Tips for Saving on Dry Cleaning

The dreaded "dry clean only" tag. You have it, I have it and many of us try to avoid it like the plague. Just what is it about that little tag that evokes fear in the hearts of so many? Well fear not! Here are a few tips to help you save on dry cleaning, do it yourself and help you start buying that "dry clean only" clothing again.

Take It To The Cleaners?

Just because an article of clothing states "dry clean only" does not necessarily mean you have to take it to the dry cleaners. There are many items that you can dry clean yourself right at home. With the invention of the dry-clean-at-home product, many people are saving a ton of money by doing their own dry cleaning right in the comfort of their own home.

While these at home products do work well for many articles of clothing, there are some items that these products are generally not good for. These items should still be taken to a professional dry cleaner. Clothing or accessories that are made from suede, leather, fur or velvet are cleaned best taking them to a professional. These items can be difficult to clean correctly, and since they are generally expensive you do not want to run the risk of damaging them yourself. Other reasons to make a visit to your dry cleaner are if you have items that are too big to fit into your drier, or if you have a drier that runs at an extremely high temperature.

Fortunately, there is a much longer list of items that can be dry cleaned very easily at home. Blouses, dresses, vests, slacks, blazers, dress shirts and sweaters can all be dry cleaned with at home dry cleaning products. Clothing made from silks, synthetics and other mixed blends can all be dry cleaned at home as well. If you have items that are decorated with accessories, such as buttons, beads or sequins, these can also be dry cleaned using at home products.

Tips for Using At Home Dry Cleaning Products

At home dry cleaning products are quite easy to use. There are however a few tips to make using them even easier, and ensure greater success when using them. If you have a great deal of items to dry clean, separate them into groups of similar weights and fabrics, and clean these groups together.

If you have items such as sweaters, wool or other "fuzzy" type material, clean these products separately. This will help to reduce lint transfer to other articles of clothing. You can try grouping these items together and cleaning them, but for best results you should clean each item separately.

Other Ways To Save On Dry Cleaning

Many people that have items that require dry cleaning, opt to wear their items more than once before cleaning them. If your items are not obviously dirty, this may be an option for you. To avoid having to clean your items often, follow these simple tips.

Hang your garments up as soon as you take them off. This will help to keep the garments from becoming wrinkled, and will help to air them out and keep them smelling fresh. Try and avoid hanging clothing in damp or humid areas, as this can cause the clothing to have a musty smell.

Keep your closets cleaned. Having to cram clothing into an over stuffed closet can causing bunching and wrinkling. If you have a spare closet in the house that you can dedicate to dry clean only clothing, this can help in keeping space between your clothing. Clothing should be able to hand freely, without touching the pieces next to it.

Do not keep your clothing in plastic bags. Many people feel that they should protect their dry clean only products with plastic bags or garment bags. This however, can cause more damage to the clothing by not allowing the clothing to breath. It also makes the clothing retain moisture which can cause the clothing to become musty smelling and wrinkle. Additionally, these bags provide hiding spaces for pests that can eat and damage your clothing.