Washing silk shirt Qs

[Get Smart]

I have a shirt that is silk, it's a high end shirt so the silk isnt overly shiny or cheesy feeling....the label says "dry clean" but I hate sending 1 shirt to the cleaner after I wear it since I never have anything else that needs dry cleaning. Anyone have insight into whether or not a silk shirt can be hand washed and hung dry rather than dry cleaned without ill effect?

 

[LabelKing]

I wash all my silk shirts by hand using a gentle laundry soap or detergent and then hang to dry on a shaped hanger.

There is no point in sending a silk shirt to a dry cleaners as they'll probably ruin it or fade the color.

 

[Get Smart]

great, I thought it would be handwashable....thanks for confirming!

 

[Film Noir Buff]

I have custom made dinner shirts in silk and a few versace shirts.

You can hand wash them in very gentle soap (I prefer baby shampoo but theres other stuff on the market). I would keep and eye on how long they soak, dark colors, even ones where the maker has already sponged the goods, will release their colors, especially in areas where your perspiration has taken hold. I wouldnt leave one in a large bowl in the tub filled with water for more than an hour or so.

With my versace shirts, I generally wear a black tee underneath so I can get several wearing out of one before I have to soak it.

 

[lurker]

Get Smart - With all those other clothes which you have been showing us, you have never dried clean any of them before? Do you only hand wash them? Did it hurt your clothes, e.g. color-fading, texture, etc?

 

[Get Smart]

Originally Posted by lurker

Get Smart - With all those other clothes which you have been showing us, you have never dried clean any of them before? Do you only hand wash them? Did it hurt your clothes, e.g. color-fading, texture, etc?

I hand wash all of my 'nice' shirts then hang dry and don't own many items that are tagged "dry clean". I have shirts that are going on 10 years and still look like I bought them last week. Besides I've developed an irrational fear of the cleaners culminating from everyone else's horror stories of their experiences

 

[Tomasso]

Originally Posted by Get Smart

Besides I've developed an irrational fear of the cleaners

I don't think that it's an irrational fear. More like a healthy respect for the damage that cleaners can wreck upon a wardrobe.