In
part one and
part two of this blog series I commented on the nonsense
floating around the internet masquerading as "advice". There was
advice from an average Joe, a published author and cleaning guru, a
fashion writer and owner of a men's specialty store, a retailer of
home laundry detergents and a dry cleaner with "40 years
experience."
Here are three more gems...
An image consultant and personal style
coach
"What most people don't know is that
clothing that needs to be dry cleaned or is natural fabric (i.e.,
silk) can usually clean itself! You can easily put the item on a
hanger and leave it near an open window over night and voila -
the piece will be clean by morning!" (emphasis added).
I'd be the first to admit that I know absolutely nothing about
the right clothing colors, fabrics and styles to fit and flatter
your body type. Conversely, I just wish that image consultants
would admit that they know next to nothing about garment care.
Dispensing poor advice is a disservice to their clients.
A website dedicated to helping environmentally
conscious consumers manage their finances
"Hang your clothes in the bathroom
while you shower ... It's not as thorough as professional steaming
or ironing of course - but it also takes almost no effort... leave
them there for a few hours after your shower, with the bathroom
door closed, and you will have freshly pressed clothing"
(emphasis added).
Sorry to disappoint you, but you won't have freshly-pressed
clothing. What you'll have are garments that are laden with
moisture. To achieve anything close to "freshly pressed clothing"
you'll need to dry the garment immediately after "steaming". That's
why a dry cleaner's press has both steam and vacuum
functions.
In response to a question on Yahoo Answers (How does a dry cleaner
clean clothes?) one average Josephine provides the
following answer:
"Nasty chemicals that probably cause
cancer. There is no reason to dry clean anything. You can wash
anything that says "dry clean only" on gentle cycle, cold water,
wrapped in a pillowcase."
There's only one possible response to this "advice": What a
load!
On behalf of all true quality cleaners, I want to thank these
community-minded folks for their insightful additions to our
understanding of garment care.
How can I help you?