Clothing Hacks from the Premier Scottsdale Dry Cleaning Company Prestige Cleaners
In the over 50 years Prestige Cleaners has been in business in Scottsdale, we’ve dealt with all sorts of dry cleaning and laundry issues. In the process, our dedicated team has learned a few ways to handle some common clothing conundrums that may have you frustrated. Here are three tips to help you out with the following problems.
How to make your t-shirts (and sheets) feel vintage soft
New t-shirts never quite compare to the scrumptious softness of old vintage t-shirts. Have a new shirt that could use a bit of softening? All you need is a bit of salt, water, and a bucket. Fill a bucket with 1 quart of water and ½ cup of salt. Submerge the shirt in the salt water and let it sit for three days. Once the three days are up, wash the shirt as you normally would in cold water. Voila, your t-shirt will have a vintage soft feel. This process works for scratchy cotton sheets, too. Although, if the sheets are really stiff it can sometimes take multiple soaks to achieve super softness.
How to remove gum from clothes
If you’ve ever had a juicy wad of gum stuck to your clothing, you know it can be tough to remove. The good news is there are a number of ways to potentially eliminate the sticky mess. Be forewarned, be careful with the following methods. Also, never put fabric with gum on it in the dryer! If in doubt as to how your fabric will hold up to the following suggestions, or if you have an expensive item of clothing with gum stuck on it, we recommend swinging by one of Prestige Cleaners’ eight convenient locations to have one of our clothing professionals take a look.
- Freezing––put the item of clothing in the freezer to harden the gum. Once the gum is hard, carefully remove as much of it as possible, scraping off what’s left with a credit card. If the gum thaws out before you get it all off, freeze the garment again.
- Boiling––Dip the area affected by the gum in very hot water. While submerged, scrape off the gum with a butter knife or dislodge it with a toothbrush.
- Rubbing Alcohol––Take a rag and pour a bit of rubbing alcohol on it and then gently rub the gum with the rag. Wait a couple minutes and then gently pry the gum away from the fabric.
- Ironing––Place the fabric on top of some cardboard so that the gum is between the cardboard and fabric. On the iron’s medium setting, iron the affected area. Repeat until all the gum has transferred from the clothing to the cardboard.
- Hair Spraying––Spray a small amount of hair spray on the gum, which should harden because of the hair spray. Immediately pick or scrape the gum off.
How to remove pilling from clothing
Most fabrics can pill, creating unattractive fuzz balls, especially in areas that rub together, like underneath your arms. Here are a couple of ways to keep your sweaters, and other items, from having an accumulation of unsightly fuzz or hairs.
- Tape––Any tape should do, but duct tape tends to work the best. Take the end of the tape and peel it back on itself until you can connect the end of the tape to the beginning of the roll where it’s sticky side up. Next, press the sticky roll of the tape against the fabric and start rolling.
- Electric Shaver––Lay the fabric flat and hold it taut. Using either an electric shaver specifically designed for de-pilling clothing (aka an electric lint shaver) or the sort of electric shaver men use to shave, gently and lightly move the electric shaver over the surface of the fabric in the same direction of the weave.
- Lint Brush––For three bucks and some change, you can invest in a special link brush, like the two-side Evercare Magik Lint Brush (available at most drugstores or on drugstore.com).
To lessen pilling, we recommend professionally laundering or dry cleaning pilling-prone fabrics. Pilling may also be reduced by treating your garments gently and limiting wash time and by turning clothing inside out before laundering.
