Dress pants are a surefire way to add a touch of class to your outfit. Whether you’re going on a date, to work, or even just stretching your legs out of doors, dress pants can make you feel more uplifted. Some people feel nervous about washing dress pants, especially if they come with that dreaded “dry clean only” label inside. Wondering if you can wash dress pants? Or how to wash dress pants? We’ve got you covered.
There is a good reason why people ask themselves “can you wash dress pants?” more often than something a little more obvious like “can you wash underwear?”—although whether you can wash sneakers is something people are often surprised by! The reason for this is that dress pants are often made of fabrics such as wool or cashmere, meaning that their care is a little more complex than most clothing.
However, while a lot of dress pants will need dry cleaning, some will tolerate a home wash, too. And once you know the routine, you’ll be washing dress pants like a pro!
The easiest way to wash dress pants is similar to most laundry routines—it starts with a washing machine that you can set the temperature for.
- Check the label of your pants again—do they need dry cleaning? If so, it might be a bit risky to try and wash them at home. For dress pants that you’re good to wash at home, check the temperature allowed for washing.
- For fabrics like washable wool and linen, you’ll want to use a gentle detergent that is recommended for those types of fabrics.
- Set up your machine to wash in cold water. If you can, make sure the spin cycle is low and you can use a laundry bag to protect your dress pants while washing them.
- Start your wash cycle and make a cup of joe, get back to work or take a long walk while you wait for the washing machine to do its magic.
- Once the cycle is over, take out your dress pants. If there were any stains on them, make sure they’re gone. If not, you might want to check out how to remove that kind of stain—red wine stains are different than chocolate, for example.
- Line dry your dress pants. This makes sure that the fabrics don’t get ruined in the dryer and helps prevent wrinkles from forming.
- That’s it! Your dress pants are ready to be worn.
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Still feeling a bit hesitant about washing your dress pants? Here are some extra tips to make sure you feel confident to wash and wear those dress pants!
- Spot testing: If you’ve spotted a stain on your favorite pair of dress pants, don’t feel too disheartened. There are special stain remover products—all you have to do is spot test them in an inconspicuous place first to make sure that the product works with the fabric of your dress pants.
- Iron after drying: Dress pants can be washed, but you might feel that something went wrong after you see them dry. It is probably because they’re not ironed yet. If you iron your dress pants right after they’re dry, you’ll see what a world of difference it makes!
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