Helpful Hints

Style Smart: Fabric Care Tips to Help Your Clothes Stand the Test of Time

Elevate your laundry routine with LG’s expert fabric care tips and innovative technology from the LG Styler, washing machines, and dryers.

A man using the LG Styler to steam and refresh his clothes, demonstrating advanced fabric care technology for reduced wrinkle clothing.

 

Taking proper care of your clothes is essential for extending their lifespan and maintaining their quality. By incorporating proper fabric care into your laundry routine, you can ensure that your clothes stay looking fresh and last longer. Learning how to maintain clothes not only helps in prolonging their lifespan but is also beneficial for the environment and your wallet, potentially saving you time, energy, and money.

 

LG’s range of washing machines, dryers and steam closets feature intelligent wash settings and advanced fabric maintenance technology that help protect different fabrics from damage caused by incorrect washing. In this article, we will explore:

 

  • The importance of proper fabric care
  • The LG products and smart washing features that are revolutionising at home fabric maintenance
  • Care tips for fabric maintenance
  • Common clothing care mistakes to avoid
  • Decoding washing symbols and clothing care labels 

Why is fabric care so important?

Sustainability

One of the most sustainable actions we can take at home is to care for the things we already own, and a great way to do this is by extending the lifespan of your clothes' for as long as possible. Proper clothing care when washing helps to reduce the need to buy new items, which in turn helps with less water, energy, and raw materials being consumed in the production of new clothes. By following proper washing instructions and looking after our clothing, it also reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills.

Budget

Taking proper care of your clothes when washing may not only be better for the environment but can also be beneficial to your wallet. By understanding which wash cycles are best for each load, helps you save time, energy, and, most importantly, money. For example, using a gentle wash cycle such as the Delicate Cycle for delicate fabrics will prevent wear and tear, helping to maintain clothes and extend their lifespan.

 

Proper fabric and clothing care also means you’re using your washing machine more efficiently. By selecting shorter cycles, using cold water when appropriate, and avoiding over washing, can help you to potentially cut down on your energy bills. 

Understanding Fabric Care: The Basics

A mother and daughter enjoying fresh laundry from an LG washing machine emphasising gentle fabric care.

Understanding how to wash clothes properly and care for different fabric types is crucial for maintaining the longevity and appearance of your clothing. Intelligent fabric care can help prevent damage, fading, and shrinking, ensuring that your garments look good and last longer. Here’s an overview of common fabric types and their general care requirements:

 

  • Cotton: Cotton is one of the most common fabric types, known for its durability and breathability. Often used in everyday clothing, cotton can typically withstand higher temperatures in the wash. However, to prevent shrinking and maintain colours, it's best to wash cotton in cold or warm water and tumble dry on a low setting, or simply air dry.
  • Wool: Wool is a soft, high-quality fabric that can keep you warm throughout winter. However, when it comes to fabric maintenance, wool clothing can be tricky to manage. Wool can easily shrink and become misshapen if not handled correctly. To care for your wool garments, handwashing is ideal. If you need to use a washing machine, select a gentle cycle with no spin and use cold water. Always use a mild detergent specifically designed for wool. Finally, when laying wool items out to dry, ensure they are completely flat to maintain their shape.
  • Silks & delicates: Silk is very delicate and requires gentle care. It’s best to hand wash silk and other delicate fabrics (linen, lace, chiffon, etc) in cold water using a mild detergent. If washing delicates in the washing machine is necessary, use a gentile cycle such as the DelicateCycle, and place the garment in a mesh bag. Avoid wringing out silk garments and instead press out the excess water with a towel and hang it up, or lay it flat, to dry.
  • Synthetic fabrics: Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, nylon, and spandex, are highly durable and resistant to wrinkles. Generally, they can be machine washed in warm water and tumble dried on a low setting. However, it’s important to avoid high temperatures when drying or ironing synthetic fabrics, as they can be damaged by heat.

 

Please refer to a garment’s care label for specific care requirements and instructions.

LG Styler: Revolutionary Clothing Care

A woman selecting a dress from the LG Styler, highlighting how the device helps maintain the freshness and quality of garments.

The LG Styler Steam Closet is an innovative clothing care solution designed to refresh, sanitise, and gently clean your garments using advanced steam technology. This sophisticated clothing sanitation system features a sleek, wardrobe-style design that integrates seamlessly into any home environment. Ideal for both everyday clothing and delicate fabrics.

 

The LG Styler uses steam to reduce smells, dust, dirt, and allergens from your clothes that you pick up throughout the day, sanitising them without the need for harsh chemicals or detergents.

The gentle steam power of the LG Styler also works to help reduce wrinkles from your clothes, giving them that dry cleaner freshness at home.

 

Thanks to gentle steam care, the LG Styler is perfect for cleaning delicate fabrics like linen, silk, cashmere, and velvet that can’t be washed in traditional washing machines or dryers, helping to minimise damage to your garments.

 

The LG Styler also features advanced gentle drying technology, allowing you to dry delicates without the risk of damage or shrinkage from high-temperature dryers.

Benefits of using the LG Styler for various types of clothing

The LG Styler works by using the power of steam to gently refresh, deodorise and reduce wrinkles from clothing, minimising the potential damage of using  harsh chemicals or high heat. This not only helps to extend the life of your clothes but also properly sanitises tough-to-clean fabrics and materials, all while keeping your clothes well-maintained.

 

The benefits of the LG Styler on different clothing types are:

 

  • Suits: The LG Styler can effectively help to reduce wrinkles from suits , helping to maintain a crisp and professional appearance.
  • Dresses: The LG Styler is perfect for dresses made of delicate fabrics like silk, chiffon, and lace. The gentle steam care settings helps prevent any damage that may occur in a washing machine.
  • Outerwear: The power of steam penetrates thick fabrics, helping to remove dirt and bacteria from outerwear like coats and jackets, which can be challenging to clean properly using traditional methods alone.

Advanced Washing Machine Features for Fabric Maintenance

A woman using an LG stacked washer and dryer combo in a modern kitchen, showcasing space-saving design and efficient laundry care.

Most LG washing machines come with a range of smart laundry features designed to help protect and maintain the quality of your fabrics. These innovative technologies ensure your clothes are not only cleaned effectively but are also treated with the proper care to help them stand the test of time. Some of these smart washing machine features include:

 

1. AI DD® technology for detecting fabric softness.

AI DD® (Artificial Intelligence Direct Drive) technology elevates fabric care via the Direct Drive Motor™, by detecting the weight and softness of fabrics within a load. It uses AI machine learning to automatically select the optimal wash motions for the fabrics, ensuring that each garment receives thorough cleaning and clothing care1.

 

2. Turbo Clean 360® for quick and thorough cleaning

Turbo Clean 360® technology provides fast and efficient cleaning, with water jets spraying water from four different directions during the wash cycle, allowing a 5kg load of lightly soiled clothes to be cleaned in just 39 minutes2. This feature is perfect for busy households and those with on-the-go lifestyles, offering speedy washes for small loads without compromising on cleanliness or garment care.

 

3. Allergy Care Cycle with Steam+™ for sanitising and allergen removal

The Allergy Care Cycle with Steam+™ in LG washing machines offers allergen exposure reduction. By using steam, this cycle opens up fibres and assists in reducing exposure to common household allergens such as house dust mite, pollen allergen and bacteria3. For more information on LG washing machine features, check out our guide to choosing the right washing machine for you.

Heat Pump Dryers: Efficient and Gentle Drying

LG’s range of Heat Pump Dryers are designed to provide efficient and gentle drying, while helping to preserve the quality of your fabrics.

 

These dryers have a 9 Star energy rating and are renowned for their high energy efficiency. By using advanced heat pump technology, LG Heat Pump Dryers recycle heat during the drying process, reducing energy consumption compared to traditional vented dryers. This not only helps lower your energy bills, saving you money, but also contributes to a more sustainable and eco-friendly household.

 

LG Heat Pump Dryers are also known for gently drying clothes at lower temperatures, helping to reduce fabric shrinkage, and creasing. This helps to ensure your clothes maintain their quality and last longer, providing fabric care with every use.

Some of LG’s Heat Pump Dryers key features include:

Sensor Dry technology: Sensor Dry technology monitors the heat exchange, moisture and air temperature for optimal drying results. The sensors automatically control the drying time and temperature based on the selected program to save energy and help prevent over-drying.

 

Auto Cleaning Condenser: The Auto Cleaning Condenser feature in LG Heat Pump Dryers works by performing an automatic condenser clean function during the drying process. Preserving a clean condenser helps prevent the build-up of lint, maintaining the overall dryer performance.

 

Practical Tips for Everyday Clothing Care

A woman loading laundry into an LG washing machine in a stylish kitchen, demonstrating ease of use and advanced fabric care options.

Here are some routine laundry tips to keep clothes in optimal condition.

 

  • Sorting clothes before washing

From how to keep your whites white to keeping coloured clothes as bright and vibrant as the day you bought them, sorting your clothes before washing is essential. By sorting your laundry, you prevent colours from bleeding onto lighter fabrics and ensure that different types of fabrics receive the appropriate care.

 

  • Using the correct detergent and fabric softener

Whether it’s the removal of stains from clothes, getting your garments to look and feel new again, or simply having them smell and feel dry cleaner-fresh, using the right detergent and fabric softener is an essential step in your washing routine.

Common Clothing Care Mistakes to Avoid

When it comes to maintaining clothes, there are a few common fabric care mistakes to avoid:

 

  • Overloading the washing machine

When a washing machine is too full, your clothes don’t have enough room to move around, preventing them from getting thoroughly cleaned and rinsed.

 

  • Using high heat settings unnecessarily

High temperature washes can shrink, fade, and weaken the fibres of delicate fabrics and synthetic materials. 

 

  • Ignoring care labels on clothing

Believe it or not, clothing care labels are there for a reason. These labels provide washing instructions tailored specifically to each fabric type, and may include the recommended washing temperature, drying method, and ironing guidelines. By following the care instructions and understanding fabric maintenance, you can avoid damaging your clothing.

Decoding washing symbols

Using incorrect settings to wash different fabrics can be detrimental to maintaining your clothing. However, the washing instructions and clothing care symbols found on your garments can often be hard to decipher. Here’s what some of the most common washing machine symbols generally mean universally:

A chart of clothing care symbols for washing machines.

Machine Wash: A simple bucket symbol indicates that the garment can be machine washed. If there is a number inside the bucket, it specifies the maximum temperature (in degrees Celsius) which the item can be washed at.

Gentle & Hand Wash: A hand in the bucket symbol means that the item should be hand washed only. A bucket with two lines beneath it suggests using a gentle cycle for washing.

Do Not Wash: A bucket with a cross through it means the item should not be washed. It may require dry cleaning or another special cleaning method.

Bleaching:

  • A triangle without any marks means that bleaching is allowed with any type of bleach.
  • On the other hand, a triangle with a cross through it means that bleaching is not allowed.

Drying:

  •  A square with a circle inside it indicates that tumble drying is allowed. The dots inside the circle specify the heat setting: one dot for low heat, two dots for medium heat, and three dots for high heat. If the square with a circle inside it has a cross through the circle, it means the item should not be tumble dried.
  • A square with a curved line at the top means that the item should be hung on a line to dry.
  • A square with a horizontal line inside it means the item should be laid flat to dry.

 

Ironing:

  • An iron symbol indicates that the item can be ironed. The dots inside the iron show the different heat settings: one dot for low heat, two dots for medium heat, and three dots for high heat. If the iron symbol has a cross through it, the item should not be ironed.

1 AI DD® available for Cotton, Easy Care and Mixed Fabric cycles only.

2 Tested by Intertek, based on IEC 60456 : edition 5.0. TurboWash39 cycle with 5kg of IEC load compared to Conventional Cotton Cycle with TurboWash (F4V9RWP2W vs. FC1450S2W). The results may be different depending on the environment.

3 Approved by BAF (British Allergy Foundation) for reduction in exposure to House Dust Mite, Pollen Allergen, Bacteria. The results may be different depending on the environment.

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