PO'd about stains

[Derek WC]

Alright than, I guess I'll go and try washing that jacket now and get back to you on how it turns out.

 

[davestlouis]

I just wet cleaned some just-about-worn-out suitpants, as an experiment. I bought a small bottle of Woolite, and mixed it with cold water in the tub. Gently agitated the britches, then rinsed with cold water. They are currently drying flat on a bath towel. We'll see how they look once they dry.

It seems to me, this shouldn't be any worse then getting caught in a downpour while wearing the suit, except for the Woolite.

 

[davestlouis]

11 hours later, the pants are nearly dry, which amazed me. Further, they look very good, just going to need to press the creases and pleats and we'll be all set.

 

[davestlouis]

Pressed the creases and the pants look outstanding. The fit is the same, no shrinkage or other issues.

 

[Chainsaw]

Does anyone know if there's a way to remove the yellowing that nasty vintage dudes have left on the suit trousers we find?

You should have a little bit more respect my friend. Your the one digging through their graves looking for "cool" styles. When the pendulum swings back, your going to be happy you were so nice. Karma & old age, suck.

Oh, did you know sweat is just diluted urine? Enjoy your Gatorade!

 

[Feraud]

I recently purchased an orphaned sb jacket that arrived smelling a bit less than desirable. A couple of rounds of Febreeze didn't do the job so I gave it a soak and easy agitation in Woolite and that did the trick.
A new sportscoat to last another half dozen decades.

 

[davestlouis]

That's a beautiful thing, feraud!

 

[davestlouis]

Tonight I jumped in with both feet...Jos. A. Bank suit that I bought 8-9 years ago, has been cleaned periodically over the years, getting a little tired but certainly wearable for work still. I threw the trousers in cold water and woolite in the tub, and the water turned a horrible mud-brown color, it was disgusting! I wasn't going to wash the jacket, but I went ahead...brown water there too, but not nearly as bad as the trousers.

Both items are drying as I type. I was amazed at how heavy that jacket was, when soaked with water.

 

[Derek WC]

This is a bit late, but I've washed two completely wool suits, and no shrinkage/warping, except I needed to iron the bottom, as it was not crisp from the water collecting there.

 

[Undertow]

I've never had to press my own suits (dry cleaners take care of that for me) but after reading this thread, I'm wondering if someone could address that issue for me.

Do you suppose a warm iron and cloth could press the suit without causing shrinkage and shine? Or is there a better method?

 

[Derek WC]

What I did was I used a hot iron with steam on top of a handkerchief folded twice, and no shine or anything.

 

[davestlouis]

Hot iron, lots of steam, dampened linen? cloth so the iron never touches the wool. I did a combination of ironing and steam from a steamer, and the clothes turned out very well.

 

[Torpedo]

On reading about all your successful experiences, I am mystified. The dry cleaners warned me strongly against hand washing, not because of the cloth itself, but because of the "inners" of the suit: what goes inside lapels, shoulders, etc. They said I would ruin the suit.

This was after they had already dry cleaned the clothes, and I had paid for the service, so what need did they have of misleading me? Surely they should know!

:eusa_doh:

 

[davestlouis]

Torpedo, my take on it is this...if I had a $5000 bespoke suit, I wouldn't dream of wet-cleaning it at home. My suits get worn daily, and I figured it was worth experimenting with several older ones. The experiment turned out well, and I think they smell better than they do when I have them drycleaned. That's not to say that it will work with every suit, in every kind of fabric.

My experience with drycleaners has been mixed too...I get MUCH better results from some cleaners than others. My local cleaners just got sold, and the new guys seem to be trying a lot harder than the old owners.

 

[Derek WC]

I would say that washing a suit is fine, as long as you use cold water for wool, don't use a washing machine, or washboard, and I used Oxy-Clean, so I'm not sure how anything else would work.

I also agree with davestlouis, I would only try it on in-expensive suits, although, if you get, say, a chocolate stain on an expensive suit, dry-cleaning won't get that out.

 

[Undertow]

Perhaps there is an issue with silk liners in the suit as opposed to nylon/rayon/polyester liners.

I believe water may ruin silk, causing it to either stretch or shrink, and also to become stained. On the other hand, I don't think rayon, nylon or polyester would have this problem as long as you were gentle. (Rayon COULD begin to look greasy, should it be woven with a satin weave - but I think the water wash my help clear that out)