Collar Preservation

[BondArb]

...I work in a business casual enviornment (no tie) and find that after a couple of months of wear like this, my shirt collars become completely unusable with ties. They end up kind of bending near the button in a way that makes wearing a tie difficult. I find that this problem is exacerbated when I send shirts to be laundered. How do you guys manage to keep your shirt collars in good shape in between wearings and when wearing without a tie? Do i need to find a better place to get my shirts laundered?

 

[imageWIS]

...I work in a business casual enviornment (no tie) and find that after a couple of months of wear like this, my shirt collars become completely unusable with ties. They end up kind of bending near the button in a way that makes wearing a tie difficult. I find that this problem is exacerbated when I send shirts to be laundered. How do you guys manage to keep your shirt collars in good shape in between wearings and when wearing without a tie? Do i need to find a better place to get my shirts laundered?

Solution? Wash them at home. Who manufactures the shirts, anyhow?

Jon.

 

[BondArb]

The shirts are Ascot Chang...any specific instructions on properly washing them myself? Just toss them in the washing machine? What cycle? I am not huge on washing my clothes myslelf but I want to save my collars.

 

[retronotmetro]

Custom or RTW Ascot Changs? And with the rigid interlining or the softer one?

I'm not sure I can picture what you mean by bending near the button. Is the problem in the collar band, or the points of the collar itself?

 

[dah328]

I'm not sure what you mean by "bending near the button in a way that makes wearing a tie difficult." Â It's certainly true that washing your own shirts will spare them considerable abuse at the hands of the infamous drycleaners. Should you decide to launder your own shirts, the following links describes the process: Kabbaz on shirt laundering dan

 

[Patrick Bateman]

BondArb, When you send your shirts to the cleaners, are they hand-ironed or machine-pressed? That makes a huge difference.

Great avatar, btw.

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

What you mean by bending where the button is, is that they have been ironed flat on a cleaner's buck. Quite simply, this will not work. The collar needs to be folded over where the collar band joins the collar leaf and either pinched firmly by hand or ironed in this position. The natural fold at this spot is being destroyed by the pressure and steam of the buck.

It does not take long for flat pressing on a buck to ruin a collar beyond repair.

 

[BondArb]

I think my description of the problem was not very good...let me give it a second shot. The problem is on the band of the collar, not the collar itself, what happens is that the button hole is becoming bent in such a way that it will not lie flat when buttoned. The problem is unnoticeable exdept to a keen eye when the shirt is worn with the top button open, however when attempting to put on a tie the bent buttonhole, even when buttoned, makes pulling the tie up to its proper position difficult and with time impossible. The shirts are custom Ascot changs and they are machine pressed...which I suspect is the problem, clumsy ironing. Has anybody ever seen this before?

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

Bond Arb
You described the problem well. My answer, above, is the correct answer, though it may not be clear as to why. The problem is being caused by the way the shirts are being pressed and will only get worse. Please read my ironing instructions which someone linked to above and they may be clearer than my explanation.

 

[boston]

Another collar preservation question -- does wearing a shirt twice on two non-consecutive days (e.g. Monday and Weds) before washing it add extra wear to the collar?

thanks,

-boston

 

[Phil]

Ive never tried wearing a dress shirt twice without washing it. In the summer, for obvious reasons - too sweaty. I guess on a day in the winter you could do it, but why would you want to? Unless you only have like 2 shirts, just get it washed between wearings.

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

Another collar preservation question -- does wearing a shirt twice on two non-consecutive days (e.g. Monday and Weds) before washing it add extra wear to the collar?

No. But it may add extra wear on your co-workers' noses.

On a serious note, you would want to soak it for a while before washing it to make sure the ring around the rosy is gone.

 

[BondArb]

Thanks for your help, Alex...the link is very imformative, howver i do not know that i have the time to spend washing and ironing all my shirts properly...although i wish i could. Does anybody know a good place in NYC that hand irons shirts? I am pretty sure all the mom and pop places in my neighborhood use machine pressing. Thanks.

 

[Panzeraxe]

Another collar preservation question -- does wearing a shirt twice on two non-consecutive days (e.g. Monday and Weds) before washing it add extra wear to the collar?

thanks,

-boston

Not really, but it is a little disgusting. Even in the winter sweat and grime does go on your shirt if you wear it all day at the office.

Panzer

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

Does anybody know a good place in NYC that hand irons shirts?

Caress Cleaners - see Sondra and tell her I sent you. Behind BBQ on 73rd just east of 3rd Ave.