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How to wash and care for lingerie

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Today’s hottest fashion looks are based on lingerie – camisoles peaking out from under blazers or a prettily colored silky strap slipping out from a sleeveless top. Even if the lingerie doesn’t show, wearing the right undergarment gives you the most bangs for your fashion buck – proper foundations make your clothes fit properly and help you look your best. But after you have had the fun of shopping for your silky scantiest, how should you take care of them? With a few simple tricks, you can keep your lingerie looking like new for a very long time.

For relatively sturdy items that you wear on a regular basis, consider investing in some mesh bags at the department store. Mesh bags are usually made of nylon, and have zippers at the top. Put one to three items in each bag, depending on the size of the bag. You don’t need a bag for each individual item, but you don’t want the bag crowded either or the items won’t get fully clean. Toss the zippered bag in the washing machine with your other lightweight items like blouses or shirts. The mesh bag allows the soap and water to get at your undoes, but prevents straps, thong backs, or leg openings from getting stretched out or entangled with other pieces of clothing, or the washing machine agitator (in a top loader).

For more delicate items, or lingerie embellished with lace or embroidery, hand washing is the way to go. White lingerie can stand a little hot water, but for colored items, choose cold water to keep their colors vibrant. Choose a mild commercial soap made for delicates, or any soap that has sodium lauryl sulphate as the key ingredient. You can find SLS in soaps made for quilts, for vintage linens, and even at the veterinary store in the horse shampoo! It is biodegradable, phosphate free, and low siding so it rinses easily. In short, it is good for the environment as well as your clothes.

When you have finished washing your lingerie, rinse it with cool water until there are no more soap bubbles visible in the run off. Not rinsing enough can leave your lingerie with a sticky residue, which is not comfortable at all.

Next, your lingerie has to dry. It is never a good idea to throw delicate lingerie in the dryer. Both the extreme heat and the act of spinning around in the dryer barrel can take their toll on delicate fabrics. Not only can your items shrink, but the elastic in them will weaken quickly, and items dried in the dryer can easily lose their intended shape. To dry, remove your lingerie from the water one piece at a time. Never wring the water from the item, twisting can pull the item out of shape, but squeeze the excess water gently from the piece. If you have a flat sweater drying rack, now is a great time to put it to use. Much like sweaters, lingerie will dry more quickly and hold its shape better if it is laid out flat, in an area where air can circulate all around it. If you do not have a sweater dryer, get as much water out of the piece as you can, then hang it on a plastic hanger and place it in an out of the way spot, such as your shower rod. Don’t put your lingerie away until you are sure it is completely dry. Especially with items such as padded bras, stuffing a damp piece in your drawer can give it a chance to pick up a moldy sort of odor.

Store your freshly laundered lingerie in a drawer or storage basket, but no matter where you put it, line the area with a sheet or two of white tissue paper. Silky items can snag on the tiniest of splinters in your dresser drawer or basket, and direct contact with wood isn’t good for any fiber, ever. To prevent another snagging hazard, make sure bra backs are hooked, and keep bras on the opposite end of the drawer from snag magnets like pantyhose or stockings.
Wash your lingerie correctly and it will add to your high fashion look for years to come. And you can use all the money you saved by not sending your camisoles to the dry cleaners to go out and splurge on some more!