GENERAL ADVICE

Washing: Always follow the manufacturer's garment care guidelines as labelled before washing. It is advisable to wash knitwear inside out.

Ironing: Make sure your iron is set to the correct temperature as given on the garment care label. Many school uniform garments are 'easy care' and do not need ironing, refer to the manufacturer's label for drying instructions to get the best finish from these items. Printed garments should not be ironed over the printed area.

Tumble drying: Always follow the manufacturer's garment care guidelines as many garments are best left to dry naturally. Never tumble dry a pleated garment as this can reverse the heat-treated pleating process - always hang up on a suitable hanger to air dry.

Fabric conditioner: We advise not to use fabric conditioner as many garments are specially coated for easy care and fabric conditioner interferes with this process.

Iron-on labels: These do not adhere to stretchy fabrics. Only affix to garments you can iron and remember to put a layer e.g. a handkerchief, between the clothing and the iron to avoid scorch marks.

Velcro fastenings: Never wash a garment with its Velcro fastening unfastened. The material is abrasive and can cause damage to other items of clothing in the wash. 

HOW TO DEAL WITH PILLING & BOBBLING

Knitted goods are prone to pilling, some more than others. The main reason is friction or rubbing against another object and this does not necessarily mean that the garment is faulty. Pilling can be caused by any of the following:

  • External friction i.e movement against another fabric or object.
  • Heat generated by the individual when the garment is worn.
  • Washing the garment at the incorrect temperature and/or with other fabrics that will rub against the garment.
  • Tumble drying the garment at too high a temperature, which causes the heat to draw out the fibre.

Some garments appear to have 'fluffed up' after a short period of wear and this is due to surface fibre from the yarn coming to the surface. The yarn in these cases is slightly hairier than usual and the hairs disappear after a period of wear and washing. This is similar to a carpet, where when first laid, the loose fibres come to the surface and are vacuumed away. If the fibres do not wash away, various devices can be used to remove the excess fibre to enhance the look of the garment. Once the fibre is removed the garment is unlikely to pill again. Check that bags and outerwear do not have any exposed velcro fastenings which may cause damage to garments worn beneath them. 

Our advice: We find that the best solution is to turn garments inside out when washing. When pilling occurs, it should settle down after washing a number of times. However, if pilling is excessive, please feel free to return to us for inspection. 

CARE SYMBOLS AND WHAT THEY MEAN

HAND WASHING

  • If the care label has a tub with a hand, your item can be hand washed or put in a delicate washing cycle of 40°C/104°F, or lower.
  • Hand washing is better suited for delicate items, like cashmere or silk, because the wash is gentle preventing shrinking or snagging.
  • If the care label has a twisted symbol, your item can be wrung.
  • If the care label has a cross over the twisted symbol you should not wring the item.

SYNTHETIC WASHING

  • Your item can be washed in the washing machine if your care label has a tub symbol.
  • The number on the tub symbol indicates the maximum temperature that can be applied.
  • The more bars underneath the tub indicates a reduction of spinning and rinsing:
  • No bar: The item can be spun and rinsed as normal.
    • 1 bar: Spin speed should be reduced.
    • 2 bars: Mild wash but can be spun and rinsed as normal.
  • If there is a cross over the tub symbol you should not wash the item.

 

IRONING

  • Your item can be ironed at any temperature if the care label iron symbol has no dots.
  • The more dots on the iron symbol suggests the temperature of heat that can be applied:
    • 1 dot: delicates i.e, silk and wool.
    • 2 dots: synthetics.
    • 3 dots: linen and cotton.
  • If there is a cross over the iron symbol you should not iron the item..

DRYING

  • If the care label has a circle inside a square, your item can be tumble dried.
  • The more dots on the iron symbol suggests the temperature of heat that can be applied:
    • 1 dot = low temperature
    • 2 dots = medium temperature
    • 3 dots = high temperature
  • If there is a cross over the tumble dry symbol, you should not tumble dry the item.

DRY CLEANING

  • If the care label has a small circle the manufacture is stating you must dry clean this item.
  • If there is a little letter inside the circle it’s indicating to the dry cleaner what chemical to use.
  • The more bars underneath the circle indicate the level of precaution the dry cleaner must take.
  • If there is a cross over the circle symbol you should not dry clean the item.

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