Introduction
Your closet is likely filled with cotton t-shirts you want to keep forever, from the ones you bought at the nicest concert you’ve ever attended to the ones you wear every day as necessities. Cotton shirts are comfortable and stylish, but they are readily damaged by a tear or stain. If you don’t wash and dry it correctly the first time, it may shrink before you can wear it.
T-shirts are popular globally. Among other things, they are wearable, comfortable, soft, and breathable. However, despite being appealing and used by many, these outfits often need someone else to help maintain them for a long time.
The best way to spend the hot summer days is in a 100%-cotton T-shirt. It’s important to wash your clothes after only one or two wears, so you never know when you’ll need to make a fast note of your cleaning binge. You won’t be able to wear your cotton T-shirt for very long unless you know just how to care for it. To learn more, continue reading to the end.
Understanding the Nature of Cotton
People have been admiring this fabric’s way of being light and letting in lots of air since the time cotton farming began. In addition to being extraordinarily soft, the cotton fabric retains heat better than wool, giving it a hybrid feel.
Cotton is more resilient than silk, but not as resilient as wool, and it is more likely to pill, rip, and tear. However, cotton continues to be one of the most widely used and extensively manufactured textiles worldwide. This fabric is naturally white or slightly yellow, and it has a comparatively high tensile strength.
Cotton wicks moisture well since it dries rapidly and absorbs a lot of water. Cotton drapes nicely on the body and is washable at a high temperature. But cotton cloth shrinks when washed unless it is treated beforehand, and it is relatively prone to wrinkling.
For example, genuine blue jeans are made entirely of cotton, yet the majority of T-shirts have cotton in them to some extent.
People often use cotton to make clothing for hot weather because it breathes well and absorbs sweat easily. Since cotton has an outstanding ability to drape well, it is the ideal material for dresses while at the same time being soft enough to be suitable for formal and professional outfits.
Preparation Before Washing Cotton Shirts
Pre-Treat Stains
To wash them, either using your machine or through hand washing, you should first apply some stain remover on these stains so that they get treated early enough. The freshness of the stain will determine how long you should let the item set.
Each type of fibre in clothing responds differently to stain treatment agents and washing. To ensure that a garment is colourfast before using a stain removal solution on coloured cotton textiles for the first time, particularly on dark colours and khaki, test the product on an inner seam or hem.
Select the Fabric Softener and Detergent You Want
Choose a powerful, effective detergent. It’s your best bet for getting rid of most stains, odour, and body filth. Even if you are hand-washing the item, any detergent works well on cotton fibres if your clothing is just somewhat stained.
Choose the Water Temperature
Select a water temperature appropriate for the kind of clothing you are cleaning. Warm or cool water is the ideal washing temperature to avoid shrinking, stretching, and colour bleeding on cotton clothing unless it is worn near the body, such as undergarments, socks, or sleeping wear. Lower water temperatures will aid in preventing the fading of darker or brighter colours.
Select the Wash Cycle
If the cotton item is decorated or made of lace, use the mild cycle or wash by hand. Normal is suitable for the majority of clothes and linens. Your washer can make washing cycles last for 10 to 45 minutes depending on the size and the selected cycle.
Choose the Time for Drying
For cotton clothing, use the permanent press option or a lower dryer temperature setting. Cotton that has been overdried wrinkles excessively and shrinks somewhat. To expedite the process, a higher temperature can be used to dry cotton sheets, towels, and kitchen linens. The amount of the load affects how long it takes to dry.
How to Wash Cotton Shirts
Cold Wash
If washed in a hot environment a T-shirt made of pure cotton may shrink and can’t stand the heat very much. Making detergents more effective requires high temperatures; that is why one should be very careful in choosing the right washing temperature so as not to ruin the fabric of his/her favourite shirt. White t-shirts may be washed at around 40 degrees, however, dark coloured t-shirts should normally be washed entirely cold.
In addition to ensuring a longer-lasting, crisp appearance, washing your white T-shirt at 30 or 40 degrees also lowers the possibility of any unintended colourisation, such as yellowish streaks under your armpits.
(Use the Right Amount of) Detergent
The market is bursting at its seams with an excess of safe-for-the-environment soap powders that neither have any oil chemistry-related compounds nor rely on such components for effectiveness.
Remember that so-called “green detergents” often contain a range of different chemical families; too much will be bad for your clothes and pollute water. This means that there is no 100% eco-friendly option because more soap does not necessarily equal cleanliness.
When one washes a few clothes in the machine, less soap is necessary. Similarly, the same goes for fairly dirty garments too. Besides, regions with less hard water need relatively little soap.
Wash with Similar Colours
In case you wash cool hues collectively, they can remain crisp using the colour matching; therefore, maintaining the summer T-shirts in their fresh state if they have white in them. To avoid staining such a t-shirt with other dyed clothes, simply combine anything that is very bright or light like pink together; likewise helps in preventing fading out which makes the T-shirts less appealing among other garments. Darker hues may typically be cleaned together in the washing machine, especially after a few cycles.
Sorting your laundry according to fabric categories may enhance the quality of your wash; for example, workplace and sportswear may require different care than an extremely delicate summer shirt. Usually, looking at the care tag for washing tips is a good idea when you are not certain about washing a fresh piece of clothing.
How to Deal with Common Problems While Washing Cotton Shirts
Treating Stains And Spills Promptly
It’s important to note that the number one thing you should remember when faced with an emergency where a specific spot on your t-shirt is stained is to deal with that problem at that moment: as much as possible start recovering the material. Considering it`s easier for materials made of natural fibres such as cotton and linen to absorb anything spilt on them, say red wine or tomato sauce, it follows logically that the sooner one embarks on the removal process, the better.
Unfortunately, no detergent or stain remover is effective on all types of fabric. Studies have indicated that a stain remover’s effectiveness is inversely related to how aggressive it is towards the colour of the clothing. Thus, we highly recommend that you rinse the stain with warm water first and apply some mild detergent or soap to it afterwards.
Use a professional stain remover for stubborn stains, but steer clear of bleach-containing stain removers for coloured cotton clothing. The bleach may leave a faint stain and take the colour out of the cloth.
Properly Store Your T-shirts
It would be good to make sure that your T-shirts are folded and kept flat when they are being stored. When hanging for an extended period of time, knitted materials (such as The Perfect T-Shirt’s Single Jersey Knit) may expand.
Use broad hangers to scatter the weight more evenly while hanging your T-shirts if you must do so. When hanging your T-shirts so that the necklines do not stretch too much, ensure that the coat hanger is lifted from beneath.
Put The Iron In Reverse
Cotton T-shirts can wrinkle and crease more or less depending on the particular fabric used. However, carefully handling your T-shirts as they come out of the washing machine may lessen squiggles. Additionally, you may gently shake or stretch each item of clothing to restore its original form.
Extra caution should be used when stretching the T-shirt around the shoulders and neckline to avoid the garment losing its form. If the “reduce creases” function on your washing machine is available, you can use it to avoid wrinkles.
Tips To Prevent And Manage Shrinkage
It’s important to remember that all cotton items will naturally shrink, usually as a result of drying. By air-drying instead of using a tumble dryer, you can lower the chance of shrinking. A T-shirt dries most effectively when hanging, even if tumble drying might occasionally be a more practical option.
Preventing undesired colour fading from your clothes while you dry them in an air-drying way and avoiding direct sunlight has been advised. This means that textiles primarily consisting of pure cotton are not used to high temperatures as said in the introduction part. In this case, it will be advisable to hang delicate cotton clothes over a length of timber so that wrinkles can be minimized and undesirable stretching avoided.
Steering clear of the dryer benefits both the environment and prolongs the life of your t-shirts. Not using it as a drying machine means a family can reduce its carbon footprint, thanks to the fact that it uses three to five times more energy than a washing machine.
Note: It’s clear that choosing a non-shrinkable cotton t-shirt can greatly benefit both your wardrobe and the environment. By opting for a high-quality brand like Bewakoof, you can rest assured that your t-shirts will not shrink even after repeated washes.
Drying and Ironing Cotton Shirts
When you wash your T-shirts “inside out,” the exterior remains unaffected and the inevitable abrasion occurs on the inside of the garment. This reduces the likelihood of natural cotton pilling and unwanted fuzziness. Inside-out directions also dry T-shirts.
This means that any fading takes place in the inner part of the cloth and the outside remains intact. Shirts should be patted in the shade.
While most people these days prefer to use dryers, you may also hang or dry your favourite men’s large t-shirts inside in the cool shade if you want them to last as long as possible.
Your T-shirts will inevitably get wrinkled, and you might be wondering if ironing them would improve their appearance. Try not to let too much heat go on your T-shirt and persevere. However, we advise ironing your favourite T-shirt inside out at the lowest setting if you want to prevent wrinkles when wearing it.
While the fabric is still somewhat moist, iron on high heat. Use steam when it is needed; bear in mind that air-drying or taking clothes from the drier is usually more effective in preventing clothes ironing.
Conclusion
However, looking after your cotton t-shirts don’t just involve washing, drying and storing them away in a hurry, it requires more effort; in the long run, however, the value is truly rewarding given the fact that we can always keep our greatest shirts much longer than we had anticipated. In order to maintain the colour of your cotton products, prevent stubborn stains and discolouration and shrinkage that lead to the loss of a cotton shirt, treat stains with care and wash cotton textiles the right way.
Generally, if you are aware of the important details, cleaning and caring for your men’s cotton t-shirts is not difficult. Keep these points in mind, and have a blast!