Rose Fulbright x BLANC
Few fabrics feel as luxurious as silk, its soft and light touch makes it perfect for breezy summer days. But how do you care for silk to make it last? Rose Fulbright has teamed up with eco-cleaning specialists BLANC for a comprehensive guide of how to care for your silk garments, to keep them lasting a lifetime - just as they should. Whether you’re looking to wash your silk items at home with the utmost care or to have them professionally cleaned, here are the dos and don'ts to keep in mind to become a silk care pro.
How to Care for Silk
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To hand-wash your items at home, fill up a clean basin or bowl with lukewarm water, mixing in a mild delicate detergent, only using the amount stated on the bottle.
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Allow the garments to soak and gently agitate for no longer than a few minutes.
- Do not wring the silk after hand washing, instead, lay the item flat and press the water out with a clean, soft towel.
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Note that silk garments must not be machine washed. Machine washing will break down the delicate silk fibres of your garment and may dull the beautiful satin-like sheen of your item. As well this, machine washing, will also cause the silk to degrade slowly, meaning your items will not last the full life span that they should.
How to Care for Cotton Silk
- This fabric is known for its natural fibres and performance. It keeps the wearer cool in the heat, dries out quickly, and is machine-washable.
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With delicate fabrics, BLANC always recommends hand washing over machine washing, as it is far more gentle. For cotton silk, you can hand wash your items, using the same method as the above in cool water to lukewarm water with mild detergent.
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You can wash cotton silk in the machine on the ‘delicates’ setting, using a max temperature of 30 degrees Celsius or less. Always turn the garment inside out first and use a gentle and mild detergent with cotton silk so as to not agitate the fibres.
How to Dry & Iron Silk
- After washing, lay or hang the garment to dry, as quickly as possible to reduce creases. Silk dries very quickly, so the tumble dryer is not needed nor recommended as this could damage the fibres of the fabric.
- Always avoid drying in direct sunlight, this can bleach and fade the fabric, whilst heat sources can warp the garment. Use a clothes hanger, not pegs - as these can mark the garment.
- When ironing your silk item, make sure the iron is on the cool 'silk' setting. Too much heat can dull, pucker, or burn silk fabric. Avoid wetting the fabric locally as this may cause rings on the garment that cannot be removed.
- Most creases in silk can be removed by hanging the garment in the bathroom during your shower and the steam will simply allow the creases to drop and remove the wrinkles for you.
Bleaching and Chlorine
- With all fine fabrics, we never advise the use of chlorine bleach on silk, as this can erode the fibres and lead to discolouration of the fabric.
- If you get a stain, never spot treat it on silk fabric as the colour can easily fade and become lighter on that area. Dark or unsightly stains should preferably be taken to professional cleaners.
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If you need help reading the care label of your garment, BLANC has compiled a complete guide, so you can be your own expert.
Protecting Against Moths
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Clothes moths love silk so, in order to protect against them, we recommend you deter moths with balls, hangars or cubes of cedar, hung in your wardrobe or placed in a drawer with your garments. You can simply use the cedar drops to refresh them, to keep the moths away!
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If you find moths in your wardrobe or drawers, BLANC provides an ozonation service to get rid of moths without using any toxins. It is a chemical-free process that doesn’t use any cleaning solvents, fluids or powders - making it 100% natural, eco-friendly and hypoallergenic.
Professional Cleaning
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If you’re not sure how to care for your items or have an item with a deep-set stain or a high risk of a colour run, we highly recommend bringing them to a professional cleaner to keep your silk garments in perfect condition.
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Making it a habit to go to a professional eco-cleaner instead of a conventional dry cleaner is a simple solution to reduce the exposure to unnecessary chemicals in your life. Eco-cleaners such as BLANC use innovative health-and-planet friendly cleaning that doesn’t require the use of toxic solvents to be highly effective.
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BLANC was founded 10 years ago to “clean up” the dry cleaning industry and has been pioneering eco-cleaning ever since. They can clean anything with a “dry clean only” label, and only use eco-technologies (including wet cleaning and liquid CO2 cleaning, which are among the most sustainable and health-friendly methods of cleaning currently available) that are gentle on textile fibres, yet efficient on stains.
Mending and Recycling
No matter how well you care for your clothes, sometimes damage can happen. At Rose Fulbright we offer a FREE repairs service to all our customers, and if an item is beyond repair, we can sometimes use the fabric to make something new. To find out more about this bespoke service, visit our Repairs and Recycling page.
