Care
Most of the clothes are designed with ease when it comes to care and don't require anything extraordinary to handle. Here is the collection spot for everything I felt needed mentioning that is not dealt with elsewhere, or required a more expansive treatment than a mere note on each item page. Generally, a cold or lukewarm machine wash with a nice laundry detergent/powder you like to use and a line dry is good.
Opinion
To be honest, no wash is great (to an extent lol). When I think clothes need a refresh, I usually start with a spot-clean, or hang it in the sun, by a window for full air circulation, sometimes hand wash depending or finally - I'll throw it in the machine. Rarely do I visit the dry-cleaners. Ironing is all good, correct the setting depending on the material. I only ask you be conscious of laundering, particularly for the following items.
_____________________________________________________Sling bag and shoulder-padded sling bag
After hand-dyeing, construction and waxing one by one, I leave them to cure for at least 48 hours to allow the beeswax to fully settle and adhere to the fibres of the bag.
Due to the construction process, washing the sling bags how you typically would with a regular load isn't recommended.
Mia wears the sling bag in Sand (left), and the shoulder-padded sling bag as an apron skirt (right).
Beeswaxed cotton is a great material intended to age and develop its own unique wear while being water-resistant. If you ever need to clean or refresh your sling bag, it's best to follow the guidelines below.
Note
To prevent unwanted beeswax residue either on your iron or ironing surface, iron your bag sandwiched between two cloths or old towels to protect from excess beeswax melting.
- Brush away dirt or marks with a dry brush.
- Wipe away marks or stains with a damp cloth (the less water the better).
- Marks caused by water can generally be ironed out.
- Avoid extreme temperatures like hot cars, as the wax on the cotton can potentially melt.
- Beeswax softens over time from wear. Run an iron on its lowest synthetic setting or a hair dryer on its highest setting over the bag to crisp up again.
Balaclava, poncho and jellyfish
I like to hand wash most of my woollens and wouldn't do anything different with our balaclavas. However, spot-clean is always preferred. A light spritzing with an anti-septic spray to refresh, like this tea tree one is easy. If you must go a step further I recommend below.
Gentle hand wash in lukewarm to cool water with a mild detergent is good. When I have it, I love using ecostore's delicates detergent. Rinse well to avoid drying with any residue. Very important.
Sheahan wears the balaclava in Granite (left) and the jellyfish (right).
Drying flat is important to prevent warping or stretching of the knit. Definitely avoid the dryer and hot water.
Should you need to speed up the drying time, you can gently wrap and secure in a towel and put in the washing machine, spin on a low cycle. Then, complete drying with the balaclava laid flat on a towel. Otherwise, it's ideal to dry, laid flat on a towel placed over a drying rack.
Note on pilling
It's a natural occurrence in wool garments and may occur for you. Excess or loose fibres within the ply, shed from wear and friction, resulting in pilling. I don't mind it. Masking tape is fine for removing but if you're careful and confident in doing so - gently shaving off pills with short strokes, a sharp razor is swift and works good too. Say you have a large area of stubborn pills, masking tape could be a tedious method.
_____________________________________________________The dino top in Umber is comprised of 80% merino wool and 20% nylon. Merino is very resilient and is machine washable on a delicates/wool setting.
It's often suggested that woollen garments are best to dry flat to retain its shape. It's not a major step here.
Merino has great natural elasticity and is pretty stable fibre. Even when wet, it will still keep its original shape (and size) and it'll dry pretty fast due to it's unique moisture-wicking properties. Drip dry in the shade or tumblr dry on a cool setting. Umber is good at resisting wrinkles but if you need, iron on a low/wool setting.
Wash Smoke as you would for any cotton t-shirt. Wash colours separately. Low water temperature and air dry is good.
_____________________________________________________Veil pants and shorts
Treat these how you would when washing delicates or wool.
Mia in the veil shorts (left) and TJ in the veil pants (right).
Gentle hand wash with a mild detergent is recommended. Washing machines may be too abrasive to the lace work. If you prefer to machine wash, turn garment inside out, place in a delicates bag and set to a low spin cycle. Line dry. Avoid the dryer.
Tip for stain removal
No matter what, I cannot not get my whites stained. Maybe you're like me. On certain items of clothing is ok but whether its red wine, blood, hot coffee missing my mouth or often, an unidentifiable spot of something. I have religiously, proactively, always used this little yellow block called Exit.
I learned to be diligent with it, the quicker you treat a stain﹣you've got good probability. It's from Australia.
I discovered it when I was 17, I raced to the nearest pharmacist and plead the poor girl behind the counter to find me something, anything that would remove a red wine stain that I, had of course, left an uncanny splotch of red over the front of my mum's silk cream blouse that she wore around my age at the time.
Feeling dead hollow by the thought of ruining this vintage blouse...the stain came out. I was truly startled? Something about it felt so epically day-time-tv-commercial-turned-cinema, almost like a turning point of independency like when you first get your driver's licence﹣I could get rid of a stain!
My mum still doesn't know to this day.
Anyway, the instructions are on the back but just quickly; it's 100% biodegradable, looks good on the shelf, a great, ergonomic, chic size for treating a stain and has worked every time for me. Especially for my white clothes and especially my mum's blouse lol. I keep this yellow brick everywhere in my life; in my glovebox, bathroom, in my pocket sometimes..
I'm still clumsy. I hope this is helpful.
_____________________________________________________Although the skirt was designed with ease of care and wearability, please be wary of the leather drawstring when laundering.
Leather is one of the most durable, natural materials used for heavy-duty/high traffic objects. Proper care and maintenance prolongs the longevity of leather even more...
Tip
This garment is dry-clean or hand-wash only. Or the extra step here is that the leather drawstring is to be removed prior to washing to help with longevity. Washing leather feels very dicey to me so I'm making a small note here should there be someone else who is concerned.
Detergents and water dry out and cause the leather to become brittle, warp, and snap - especially in its untreated state which is what we use here. Though its bothersome, it's important to remove the drawstring every time you machine wash. Avoid wetting the drawstring when hand-washing.
Cold wash skirt on a low spin cycle. Line dry. Avoid the dryer.
If you're keen to do so, I highly rate 100% beeswax for nourishing and maintaining the leather. Once in a while; run a bar of beeswax over the drawstring, gently rub and thoroughly remove excess with a dry cloth so it doesn't bleed onto the skirt or any other unwanted place.
Certification
The kangaroo leather lacing, that is utilised here as a drawstring, has been sourced through a local certified LWG supplier that is connected with manufacturer, Packer Leather based in Queensland, Australia. Through audits, they are a gold member of the not-for-profit organisation, Leather Working Group (LWG) who actively work to build a sustainable future with responsible leather, across the global supply chain of leather in a holistic way.