Nothing ruins the perfect outfit quite like some unexpected wrinkles.
But how can you ensure that you don’t inadvertently self-sabotage your next look? That’s where we want to help!
In this post, we’ll briefly cover seven ways you can prevent wrinkles in your clothes and keep your outfits sharp. Let’s dig in:
#1: Wash Smaller Loads
Washing smaller loads allow you to optimize the clean-to-wrinkle ratio by allowing more room for your clothes to agitate. This means they’ll come out less crumpled, cleaner, and minimize your wrinkles once everything is dry.
#2: Add Fabric Softener
Fabric softeners, as the name implies, soften your fabric and can help you dry out wrinkles in the dryer. A similar common recommendation is to add some white distilled vinegar to your load, but it’s best to be careful with this method. Check to ensure your washing machine can handle this, and that it will wash out of your clothes completely.
#3: Use a Gentle Wash Cycle
Your washer agitates your clothes to help lift soil and stains, but too much agitation can lead to wrinkles. If you’re washing clothes that are a bit more on the delicate side, choosing a gentler wash cycle is an easy way to reduce wrinkles in the final outcome.
#4: Detangle Clothes Before Drying
At the end of your washing cycle, it’s not uncommon to find all of your clothes in a ring around the edges — all tangled up and wrinkled. To some degree, this is unavoidable, but it can be helped when you move everything to the dryer.
Take a moment to pull everything out one-by-one, straighten it, and put it into the dryer gently. This simple separation will allow your clothes to dry completely without tangling, thus preventing wrinkles.
#5: Remove From the Dryer Promptly
If you’re doing a load of laundry and leave it in the dryer long after it’s done, your clothes will cool and settle, potentially causing wrinkles. Prompt removal and folding will prevent wrinkles and keep your outfits sharp.
#6: Iron After Drying
No matter what you do, some clothes will come out of your laundry with a few wrinkles — it’s unavoidable. But that doesn’t mean you have to live with wrinkles! Taking a few minutes to iron your clothes as they come out of the dryer will help you prolong the life of your favorite pieces.
#7: Store Securely
Last but not least, how you store your clothes can affect how wrinkled they get and thus how they look when you put them on. In general, you’ll want to do one of two things:
- Hang up dress clothes, or anything more prone to wrinkles.
- Fold and place other clothes into a drawer or secure space with minimal traffic.
Leaving clothes out only increases the likelihood that you’ll disturb or re-wrinkle your clothes. Storage can’t be understated, so make sure you put your laundry up!
