How to Care for Fine Lingerie

Fine lingerie is best suited for hand washing, especially if it is made of silk. Other fabrics can take the gentle cycle of a washing machine, but you should forgo the machine if you are caring for silk.

When you wash fine lingerie, you should use very gentle soap, like Wool-lite or very, very gentle powders. Baby laundry detergent is also good for washing your fine washables including lingerie. If you have recently used scouring powder or liquid scouring powder in your sink, use extreme care in rinsing the sink before you place your lingerie into it. As a matter of fact, if you want to help preserve the life of your fine lingerie, you should invest in a plastic pail or holder that you can use exclusively for washing fine lingerie and other fine washables.

Use tepid to cool water to wash your fine lingerie. After your lingerie has soaked, gentle swirl the garments around in the solution. Once you have swirled them and gently worked any stains or spots, you will then rinse your lingerie in cool or cold water. Empty the container or sink and then refill with cold water and swirl the garment gently in the water to rinse all traces of the soap out.

When finished, DO NOT WRING your fine lingerie. This will damage the fibers, especially if your lingerie is made of silk. Wringing your garments dry will also cause them to wrinkle. If your lingerie is made of cotton, you will have to iron them anyway, but no need to create more work for yourself. Allow your lingerie to drip dry away from direct sunlight, which can damage colors over time.

After your fine lingerie has dried, fold it with plain white tissue paper between the folds, which will keep the garment from creasing. You can also hang your fine lingerie on padded hangers. Then your fine lingerie is ready to wear again.