To Clean or Not to Clean

In the majority of cases your vintage item would be extremely difficult - or even impossible - to replace, and the older an item gets the more difficult it would be. This is something you should consider before you subject your precious item to the rigours of cleaning - It´s an irreversible process, and can sometimes do more harm than good.

In an ideal world with limitless time and funds, I would recommend taking all vintage items to a professional cleaner who is experienced in vintage clothing care - they will tell you whether or not it is wise to attempt cleaning in the first place. If something is extremely valuable to you I think it is worth seriously investigating that option.

-In many cases, particularly in pre 1950´s clothing, I would hesitate to recommend that cleaning should be attempted by anyone inexperienced. However, some items can be carefully hand washed at home with due care. Cotton, linen and later ´wonder fabrics´ such as crimplene are amongst those that could be considered. I really wouldn´t recommend you put anything pre-1980 through the washing machine though, unless it is a last ditch attempt! Hand wash is the key word here! Even though your favourite 70´s dress may well look robust enough to take a quick spin in the machine, it´s worth 5 minutes of your time and a bowl of lukewarm water to safeguard against it snagging on the drum, or accidentally leaving the dryer on automatic only to find it gets shrunk with the heat.

- Stains set in the longer they are allowed to remain, and perspiration is worse the longer it is allowed to remain damp. Air your vintage after wear, and if it is necessary or possible to clean it you should attend to it as soon as you can! Dress shields are a great idea for protecting longer sleeved garments, and are available online: ranging from disposable shields to entire washable undergarments.

- Before taking drastic action, some surface problems such as dust can be remedied by gentle attention with a nice soft clothes brush. Sturdier fabrics such as suede will withstand a courser bristle, but do be careful. Vacuuming with a soft brush attachment is great for sturdier items. And finally a good old fashioned airing has a lot to be said for it if your cocktail dress has taken you on a marvellous smoky night out but would rather not face the rigours of a dry clean just to get rid of the smell...

Hollis at PastPerfectVintage.com did a really useful workshop on care and cleaning for the VFG, and can be found here: www.vintagefashionguild.org on the public boards. Registration is free and it´s a very useful resource if you have any questions you need answering!