By taking good care of our clothes, we can extend their lifetime and decrease their environmental impact. Get familiar with the sustainable laundry and clothing care tips by IVALO.COM!
Tips for sustainable clothing care
Care with love
Your favourite piece of clothing stays by your side day after another and helps you to express yourself. Perhaps you have gone through the busy everyday life together or enjoyed many unforgettable festivities. In any case, your clothes definitely do deserve to be cared for with love! We at IVALO.COM wrote down a short guide for you to decrease the environmental impact of your clothes and to keep them in good condition for as long as possible.
Before we start, let’s recap an important lesson from our previous publication 5 Tips for sustainable fashion consumption – favour quality! A high-quality piece of clothing lasts from a year to another staying beautiful. It’s also worthwhile to get familiar with the care instructions already at the time of purchase. When your clothes are chosen carefully, an emotional bond is created between you and your clothes, leading to a loving clothing care.
Wash and dry in an environmentally friendly way
Washing and drying clothes is burdening our environment. However, with a little fine adjustment you can positively influence the impact.
Wash less – This is a good place to start! Evaluate carefully whether your clothes really need to be washed or could airing possibly be enough. Airing refreshes your clothes nicely and removes the odours of the previous day’s adventures. In case there is a stain on your garment, remove it locally instead of throwing it in the tumbler. Washing your clothes less often saves both your clothes and a considerable amount of water and energy.
Lower the washing temperature – Many garments can be cleaned at 30 degrees. Washing at a lower temperature not only saves energy but also treats our clothes more gently. However, also consider the instructions on the garment care label, as, for example, cotton is best washed at a higher temperature for proper cleaning. Additionally, take a moment to explore different detergents and choose an environmentally friendly product, which is likely to be a better option for your skin as well.
Hand wash – Hand washing is a great option especially for the most sensitive garments and at its best, something relaxing to do. Our clothes made from synthetic materials release up to tens of thousands of microfibres in the washing machine, some of which getting through the water treatment and ending up in the waterways. You can avoid the microfibre shedding by hand washing your synthetic clothes as it is a gentler option to spinning in the tumbler. Alternatively, slip your synthetic garments in washing machine in the Guppyfriend washing bag which is able to catch some of the microplastics.
Line dry – A tumble dryer, although it might seem like an easier option and keep your living room free from laundry racks, stresses our environment with its energy consumption. Also, many of our clothes do not actually like the tumble dryer as they might shrink or otherwise suffer. So, hang your clothes carefully on a rack to dry. Carefully hung clothes do not necessarily even need ironing before use.
Handle with care
When handling your clothes with love and being ready to grab a needle and a thread when needed, you can significantly extend their lifetime!
Store properly – Place your beloved garments in your closet carefully folded or hanging on a hanger. This way, your clothes stay smooth and sleek and maintain their shape for a long time. Also choosing the outfit of the day will be a lot easier as the clothes are not stuffed in your closet or laying in a huge pile on top of your armchair.
Tidy up – The tape roller is a familiar tool for most of us, but what about a clothes brush? A clothes brush is a more eco-friendly alternative to the tape roller for removing dust and loose debris from the surface of clothing. It also helps remove small lint. Additionally, for those who love knitwear, it's advisable to add a fabric shaver to your clothing care arsenal, which can remove more stubborn lint from your garments.
Grab a needle and thread – Instead of abandoning your garment deep inside your closet as soon as the first button comes off, head to a sewing box and fix the situation straight away. Sewing a button and mending a hole are easy operations after which you and you dear piece of clothing are able to continue your journey together. In a tough situation, or why not in any, you can patch the hole with an adhesive clothing patch.
To cover your back, we’ve put together a ten-point guide for sewing on a button, that guarantees the success. Choose a colourful thread and button to brighten up your clothes if you feel like it!
- Thread the needle (requires sharp-sightedness and dexterity)
- Use scissors to cut the thread to a suitable length
- Fold the thread double and make a knot in the end
- Carefully position the button on its place and thread the needle from the opposite side of the fabric through the fabric and the buttonhole (special attention needed)
- Pull the thread through the button so that the knot stays firmly on the other side of the fabric
- Next, thread the needle through the other buttonhole back to the opposite side of the fabric
- Repeat the previous few times ending the last round on the opposite side of the button
- Cut the thread with a pair of scissors leaving a small margin
- Tie the ends of the thread firmly into a double knot
- Et voilá – mission accomplished!
You’ve just finished the short guide for sustainable clothing care! With these tips you will both take care of your beloved clothes as well as the environment. We wish you relaxing clothing care moments!
