How to take care of your expensive party wear
We called in the big guns to tell you what you’re doing wrong
By Hasina Khatib February 17th, 2017
Hitting the town on the weekend may do wonders for your Instagram follower count, but dealing with the fallout the next morning? Not so much. And while you may still make it in time for that early morning meeting by some mercy of the traffic gods, your fancy party wear will need more than paracetamol to get rid of the hangover.
A little heartbroken from watching our expensive splurges fray after the first wear, we called on designer Amit Aggarwal who got to the bottom of the mystery. In nine cases out of 10, you manage to evade all the wine spills with ninja-like dexterity, but improper storage rings the death knell for your fragile party gear. (Yes, we made that statistic up) Maximize the life span of your evening wear by making these delicate fabrics work as hard as you do.
Lamé
The metallic threads in the fabric will crumple if brought into suicidal contact with the heat of a clothes dryer, or even while ironing. Only subject it to a clothes steamer to remove wrinkles.
Photograph: Bajirao Pawar
Leather
There are plenty of leather conditioners and shampoos available in the market, so put down that over-the-counter detergent, will you? Amit personally believes that materials like leather need their rawness intact, so you can leave it alone and only treat it for stain removal purposes.
Photograph: Mark Pillai
Metallics
Metallics look fantastic, but they fray all other textiles so be careful not to pack a metallic dress with anything else; a hanger case makes for the safest form of storing. That dry-cleaning-only tag wasn’t added for its aesthetic value, so keep your metallic-wear far away from the machine.
Photograph: Bajirao Pawar
Mesh
Its delicate web-like fabric can lose its shape faster than Aamir Khan on steroids if machine washed. Retain the structure by only washing your mesh outfits by hand in cold water. Yes, it’s time to make amends with your bai again.
Photograph: Tarun Vishwa
Silk
Since the fabric is sensitive in nature, you’ll need to treat your silks to some TLC by washing them by hand in cold water. The delicate yarn can sometimes get frayed by water, so shell out for a dry clean every once in a while.
Photograph: Bajirao Pawar