Even after a long day filled with laundry load after laundry load after laundry load, there is still a small pile that sits at the bottom of my hamper. It sits there waiting to be washed because everything in that pile has dreaded special care instructions: hand wash only.
While it’s true that you can get away with washing some of these items with your washer on the delicate cycle in a delicates bag, some you know wouldn’t make it out alive. And so they sit, waiting indefinitely. Well, at least that’s how my laundry used to go.
While Dillards was having a fantastic sale on intimates recently, I came across this stuff: Forever New Fabric Wash.
It’s specially formulated for handwashing (and machine washing too) delicates and prolonging the life of your garments!
Here’s what they say about it on their website:
“Forever New® Fabric Care Wash is a pure, organic and biodegradable fabric wash formulated to gently clean, brighten and promote longer life in all fine washables. It safely cleans lingerie, hosiery, swimwear, silks, woolens and other colorfast delicates.
A natural base of multiple sodas and citrus cleans and rinses completely from the fabric leaving no soap residues to damage thread fibers. Forever New preserves fiber-flex and elasticity, allowing all fine garments to look new longer”
I normally used Woolite for delicates but since I was out, I figured I’d give it a try. At only $3, yes three dollars, for this little 4oz bottle I figured I couldn’t lose. I was sold when I smelled it. It’s fresh and a bit powdery but light and far from over-powering, unlike similar products I’ve tried. Plus, I love that it’s a green product and the packaging is recyclable too!
First I tried a top that has an attached faux fur belt. It’s super cute but out of fear of ruining the belt, I hardly ever wore it. Not only was it easy to wash in this detergent, the faux fur belt came out looking better than before!
Next I washed several pairs of pantyhose. I’m always nervous to wash them in a new detergent because I’ve tried a couple that wore them out much faster than I’d hoped and much faster than promised. Frustrating and wasteful. It’s not easy for someone as fair-skinned as I am to find pantyhose that don’t make it look like their legs belong to another person, so I really try to make them last. Luckily, this stuff worked great! Each pair that I washed felt and looked like new again. What pinup wouldn’t want to make their pantyhose last longer? No one I know!
After that first day of test washing, I was hooked. I now use this detergent to also wash my girdles and other shapewear, my slips, my vintage bed jackets, delicate tops, wool and certain delicate sweaters.
I got the concentrated powder but this is also available in a liquid detergent and pre-measured travel packs (how convieniant is that?!). The company also sells stain remover, another formula that maintains elasticity and some of the nicest garment washing bags I’ve ever found. I can’t believe I didn’t know about this stuff before!
I got mine in the intimates department at Dillard’s but you can also find at other stores. Their website (www.forevernew.com) has a store locater so you can find it closeby!
Melissa Misfortune 