A saree is a piece of wardrobe essential, that transcends trends, and has a timeless appeal to it! Regardless of your age, a saree can always portray the best of your elegant and sophisticated nature!
However, sarees can lose their natural grace and sheen if you don’t take proper care of them! In fact, most instances of colour fading, and or fabric damage occur because of improper storage and underestimation of the delicate nature of the fabrics, as mentioned by many renowned Kolkata saree boutiques!
This blog serves as a proper guide to the best practices to preserve the beauty and sheen of your precious sarees for years to come.
The Proper Saree Care Guide You Should Follow!
Before plunging into the saree care and maintenance instructions, you need to understand that sarees are made of a variety of fabrics, like cotton, silk, chiffon, georgette, etc. Why? Because the care and maintenance requirements are different when it comes to fabric varieties. And that’s why, you need to tailor your care routine to make sure that your sarees retain their beauty and longevity.
That being said, now let’s move on and address the elephant in the room!
Washing & Cleaning Instructions
One of the very first care and maintenance tips is to abide by the washing and cleaning instructions strictly. It’s very much crucial to keep your sarees beautiful for a long time.
Here’s a list of the different types of fabrics and their distinctive washing instructions-
- Cotton: Strong natural fabric, that can withstand machine-washes. Use mild detergent, and cold water for best results. Avoid direct sunlight exposure while drying to prevent colour fading.
- Silk: Delicate and luxurious fabric. Needs a bit more gentle handling and care than their cotton counterparts. Mild detergent and hand washing are the two rules to keep such sarees safe and durable. Also, for silk sarees having rich embroideries, dry cleaning is a preferable option.
- Chiffon & Georgette: Lightweight fabrics. Can endure machine washes but on a gentle cycle. Use cold water and mild detergent for optimal cleaning. Flat-dry to retain the shape.
If you are buying sarees from the best saree shops in Kolkata, chances are that the washing instructions will be mentioned on the label. Make sure to follow that strictly to keep your sarees in top-notch condition!
Removing Tough Stains
Stains are inevitable no matter how careful you are while carrying a saree! However, if you take quick action, it might just save your timeless piece of six yards from sustaining permanent damage.
Here are some instances of the most common stains, and how to get rid of them-
- Sweat stains: Prepare a mixture of water, white vinegar, and lemon juice. Smear it on the stained part, let sit for a few minutes, and rinse with cold water.
- Ink stains: Keep dabbing (not rubbing) the stained area with a clean piece of cloth dipped in hand sanitizer. Once the stain comes off, wash with cold water and pat dry.
- Food stains: These are one of the peskiest kinds of stains for which you need to dab the area with a clean cloth to remove the excess oil. Don’t make the mistake of rubbing the area as it may cause the stain to spread. After that, use fabric-specific stain removers or a mild detergent to wash it off.
Storage Instructions
Finally, the storage part! You might be surprised but the way you store your sarees has a lot to do with how good/ bad a condition it might be in.
Improper storage is the main culprit behind fabric damage, or faded colour, which you obviously won’t be very happy about, especially if it’s your favourite piece of Jamdani saree online that you save only for special occasions!
So, here are some ways to store your sarees properly-
- Always follow the natural folds while folding a saree, as this lessens the chances of the formation of new creases.
- Use wooden or padded hangers to hang your chiffon or georgette sarees to avoid crease formation. Also, remember to not use metal hangers as it increases the chances of formation of rust stains on the fabric! Added to that, some metal hangers might also have rough edges which carries the risk of your sarees getting torn.
- Always store your Bengali traditional saree online in a cool and dry place. Make sure to keep it away from direct sunlight exposure to prevent colour fading.
- Use cedar blocks while storing to prevent pest infestation.
To Conclude
The key to keeping your sarees as good as new lies in how properly you maintain them! So, while you’re on the internet trying to do some online saree shopping in Kolkata for your next occasion, make sure to keep the above tips in mind to make your precious sarees stay fresh, vibrant, and long-lasting for generations!
