Let’s face it, no one likes to do laundry; and folding and putting it away, you can forget it! Keeping your screen printed apparel looking fresh every time you wear it is as important to us as it is to you. Here are a few of our inside tips and tricks to keep that fresh off the press look.
1. Wash similar clothes together
We know you’re thinking, well duh of course I don’t wash my white with my reds! But we’re always talking about washing similar textures together. For example washing a screen printed 100% polyester smooth knitted shirt with a jean jacket with buttons could damage the shirt. Washing with items that are unalike each other can also cause pilling.
2. Wash custom prints in cold water
This is a universal rule for most clothing in general cold is good and heat is bad. Unless the apparel is very dirty or needs to be sanitized there isn’t much of a reason to wash clothing in heat. Hot water isn’t gentle on fabric and in the end will break it down.
3. Avoid using bleach or other harsh detergents
Don’t use bleach or other harsh soaps (like fabric softener) as it can break down your clothing and prints.
4. Do the hokey pokey and turn your clothes inside out
Turning your clothes inside out is a trick any laundry pro will tell you if the item is screen printed or not. This will help the printed area on your t-shirt stay vivid.
5. Turn it Down! Use a Low Heat Setting in the Dryer
Do not, I repeat DO NOT put your custom printed clothing in the dryer at the hottest setting. Dryers are amazing time savers but they are rough on the longevity of clothing. Dryers can be particularly hard on the ink we use to print with.
6. Stay away from the dry cleaner and ironing
As we’ve established, high heat is not good for screen print designs, and dry cleaning and ironing are no exception. Ironing directly on a screen printed design can cause damage to the design.
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