Seams Like Quality

When buying ready-made clothing, check for reinforced seams, a sign of quality construction. Look inside skirts, necklines, and sleeves for loose threads, a sign of shabby fabrication. If clothing is colored, check the laundry tag for the symbol that indicates that the garment can be washed in hot water—this means that the dye is colorfast.

Let’s Iron This Out

This presents a problem for me, because I have a beef with ironing, and not just because the folded ironing board looks like a giant upright roach. (I have named mine Kafka.)

My interviewees are unmoved.

“Whether you are buying fabric or ready-made clothing, look for breathability,” Simona explains. Breathable fabrics allow air in and heat out. “Only natural materials breathe, so fashion designers buy cotton, silk, and linen. Synthetic fabrics will trap heat close to the skin.”

Break Loose

Loose silhouettes in light colors keep wearers cool and help prevent heatstroke. A neckline that closes with a button or snap will allow for more air circulation than a closed crewneck. Flowy, mid-length skirts maintain an even body temperature better than any other length skirts.

Tips to Avoid Ironing

• Keep clothing on hangers instead of folding. When packing, roll items instead of folding them.
• If an item is machine washable, take it out of the washing machine immediately after the cycle is complete. Manually stretch the fabric with two hands, then hang on a hanger, spray with Downy Wrinkle Release, and stretch again. This will not work for perfectionists, but it will remove the most offensive wrinkles.
• To steam an item without a steamer, hang on a hanger inside a bathroom (but not within the shower). Close the shower door or curtain and turn the shower on the hottest temperature. When the room fills with steam, the worst wrinkles will ease.
• Use your iron for DIY clothing appliqués, projects that involve tiny melting bits, and as a substitute sandwich maker. It will inevitably break, and who could blame you for not ironing then? (Your mother, that’s who.)

Are You Being Fresh?

• Store clothing in breathable fabric or wood containers, such as woven baskets or cotton garment bags.
• Cedar blocks keep fabric smelling fresh and work as moth deterrents. Charcoal sachets and dried lavender also work.
• Packets of ground coffee will absorb smells. (The coffee must be in a porous container, like a chiffon bag.) This is a good option for long-term storage.
• Use wood or fabric hangers rather than metal. Metal can have interesting chemical reactions with clothing, and wire hangers can loosen a fabric’s weave.
• Items with embroidery or appliqués are best hung inside out to protect the delicate details.
• Hang items with space between each piece.

Five thousand years of human development, and some people expect me to spend time maintaining fabrics like it’s the middle ages and I have exactly one heirloom cloak. Well, excuse me while I go hyper-fixate on something else. See you next month.

Zisi Naimark has over ten years of experience as an interior designer and space planner, and has done projects all over the United States and Israel.

(Originally featured in Family First, Issue 939)