BELANCĒ GARMENT CARE GUIDE
We take great pride in the quality and luxurious nature of our made to measure garments. We work with exclusive fabrics made from robust natural fibres, and employ master tailors who precisely cut and sew your garments with great care. These factors make for a comfortable and long lasting pieces, it is however up to you as the wearer to maintain the product correctly after it leaves our boutique.
HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR CUSTOM GARMENT
Simple day to day measures that can be easily incorporated into your weekly routine can add years and even decades to the life of your garments. These processes if done correctly will ensure the shape, colour, finish and general feel of the piece is maintained effectively and the value of the garment is increased through its usability year after year. We rely on our customers to care for their garments, in the same way you rely on us to take time and care in its construction, to ensure the garment reaches its full potential.
Read how you can care for your custom garments correctly below.
DRY CLEANING
Our tailored garments are generally not made to be machine washed due to the mixtures of fibres and structural components within them. As a result we suggest dry-cleaning our pieces instead. However, excessively dry-cleaning our products can cause irreparable damage to the delicate natural fibres used to make them and as a result it should be done as infrequently as possible.
A basic rule to follow is dry clean your suits as many times a year as you wear them each week. For example if you generally wear a suit 3 days a week, do not dry clean it more than 3 times in a year. Our suits should not be dry cleaned more than 3 times a year. Instead, you can follow the guidelines listed below to ensure your suit stays fresh and clean without dry cleaning:
- Always hang your suit after wearing, ideally in a well ventilated area as opposed to a cupboard or wardrobe. Doing this simple action instead of putting the garment over a chair or on the floor allows the piece to drape out its wrinkles naturally and air out any odours that have been created throughout the day.
- Lightly brush your garments after wearing. Use a soft-bristle brush and focus on the shoulders and lapels of your jackets and the thigh area of trousers. By focusing on removing dust and other particles from these areas, you ensure they don’t settle deeper into the fibres and create longer lasting odours.
- Refrain from wearing your suit two days in a row. Alternate your suits when possible to ensure the fibres have a chance to recover from the strain of all-day wear.
- Consider purchasing an additional pair of pants to aid with the above step as trousers wear out much quicker than jackets due to tension created within the crotch area while walking and sitting.
- Trouser creases can be re-pressed in at home. Simply select a low heat setting on your iron and use a cloth between the iron and the trousers. A well pressed crease can effectively elongate the wearers figure and generally appears much more tailored, so this 5 minute activity is worth doing. Do ensure however that you brush the garments effectively prior to ironing to avoid pressing in dust particles.
- Jackets can be freshened up with a household garment steamer or by hanging the garment in your bathroom while running a hot shower.
MACHINE WASHING OUR SHIRTS
Our made to measure shirts can be machine washed. It is important however to avoid any unnecessary heat while doing so. For this reason we recommend washing your items on a cold temperature setting on your machine. This ensures minimal shrinkage as the shirt’s fibres are not manipulated by the changes in temperature. We also highly recommend to avoid putting your shirts in a tumble dryer for the same reason, hang-drying your tailored shirts is the best option when possible.
We advise washing like colours together, for example keep your light blue, white and pink shirts separate when washing to avoid discolouration. If a shirt is made of a dark fabric, e.g. Navy or black, we suggest using a dark wash detergent as this will help to maintain the colour of your garment for longer. It is also important to maintain the condition of your washing machine effectively to ensure no lint or rust is built up within its mechanisms, potentially causing stains or damage.
ironing OUR SHIRTS
We recommend ironing our shirts using steam and water. By lightly wetting the garment using a spray and selecting the steam setting on your iron, you ensure maximum crease removal and decrease the likelihood of burning or damaging the garment.
Below is a step by step method outlining the order of which areas of your shirt should be ironed:
- Sleeves (including cuffs)
- Yoke (shoulder piece)
- Collar
- Back panels
- Front Panels
Tip:Let your shirt breathe for 5-10 minutes after ironing before putting it on. This ensures you don’t create lasting creases at the shoulders and elbows while the garment is still damp.
