High-priced holiday fashion horrors
he holiday season
may bring joy to many people but not necessarily to the
drycleaner. High-priced garments being sold are not only
unserviceable, but also may be mislabeled and already damaged
when purchased.
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The next question is: How come it was not
noticed at the counter? The answer is that the counter person
often is focused on price, stains and care labels.
I went on a window shopping expedition
with my garment analysis administrator. Just as I thought
— her focus was on style, color and fit when she examined
garments. She never noticed damages already present on the
garment.
The next question is: Why are garments
being ruined during drycleaning? The answer is the drycleaner
spotter is focused on care labeling rather than fiber content
and garment construction. This would be okay if not for the
fact that 40 percent of care instruction labels are incorrect.
The following is a cross section of
garments I viewed and inspected at famous designer stores.
These are also a cross section of the most frequently received
problem garments by my international independent garment
analysis service.
Chicos
Garment: Red
silk embroidered jacket, $118.
Problem: The
embroidery was tightly stitched, causing puckering. This
puckering can rarely be pressed out successfully.
Garment: Rayon
and acrylic chenille sweater, $108.
Problem: Some of the pile yarns were
already flattened. This could be accentuated in cleaning.
Garment: Purple
embroidered coat, $520.
Problem: The
outer fabric is laminated to a backing fabric and there was
puckering and separation showing on the top area. The problem
could be accentuated in cleaning.
Adrienne Vittadini
Garment: Black
beaded and sequin trimmed blouse (acetate and rayon).
Problem: The
sequins are referred to as pilates and are already discolored.
The label reads hand washable. In my opinion, the garment could
shrink in hand-washing due to the rayon content.
Bebe
Garment:A
dress made of silk, polyester, nylon and metallic.
Problem: The
dryclean-only label does not limit heat. Many metallic yarns
are coated with plastic. They will shrink when steamed and
subjected to high-temperature pressing.
Garment: Rabbit
fur jacket, $89. (Also found in many other stores.)
Problem: I
noticed some shedding of the rabbit fur hairs. If drycleaned,
the rabbit fur skins are likely to separate due to the loose
stitching. I would recommend a fur cleaning even though the
price of the garment does not dictate it. Shedding is
characteristic of rabbit fur but many cleaners are blamed.
Garment: Embroidered
polyester black pleated dress.
Problem: The
label reads “No iron, no steam, twist to reshape.”
The pleats are already deformed and the label is confusing. I
would only recommend using a hand-washing process and hang to
dry without twisting. The pleats are so intricate that they can
not be refinished properly.
Garment: Satin
slacks (acetate, nylon and elastic).
Problem: The fragile satin yarns are
already chaffed, probably from customer handling.
Garment: Blue
beaded blouse.
Problem: The
care instructions read as follows: “Hand wash or dry spot
clean, use Zurcion method.” Has anyone informed the
manufacturer that the FTC ruled that the Zurcion cleaning label
should be used?
Garment: White
beaded silk chiffon dress with fringe.
Problem: Fringe
and embroidery are showing some unraveling. The bias cut
construction shows an uneven hemline.
Garment: Green
polyester gown.
Problem: Label
says “Spot clean only, do not dryclean, do not
wash.” The garment, however, can be wetcleaned.
Garment: Rose
sequin and beaded gown.
Problem: The
care instruction says dryclean only. The sequins are showing a
slight loss of luster and are slightly curled.
This type of trimming would become tangled
and damaged in any drycleaning process. The trimming is also
chain stitched. This means that a broken thread would cause
most of the trimming to separate.
Lillie Rubin
Garment: Raw
silk beaded suits.
Problem: The
label reads “Occasional slubs, weave, shading and
irregularities in hand-woven fabrics should not be regarded as
defects. These characteristics are not defects or
misweaves.” The garment irregularities may cause the
customer to blame the drycleaner after the garment is
processed.
Garment: Several
beaded gowns made in Korea and China.
Problem: The care instruction reads
“Do not iron, do not steam beads, sequins or mirrors. Do
not wash, do not dryclean. Spot clean only with soap and
water.” The problem is that rings in spot cleaning may be
difficult to remove in feathering. I also see some red trimming
that could bleed when in contact with water. I also observed
some of the beads are held loosely with broken threads.
BCBG
Garment: Satin
gown (polyester and spandex).
Problem: Dryclean-only
label, but there is already some chafing on the satin
weave due to customer handling.
Garment:Chiffon
gown with stitched trimming.
Problem: The
chiffon weave is showing some weakened yarns.
Armani
Garment: Rayon
and silk velvet gown, $950.
Problem: The
velvet pile from handling is already showing some flattened
yarns. This may not be correctable in finishing.
Escada
Garment: Fringed
trimmed gown, $1,700.
Problem: The
fringed trim endings are unfinished and are likely to unravel
from the mechanical action of routine drycleaning.
How to spot-clean garments
There are some garments that are too
intricate for cleaning and would require spot cleaning.
Method
Place a thick towel over spotting board to
avoid spreading of wet area. Place area to be spotted on
vacuum. Spot into vacuum using dry steam while applying vacuum.
Use normal wetside spotting for stains, using the vacuum to
contain the wet area.
Remove towel to feather and remove wetside
rings. To feather you would apply dry steam to break up rings
and in small sections wipe from the center of the ring out so
the wet area blends with dry area.
To remove light soil and dryside stains,
dampen towel with volatile dry solvent and wipe area. Feather
by wiping with more VDS from center of the ring outward.
Dan Eisen recently retired as chief
garment analyst for the Neighborhood Cleaners Association after
33 years with that organization. He is available for seminars,
consultations and independent garment analysis. He also has
published a book, “The Art of Spotting,” which is
an indexed compilation of articles he wrote for National
Clothesline and NCA over the past three decades. He can be
reached at (772) 340-0909. His address is 274 NW Toscane Trail,
Port St. Lucie, FL 34986. His e-mail address is cleandan@adelphia.net.
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