels. Although it's corny, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

When you get ready to do the wash:

• Separate according to lights and darks
• Do a separate load of whites and blacks if possible
• If the garments are too few to make viable loads, consider hand washing
• Check for weak seams, any beginnings of holes, and any frays that could increase with washing. Any garment that could be deteriorated by a machine washing should behand washed, or solve the problem with a repair before washing.
• Zip up zippers to reduce catching on other garments, close snaps, and fasten hooks and eyes in case any come loose with washing
• Use liquid detergent instead of powder to prevent deposits and allow easier mixing with the water

To set your water temperature, we usually use cool to mild water for natural fibers (linen, cotton and silk) and warm to hot water for synthetic fabrics and blends. The variations on this rule depend on whether there are stains you're trying to remove, and whether the dye of the fabric runs in warmer water.

Before placing garments in the washer, make sure they are washable in water! Some garments shrink or their dyes bleed if they're washed in water, especially warm or hot water. These garments must be dry-cleaned.

If you're washing knits or loose weaves, be careful that they will not be snagged by other garments' hooks, eyes, or zippers. These types of garments are usually dried flat instead of machine dried. This will keep pilling and worn appearance to a minimum, and it will allow you to re-shape the garment before it dries.

If you're washing a garment you've never washed before, test a hidden seam using the water temperature you think it will use. Let a dot of water dry. Watch for puckers around the area, which indicate that the fabric will shrink if submerged. Watch for running dyes. If either happens, do not wash the garment.

If you're washing a garment with stains, any heat applied to the stained area may set the stain. Do not dry it in a dryer or apply an iron or steamer, unless the stains are something you can live with. If you want to remove the stain with the wash, inspect it after washing, before tossing it in the dryer. This is a wise step to take before drying anything, since bleeding dyes or deposits of excess soap can be made permanent if they're not caught first.

After washing:

Minimize wrinkles by hanging your garments immediately. Using padded hangers is not a luxury; it's a necessity for vintage garments. They will benefit because the point of stress at the shoulder is not concentrated as it would be with a thin wire hanger. Wire hangers also rust, which is an easily avoided dilemma. Use plastic hangers if not enough padded ones are available.

Press your garments according to the type of fiber that they're made of. If you use steam in your iron, make sure the water is fresh. You can use a mist bottle instead. Don't add starches to vintage garments unless you'll be wearing and washing them soon.

Instead of ironing, buy a handheld travel steamer. They are a great way to make your clothes wrinkle free in less time. You don't have to set a heat setting. And, you can use a steamer on all the "never press" fabrics listed above.

I would like to thank vintagevixen.com for allowing us to use information from their site and encourage you to go and have a look as they have all sorts of wonderful tidbits of information on their site at www.vintagevixen.com

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