Taking Care Of Your Lingerie
Your lingerie is an important part of your wardrobe. It's not
just any old thing, it's an extension of your personality,
especially when you use it to feel more powerful, more sexy, and
more playful. So doesn't it deserve just as good of care as the
things you wear outside of the bedroom?
First off, no matter how annoying they are, don't rip the tags
off! Not only do you run the risk of damaging the material when
you do that, you also lose important information about the
lingerie and its care. You will want to read the label and see
exactly what kind of material it is, and if there is anything
special that you need to do with it (more details at
http://www.SpicyRelationships.com/lingerie/ ).
Hand washing is about the best thing you can do with non dry
clean only lingerie. Use a gentle detergent and cold water. You
do not want to throw your lingerie in the dryer, as that can
cause problems with certain pieces. Instead, you just rinse with
cold water, and leave it out to dry. Don't wring it like you
would a towel! Most lingerie is of very light materials, and
will dry out quickly anyway. There is no need to stress the
fabric.
There are some cleaners and detergents that are made
specifically for lingerie care. It is up to you if you use them
or not. If you value your lingerie greatly, it would at least be
worth a try to see if that helps with the care.
If you either don't have tags on your lingerie, or would like a
quick reference as to what material needs what type of
attention, here are some of the more common of lingerie
materials and what to do with them:
Acetate - Needs to be dry cleaned! While some can be hand
washed, it is much safer to simply dry clean and not take the
chance that it is in the exception.
Acrylic - These can go either way. Hand washing or dry cleaning
are both valid options, and it is not essential to choose one
over the other for this type of material. You can also machine
wash and dry this material.
Cotton - You can pretty much do whatever you want with cotton.
Machine wash and dry, hand wash, it all works as cotton is very
sturdy. You will need to dry this on high heat.
Nylon - This can be machine washed safely, but needs to be dried
at low temperatures.
Rayon - This varies between dry cleaning and hand washed. You'll
definitely want to consult the label, as rayon comes in many
different forms in lingerie.
Silk - You are almost always going to need to dry clean silk.
The only exception is with pre washed silk, but even that type
of silk still has very specific care instructions for it. Read
the label!