How to wash a dress shirt like a pro?

Most of the dress shirts are pretty pricey and dry-cleaning or professional laundering adds on more expenses. However, you can wash your high-end dress shirt at home in your own washing machine. It not only saves money but also gives your shirt a new-like freshness. At this point, many questions may attack your mind. How to wash a dress shirt? How to determine if a dress shirt is dirty and when should I wash one? To find the answers, keep reading. I have also mentioned some expert washing tips for you at the end of this article. 

When do I determine if a dress shirt is dirty?

Usually, look around the neck and cuffs. That’s the place where dirt deposits. They come right off your skin, oil, and grime, as you go through the day and the stuff that you pick up from the air. Occasionally get some coffee stains on there, and most of the time, you start to see a little bit of ring around your collar. 

How often should you wash a dress shirt?

It is super important to mention here that you don’t need to wash your dress shirt after every wear. Think of your shirt as having a very limited life because it does. Suppose you can wash your expensive dress shirt only 100 times. Now how many times you can wear it between those 100 washes is up to you. 

When should you wash a dress shirt?

It depends on how much you sweat and how long you wear it during the day. If you wear our dress shirt for only a few hours in a day, then you can wear it a few more times. However, if you wear that shirt for 12 hours in a day and you sweat too, then that dress shirt needs to be washed. What I am trying to say is that try not to wash your dress shirt until it’s truly dirty. So your dress shirt can last longer. 

How to wash a dress shirt?

Step 1: Check the care label of your dress shirt

First, check the care instructions given on the dress shirt tag. It’s important to know whether you can wash your shirt in a washing machine or not. If you see the words “dry clean only”, then bring the shirt to the dry cleaner. If no such words are mentioned, go ahead with putting your dress shirt in the washing machine. 

Step 2: Separate out the whites

If you are going to wash many shirts of different colors, it’s recommended to separate the white ones to avoid staining.

Step 3: Separate the shirts made of fragile material

If your cloth load contains delicate shirts also like cashmere, silk, or wool. Separate them from the other shirts to wash them separately on a different wash cycle.

Step 4: Unbutton the shirts

Buttons can be snagged on the inside of the washing machine and may result in damaging your high-end dress shirt. So unbutton all the buttons of your dress shirt to avoid tears. All buttons mean all, including the collar and sleeves. 

Step 5: Turn the shirt inside out

In order to remove the stains of deodorant from the short’s armpits, it’s important to turn the shirt inside out. So the detergent works well to clean armpit stains. You can also use an oxygen-based armpit stain remover to get rid of stubborn deodorant and sweat stains.

Step 6: Load your daily use detergent into the machine

Normal low-end is enough for dress shirt cleaning. Avoid over usage of detergent and make sure the detergent is bleach-free.

Step 7: Set the machine cycle

Most dress shirts wash well on a standard cycle. However, set the machine on a delicate cycle for the delicate ones.

Put delicate shirts like silk shirts, in a mesh bag before putting them in the washing machine to avoid tears, and choose a delicate cycle for a wash. 

Step 8: Run the machine on the cold water setting

To wash a dress shirt, set the washing machine to the cold water option, as warm water is not good for dress shirts. And it’s true for both normal and delicate dress shirts.

Step 9: Take the shirt out as soon as the cycle stops

Don’t leave the shirts in the washing machine when the cycle is finished to avoid wrinkles on the shirts. The shirts may also develop a musty smell if you leave them in the washing machine for longer.

Step 10: Turn the shirt right side out and gently shake it a few times

It gets out all the crumples and avoids wrinkling when the shirt dries. 

Step 11: Iron the shirt while it’s still wet

Lay the shirt down flat on an ironing board and iron it. Ironing is optional. If you don’t have time to iron the shirt right away, you can skip this step and just let the shirt air dry. 

Step 12: Hang the shirt to air-dry

Use a wide plastic hanger to hang your dress shirt while it’s still wet. Don’t use wire hangers. That’s it about how to wash your dress shirt!

Expert cleaning tips:

Avoid the dryer:

The dryer is something that’s going to destroy your high-end dress shirts. So you should let them hang out to dry. And if you have to use the dryer, then pull them out while they are still moist.

Avoid bleach:

Bleach is something that is cool for undershirts, for your socks, but not for your dress shirts. It actually eats away the cotton of your dress shirt.

Avoid heat:

Don’t wash your dress shirt in hot water. You probably hear that bleach and hot water help remove stains from dress shirts. Again that’s good for socks, not for your pricey dress shirts. 

Avoid overdoing with detergent:

Most detergents are safe but anything that you put a whole is not safe at all. In this way, you not only waste your time but also lessen the life of your dress shirt. It’s better to wash your dirty shirt a couple of times with less detergent. 

Pretreat the stains:

Lastly, always check your shirt for stains before putting them in the washing machine to wash. Apply spot sticks on the stains and apply a little bit of detergent, and rub it right in with a toothbrush. That’s all!

Good luck with your dress shirts!

To learn in detail, how to iron a dress shirt like a pro, please click here.