Washing, drying, stain removal and long-term fabric storage.
Down loses its warmth when it is dirty, and most people delay washing a down jacket for years because they are afraid of ruining it. The irony is that the delay is what ruins it: body oils and dirt coat the down clusters, they stop lofting, and a jacket that has lost its loft has … Read more
Ironing damage is almost always a temperature error. Every fibre has a point at which it stops relaxing and starts melting, scorching or glazing, and the dot system on a care label exists to keep you below it. The temperature table Dots Max temp Fabrics Steam One 110 °C / 230 °F Acrylic, nylon, acetate, … Read more
Care labels are deliberately wordless so that one garment can be sold across dozens of markets. The symbols are standardised, they follow an internal logic, and once you know the logic you can read any label without looking anything up. The five basic shapes Every symbol is a variation on five outlines, always in this … Read more