The blazer that looked sharp in the shop and looked tired 6 months later did not get like that on its own.

Something happened to it. 

A hot machine wash that the label said nothing supportive about, a hanger that let the shoulders drop into a permanent slump or maybe even a dry-cleaning cycle done far too early, stripping natural oils from wool that needed them. 

Good formal clothing does not degrade by itself. It degrades because nobody told the person wearing it how to take care of it.

Caring for formal clothing correctly extends its wearable life by 3 to 5 years on average, according to data from the Textile Research Journal. 

For South Africans building a professional wardrobe on a real budget, is as much a cosmetic benefit as a financial one. The R600 blazer that lasts 6 years rather than 2 is three times the investment at the same price. 

Knowing how to care for clothing is the skill that makes that possible.

Every garment has a care label with internationally standardised symbols that specify the exact washing, drying, ironing, and dry-cleaning requirements for that fabric. 

The 5 care label symbol categories that appear on all South African garments sold under the SANS 39 standard are washing, bleaching, tumble drying, ironing, and professional textile care. 

You should always read these before the first wash. This way, you can prevent the most common and most irreversible clothing damage.

The 2 most frequently ignored symbols are the tumble dry prohibition (a circle with an X) and the iron temperature indicator (1 dot for low, 2 for medium, 3 for high). 

A single tumble dry cycle on a wool-blend blazer causes irreversible fibre shrinkage while a high-heat iron on a polyester shirt melts the surface fibres, producing a permanent sheen that no amount of washing removes.

South Africa’s hot, humid summers create a specific care challenge that most international garment care guides overlook.

Perspiration contains uric acid and salt, which bond to natural fibres including wool, cotton, and silk at the molecular level if left untreated. 

A tip you might not have heard of before, is to air a garment for 30 minutes after you wear it and before hanging it in the wardrobe. Doing so allows moisture to evaporate before it sets into the fabric and this one small habit extends the time between necessary washes and reduces the cumulative stress each wash places on the fabric.

Hot water above 40 degrees causes 3 types of irreversible damage to formal garments.

Fibre shrinkage in wool and cotton blends, colour bleeding in dark fabrics, and elastic degradation in stretch-blend fabrics including ponte and jersey all damage clothing. 

Here is a simple guide to follow, to make sure that your clothing is given the best possible care:

60% of permanent damage to formal garments occurs during drying and pressing rather than during washing, according to International Fabricare Institute research.

Air drying on a shaped hanger is the correct method for formal blazers, structured shirts, and tailored trousers. 

A tumble dryer on any heat setting above cold causes fibre stress, dimensional change in natural fabrics, and premature wear of elastic components in waistbands and cuffs. 

A clothes steamer rather than a flat iron is the correct tool for most formal garments. A steamer removes creases without direct heat contact with the fabric surface, which eliminates the risk of shine marks on wool and silk, scorch marks on synthetic blends, and the flattening of woven textures that a flat iron produces when pressed directly onto fabric without a pressing cloth. 

For cotton formal shirts, a steam iron on the correct temperature setting with a damp pressing cloth produces a better result than a dry iron on any setting.

When storing your formal garments you need adequate space between hanging garments, the correct hanger type for each garment category, and protection from light and dust.

A blazer or structured jacket should always be stored on a wire hanger otherwise it can develop permanent shoulder distortion within 4 to 6 weeks, while a wide-shouldered wooden or padded hanger maintains the structured shoulder shape indefinitely.

Cotton garments, including shirts and trousers, can be stored folded on shelves as well as hung. 

Wool garments benefit from being folded on shelves rather than hung for long-term storage of more than 3 months, as sustained hanging causes the knit structure to stretch under its own weight. 

And you should think about adding a few cedar blocks in the wardrobe to repel moths naturally, so that you don’t get the chemical residue that mothballs leave on fabric.