Delicate lingerie is not difficult to look after, but it is easy to damage quickly. Most of the wear that shortens a garment's life happens in the wash and in storage rather than in wearing it.
What follows is general guidance only. Fabrics, trims and constructions vary a great deal, and the care label supplied with your garment always takes precedence over anything here. If the label and this article disagree, follow the label.
Before you wash anything
Read the label first
This is the whole of the advice. A lace piece with an elastane content behaves differently from a satin one, and an embellished garment may have requirements neither of them share. The label is specific to what you own; a general guide cannot be.
Separate by weight and colour
Delicates do not do well alongside heavier items. Zips, hooks and denim seams are the usual culprits for snagged lace. Keeping fine pieces away from them removes most of the risk before it starts.
Hand washing, where the label allows it
Hand washing is the gentlest option for many delicate pieces, and it is usually straightforward.
- Fill a clean basin with cool or lukewarm water. Very hot water is rarely a good idea for elastic fibres.
- Add a small amount of a gentle detergent and disperse it before the garment goes in.
- Submerge the piece and press it gently. Do not wring, twist or scrub.
- Let it sit briefly rather than agitating it repeatedly.
- Rinse in clean water until no detergent remains.
The instinct to wring water out is the one to resist. Twisting distorts cups, stretches straps and breaks down elastic faster than almost anything else.
Machine washing, where the label allows it
Some pieces are machine washable and the label will say so. If it does:
- Use a mesh laundry bag so straps cannot wrap around other items
- Fasten any hooks first, so they cannot catch on lace
- Choose a delicate or hand-wash cycle with a low spin
- Keep the load small and light
If the label does not indicate machine washing, do not assume it is safe because a similar-looking piece was.
Detergents
A mild detergent is generally kinder to fine fabrics than a standard one. Products formulated for delicates or wool are a common choice.
Bleach and products containing optical brighteners are best avoided on lace and coloured pieces unless the label specifically permits them. Fabric softener is also worth approaching cautiously, as it can coat elastic fibres over time.
Drying
This is where most avoidable damage happens.
Do not tumble dry unless the label says you can
Heat is the main enemy of elastic. A tumble dryer applies heat and mechanical agitation at the same time, which is a difficult combination for fine lingerie.
Press, do not wring
To remove excess water, lay the piece flat on a clean towel, roll the towel loosely and press. The towel absorbs the water without stretching the garment.
Dry flat and out of direct sun
Hanging a wet garment lets its own weight pull it out of shape, particularly anything with straps or structured cups. Drying flat avoids that. Direct sunlight can fade colour over time, so a shaded spot is generally better.
Storage
How pieces sit between wears matters more than most people expect.
Structured pieces
Moulded cups hold their shape best when they are not folded into each other. Storing them side by side in a drawer, rather than one inverted inside the other, helps them keep their form.
This applies particularly to more structured items such as those in the Corsets & Bustiers collection, where the shape is the point of the garment.
Soft pieces
Chemises, babydolls and slips are more forgiving and fold easily. Pieces from the Babydolls & Chemises and Nightgowns & Slips edits generally store flat without issue.
Keep lace away from hooks
Fastening hooks before storing, and keeping heavily hooked items separated from fine lace, prevents the most common form of drawer damage.
Protecting lace and embellishment
Lace is a structure of threads with gaps, which is exactly why it snags. A few habits help:
- Remove rings and bracelets before handling fine lace
- Use a mesh bag whenever a piece goes into a machine
- Store embellished items so beading or appliqué is not pressed against other garments
- Handle wet lace gently, as fabrics are at their most vulnerable when saturated
Rotation
Elastic recovers between wears. Wearing the same piece day after day gives it no chance to do that, and it will lose its shape sooner than it needs to.
Rotating through several pieces is one of the simplest ways to extend the life of all of them, which is a reasonable argument for a slightly larger drawer of things you like.
When something needs attention
A loose thread is best trimmed rather than pulled. Pulling gathers the surrounding fabric and turns a small fault into a visible one. A failing hook or a slipping strap adjuster is often repairable, and dealing with it early is usually easier than dealing with it later.
The short version
Wash gently and cool, avoid heat, never wring, dry flat, and store so nothing is being crushed or snagged. Then check the label, because your garment is the authority on its own care.
