How do I clean vintage clothing? Can I use WOOLITE® Dry Cleaner’s Secret® on my vintage clothing?  These are questions we are often asked by our consumers. 

First, you must determine whether the fabric is strong enough to be washed or put through the dryer.  Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook suggests taking your vintage clothing to the dry cleaner if the fabric smells of must or mildew, or if it feels dry and brittle.  The reason behind this is it may not stand up to the submersion of water.

However, if it’s determined the fabric is strong enough to be washed please follow these steps:

1.  Place the garment on a piece of nylon net to support the delicate fibers, then soak it in cool water.
2.  Choose a mild detergent such as Orvus Paste, which is available at many sewing and art supply stores.  It has
      cleaning and whitening properties but is gentle on fabric. 
3.  With delicate fabrics, do not try to remove small stains, but if the fabric is sturdy, you can try a detergent that
      contains a color-safe bleach.  This will help to lighten yellow age marks on fabric and brighten whites that haven’t
      been laundered form many years.
4.  Rinse well to remove all traces of detergent.
5.  Always air-dry vintage clothing.

If it is determined the clothing can be put in the dryer, Woolite Dry Cleaner’s Secret can gently clean and freshen vintage garments with no shrinking or additional fading.  Keep in mind any item with glued-on or fragile embellishments or items which have “yellowed” over time, will require the special care listed above or professional dry cleaning.