What is the proper way to wash/dry/iron my Polo Shirts?

[Saturdays]

Some of my Ralph Lauren Polo shirts collars seem to align incorrectly, the left side of the collar will fold shorter than the right side. When calling Polo RL about it the lady told me she takes hers to the dry cleaners, but I have a lot of Polos and i am not gonna exclusively take them to the dry cleaners.
I've tried popping the color when washing/drying, and I've tried ironing with the color popped and folded the correct way as well.
I've noticed some Polos that I started popping the collar when drying/washing have fared better, but I am still looking for the best solution.

Any ideas?

 

[Matt S]

Are you talking about polo shirts or dress shirts?

 

[rathebaindc]

he means "polo shirts" not "Polo Shirts". I have the same problem with my short sleeve polos. Sometimes the collar naturally rolls- or more like creases in a very different line than it should.

 

[Matt S]

I wash my polo shirts in cold water with the collar unfolded and then dry with the collar unfolded. I fold my polo shirts straight out of the dryer but leave the collar flat. I see no need for ironing. The collar should roll over, not fold over. I have no problems this way.

 

[boston_bred]

personally I hang mine to dry on hangars with the buttons fastened. It's served me well when it comes to maintaining the integrity and shape of the collar

 

[Saturdays]

Originally Posted by boston_bred

personally I hang mine to dry on hangars with the buttons fastened. It's served me well when it comes to maintaining the integrity and shape of the collar

I'll have to give this a try. The shape of a brand new polo's collar is so nice, but after a few washes even if it is even on both sides it sometimes looks sloppy.

Thanks.

 

[Mannix]

If polo shirts cannot be machine washed and dried, or at the very least machine washed, then I do not buy them. They're casual and get better with use-- i.e. holes/frays

 

[blahman]

I don't know about whats proper, but I just throw them in the washer and just hang them up inside-out on standard wire hanger to dry and I don't iron them as they don't really wrinkle. I don't see them even remotely delicate for me to care much about them other than fading.

Cannot say much about collar issue myself either as I wear my polos completely unbuttoned. I find the RL custom fit's placket too short to need to have any of their buttons done up.

 

[Saturdays]

Originally Posted by Mannix

If polo shirts cannot be machine washed and dried, or at the very least machine washed, then I do not buy them. They're casual and get better with use-- i.e. holes/frays

Sorry, did you mean that holes/frays over time make it better?

My oldest Custom Fit PRL Polo is from 2004. It fits like a glove still, the color has not faded, there are no holes or frays whatsoever. The collar although is not in the best shape, and a few newer ones are in the same condition.

 

[OrangeCrush]

I've always washed them with all the buttons done and the collar popped up, drying it the same way and hanging it the same way. Its how my mother did it and its always worked reasonably well; at most you have to run an iron over it once or twice extremely infrequently.

 

[MyOtherLife]

I turn mine inside out then machine wash in cold water, then hang dry while still turned inside out.
Once dry (3-6 hours) I turn them right-side-out and fold. As previously mentioned, the collar should have a nice roll and never an outright crease.

 

[Icehawk]

How the heck to you keep the points from curling up?! I wear a lot of polo shirts and some of them drive me crazy trying to flatten the points out.

 

[ter1413]

Originally Posted by Saturdays

Some of my Ralph Lauren Polo shirts collars seem to align incorrectly, the left side of the collar will fold shorter than the right side. When calling Polo RL about it the lady told me she takes hers to the dry cleaners, but I have a lot of Polos and i am not gonna exclusively take them to the dry cleaners.
I've tried popping the color when washing/drying, and I've tried ironing with the color popped and folded the correct way as well.
I've noticed some Polos that I started popping the collar when drying/washing have fared better, but I am still looking for the best solution.

Any ideas?

You really called RL for this??? WTF!

 

[Todd6060]

I wash in cold inside out with the buttons undone and the collars up. I put in the dryer for a few minutes the same way and then hang the same way while still damp. I don't flip the collar down until after i put them on to wear.

 

[MBreinin]

I wash them, then dry them. When the collars get funky, or they wear out...I replace them. I wear mine all the time, so I go through a new set every couple of years.

Mike