Lingerie Care

Everything you need to know about caring for your lingerie. 

You have taken the time to find those perfect lingerie pieces and you have invested your hard-earned money. But, do you know how to best take care of it?  

One of the most important things to remember when investing in lingerie is that you need to care for it properly. If you treat your delicate items the same way you treat an old worn out t-shirt...Well, that's exactly what you'll get! 

To keep your lingerie from looking like a worn out rag, Delightfully Vixen recommends the following guidelines...  And, while taking the extra steps may take a little more time, you will definitely extend the life of your lingerie. 

First, check your labels!

Make sure you check the designer's recommended instructions on the inside label. Designers and manufacturers know their product the best. So, their advice should be taken first and should be followed. If it says dry clean only, there’s a reason for it.

If there is no label or instructions, then follow these next steps.

As a general rule of thumb, most lingerie (especially if it’s made of lace) should be hand washed in cold water with a chemical-free detergent made for hand washing, such as Eucalan. Always fasten any snaps, hooks or buttons to avoid any snagging or tearing of the material. 

From here, run cold water in your sink and add approximately a half ounce or so of lingerie wash to the water. Place your delicate pieces in the water and let them soak for 10-30 minutes. I always swish mine around a little bit to encourage the dirt and oils to come out of the material.

On a side note, it's always a good idea to separate your lingerie according to color and materials as well. You don't want to wash your edgy lingerie with zippers with your delicate pink or red lace! Colors can bleed, and snags can happen when the materials are just not meant to be in such close friction to each other. 

Once you are ready to pull your lingerie out, pay close attention to the crotch areas and make sure the area isn't soiled and needs special attention. Then, gently squeeze the water out of the lingerie, making sure not to "ring" it out. Twisting and tugging on it at this point will do nothing but stretch it out. Then lay it out to dry on a dry towel or clothing rack. Make sure you do not hang it by the straps. it will cause unnecessary stretching. 

Now, if you have a lot of lingerie, hand washing can feel like a daunting task. So, you can always wash your lingerie by placing it a lingerie bag and use your washing machine’s delicate cycle on cold as well. Again, always lay it out to dry.

For the items with nylon...

Nylon is used in most hosiery. It's supposedly one of the materials that can be washed using the delicate cycle of your washing machine. It can also be dried in the drier; however, I think the heat does break down the life-span of the material, and I've noticed they tend to get snagged a little more often on other items in the wash. So, I wouldn't suggest it.