Would you like to make your clothes last longer while contributing to a more sustainable wardrobe? Understanding how to properly care for your clothes is essential. Here are 13 valuable tips to cherish your clothes and keep them looking like new!
It is important to know how to make clothes last longer if you want to create a sustainable wardrobe.
By extending the life of our clothing, we can master slow fashion and save money by reducing the amount of clothing we have to buy in our lifetime.
By not taking good care of our clothing, we end up throwing it away, eventually ending up in a landfill or being burned somewhere on the planet.
This is terrible for the environment considering the pollution that clothing causes during the manufacturing, shipping and maintenance process, only to end up somewhere where it will cause more pollution. Not to mention that it is also a waste of money that was spent on buying the clothing, even if we bought it cheaply secondhand.
Therefore, it is crucial for ourselves and the environment to ensure that our clothing has a long life. You can do that almost effortlessly with the following tips!
1. Invest in high-quality clothing
In everything you buy new (or second-hand): choose quality over quantity! High-quality clothing lasts longer and retains its shape and color better after repeated washing and wearing. Go for sustainable materials such as organic cotton and avoid cheaper synthetic fabrics.
Learn how to stop buying fast fashion and instead focus on buying clothes made from high-quality and sustainable fabrics such as organic cotton, and avoid cheaper materials such as polyester.
When shopping at the store, you should also make sure that the seams of the clothes are intact and not fraying. This is a good indication of quality.
Tip: If the garment comes with an extra button, that is another good indication that the garment is well made, as it usually means that the designer wants it to last.
2. Protect your clothing
Try to avoid getting your clothes dirty by wearing protective clothing during certain activities. If you are cooking, wear an apron to prevent food or possible stains on your clothes. The same goes for painting, gardening, etc.
Stains can be a death sentence for clothing, so by taking precautions, you will ensure that your clothes last much longer.
You should also protect expensive garments you don't wear often, such as suits or party dresses, in a garment sleeve when storing them in the closet to preserve them.
3. Make sure you have a really good stain remover in the house
A fresh stain can spell the end for a beloved garment. Invest once in a really good stain remover (even if it's a little more expensive) and treat your clothes with it as soon as possible after a stain gets on them. Almost any stain (no matter how stubborn) can be removed these days with the right stain remover. So throwing away a garment because of a stain is actually never necessary anymore!
Tip: Always carry a stain remover pen with you in your handbag to take immediate action when a stain occurs.
4. Limit washing
Excessive washing can damage the fabric of your clothing and fade the colors. Unless the garment is obviously dirty, you can often wear it a few times before washing it.
Simply put, clothes last longer if you don't over-wash them. Sweaters you wear over a T-shirt don't need to be washed after each wear. The same goes for jeans, skirts, shirts and dresses.
Unless the garment is actually soiled, they can generally be worn about three times before they need to be cleaned.
Do hang these garments you have worn to freshen them up, prevent wrinkles and prevent them from collecting dirt or dust if they are just left on the floor.
5. Use a laundry bag for delicate items
Mesh pockets for certain types of clothing, such as underwear, lingerie and delicate fabrics, are important to ensure that the clothing lasts longer.
Certain garments can easily get caught in other garments or on zippers, which can lead to damage and eventual discarding.
Reusable mesh bags are also handy to put all your small items such as underwear and socks in to make sorting easier afterwards.
6. Always close all zippers and buttons before washing
To reduce the chances of damaging clothes during washing, zipper up sweaters and jeans before throwing them in the washing machine.
The same goes for buttons. By doing this, you reduce the chances of your clothes getting caught or tangled and damaged.
I have a few tops with thin straps and sometimes they are twisted around a button, stretching both the shirt and the button.
Making sure your clothes remain undamaged is an important factor in making clothes last. By zipping and buttoning your clothes before you wash them, you can prevent damage.
7. Always read the washing instructions
Clothes come with washing instructions on the label for a reason. It is extremely important to read these labels to know how to wash each garment to ensure it lasts. Some garments should be hung up to dry, or in the dryer on a gentle setting. Maybe something should only be washed by hand.
You don't want to take a garment out of the washer or dryer only to find that it has shrunk, faded or lost its softness. There's no turning back from that.
8. Sort your laundry correctly
Sort Your Laundry the Right Way After you have read the laundry labels, sort your laundry based on those labels. Sort your laundry by colors, delicate fabrics, etc.
Sorting your laundry will help keep your clothes looking nice longer, as certain garments may otherwise be damaged in the dryer, for example.
Sorting your laundry also makes it easier to transfer your clothes to the dryer, knowing that the batch you just washed can all go in the dryer, without having to sort afterwards when the clothes are wet.
9. Use colder water
Preferably wash your clothes in cold water to protect the fabric and save energy. A colder wash setting will also remove enough dirt and stains from the fabric, it does not always have to be washed at 60 degrees.
10. Hang clothes to dry or use Laundry dryer balls
Hanging your clothes to dry on a clothesline or drying rack is a great way to maintain quality and therefore extend their life.
It also helps to reduce wrinkles and shrinkage that could potentially result from the dryer.
It's also a better option because you save energy by not using a dryer. When you do use the dryer, use eco-friendly wool dryer balls to reduce drying time and reduce wrinkles in clothes. This is such an incredibly good tip, believe me this really works!
11. Choose steaming instead of ironing
Use a clothes steamer to disinfect, clean and smooth your clothes without direct contact with the hot ironing plate. Steaming kills 99% of all bacteria and odors, keeping your clothes fresher without having to wash them right away
12. Give older clothes new life
When your favorite garments are a bit older and show bumps or hooks, use a fabric shaver to easily remove them. This will give your beloved garments new life and make them look like new again
13. Store your clothes properly
Hang your clothes in a cool, dark closet to prevent discoloration from sunlight. Be sure to keep your clothes dry and free of moisture to prevent mold.
With these simple tips, you can keep your clothes looking great longer and create a sustainable wardrobe. By being conscious with your clothes, you can not only save money, but also contribute to a better environment by washing less and making clothes last longer. Remember, small changes in your daily routine can make a big difference to your clothes and the planet!
