Get Your Summer Wardrobe Ready: Here's 3 Tricks To Wash Those Brand New Clothes Without Ruining Them

Summertime is getting closer every day! With the arrival of this new sunny season, it’s time to start getting your summer wardrobe ready for the beach, outdoor dinners, backyard barbeques, and more. Whether you’re buying brand new bathing suits or dress shirts or you just want to make sure last year’s new purchases keep their strength, size, and bold colors this summer, 4J is here to help you make sure your clothes are clean and ready for anything.

Below, we’ve compiled some brief summaries on how to wash brand new clothes, how to stop clothes from shrinking in the dryer, and how to wash clothes without running colors. Use these tricks to give your clothes new and old a longer lifespan!

Everybody loves shopping for new clothes! We get excited to wear out our new gear and show off our new fresh garments. We also know, however, that new clothes can be covered in pollutants and bacteria from their original warehouses, sitting in store shelves, and other shoppers picking them up or even trying them on.

When you want to keep that brand-new clothing feeling but make sure that they’re clean and disinfected, here’s what you do:

• First, remove all tags or excess branding materials from the clothing.
• Next, be sure to check the labels for washing symbols and directions to see what the manufacturers recommend.
• Use the correct dose of laundry detergent that is recommended for washing these particular items.

You want your new clothes to last as long as possible! Certain fabrics and materials in your new clothes are more susceptible to shrinkage during laundry than others. Some materials shrink when exposed to hot water and agitation, so use either cold, room temperature, or warm water and avoid extremely hot water for new clothes. Top-loading washers can cause legitimate damage and shrinkage as opposed to front-loading ones.

The majority of clothing shrinkage occurs in the drying process. Try using the lowest possible heat settings, or even consider air-drying sensitive fabrics and clothing items on racks or hanging them up with pins or hangers.

The vibrant colors or the subtle tones of your new clothes are one of the main reasons you bought them to begin with. Unless you're going for a faded look, you won’t want those colors to run and bleed dye through your clothes. 

There are specific dye fixatives that are available for home use to stop this running phenomenon, but there are also ways to conduct your laundry process to focus on sensitive items that are prone to color bleeding. These measures include hand washing these clothing items separately, washing clothes together based on color categories, and using cold water in the washing and rinsing process to promote color longevity.

4J Laundromat is a full-service laundromat open 24/7. We provide laundering solutions for your trickiest fabrics and your most stubborn clothing items. For any of your laundry needs, our state-of-the-art machines can provide that brand new clothing feel, and even tackle up to eight loads at once! We also offer laundry drop-off and pick-up services around the Philadelphia area. Stop in today and get your clothes ready for the whole summer!