Something entirely new to us at Dry Cleaner’s Secret — sleeping bag liners. These nifty little add-ons are great for keeping the inside of your bag safe from body oils and dirt, as well as keep out bugs and add warmth. Plus, you can use them in place of sleeping bags for those warmer summer nights.

Visit DesignSalt.com and check out their long line of Cocoon sleeping bag and mummy bag liners. They range from nylon to 100% silk, and can cost between to $9 to $75 — it just depends on how willing you are to go through the long process of washing your sleeping bag correctly!

Here’s another great video from Expert Village. This time, they share a lesson about keeping your colors bright when you’re doing laundry. Enjoy, and don’t forget to take notes.

Because it’s so hard to do, we usually never iron our fitted sheets. But Expert Village’s Joyce Danielson teaches you how with this great instructional video:

When you iron your clothing on a setting that’s too high for the fabric it often causes scorch marks. Most of the time, these are permanent, but light scorching on cotton can sometimes be removed with these simple steps (thank you, Wikihow.com):

Tools

• Lemon
• Sunlight
• Cotton item, lightly scorched

Steps

1. Check that the item is 100 percent cotton.
2. Soak the item in freshly squeezed lemon juice.
3. Rinse the item in warm water.
4. Hang outside to dry in direct sunlight.

Things to keep in mind

• Always check the clothing fabric and change the setting on the iron to match the fabric. It is easier if you sort the fabric into relevant piles and iron a bunch at the same setting so that you do not have to keep changing the settings.
• In this solution, the sun acts like a bleach.

After reading about Levi’s Eco line yesterday, we were inspired to seek out other eco-friendly clothing companies. We found a truly unique one in AuH2O, in New York’s Greenwich Village. AuH2O is an environmentally and socially conscious clothing store that sells clothing made from recycled materials, such as old t-shirts, slips, ties, vintage dresses, costumes, curtains and other unwanted fabric. Kate Goldwater, the boutique’s owner, sews every garment herself on-site. She offers alterations, since each item is one-of-a-kind and won’t fit everybody. Prices at AuH2O are reasonable too (something uncharacteristic of the Village), ranging from $15-28 for a shirt, and $35-$80 for a dress.

Real Simple magazine has compiled a comprehensive guide to stain removal. It includes everything from ballpoint ink to wax, and offers information on caring for washables as well as non washables. So nab your copy here and hang it up in your laundry room for easy reference.

Can Dry Cleaner’s Secret be used to freshen up a suede coat?

Do not use Dry Cleaner’s Secret on leather, suede, velvet, fur or faux-fur. Since Dry Cleaner’s Secret is an oil-based formula, it could potentially leave oily stains on these materials. Also, it is not a good idea to put leather or suede in a dryer. I have heard the only way to clean suede is with a “suede brush.”

Sincerely,
Jody
Dry Cleaner’s Secret
Consumer Affairs

Not sure which brand of starch to use for your jeans? Well, Donna Shapiro from ExpertVillage.com has quite a bit to say about the topic. Check out her video:

When you are trying to remove a stain from delicate fabric, you want to try to keep the stain as small as possible. Spreading it only makes the situation worse and your job a lot harder. Here’s a remedy from Iowa State University (what’s with all of these college’s offering stain removal tips?):

First, gather some paper towels or clean rags, as well as a spot remover or pretreatment spray. Next, follow these steps:

1. Pad the working surface with clean rags or towels that can be stained as you work.
2. Turn the stained area or spot on the garment face down over the padded surface.
3. Dampen a small white cloth with solvent.
4. Use the damp cloth to rub the stain from the wrong side. “Feather” the edges of the stain working from the outside edges toward the center to confine the stain to a small area.
5. As the stain transfers into the absorbent material underneath, move it to a different place so it has a clean spot to exit into.
6. Repeat the procedure until all traces of the stain are gone.
7. Launder to remove any ring that might be left by the solvent.

The number one error people make when they launder their puffy winter coats is when they dry them. Make sure that any time you use your dryer to dry your stuffed jacket (or down comforter, for that matter) you toss in a few tennis balls. The tennis balls will fluff the item and keep any of the filling from settling. Also, it helps dry the item evenly. So always remember: