w/e 22/03/10

Knitted silk and woven silk need to be treated differently. With a knit you need to lay the garment flat and steam through the fabric, leaving it to cool and dry before you move it, otherwise you may cause distortion (stretching or shrinkage). Place a damp cloth over the fabric and gently apply an iron. This will force steam through to the fabric. Remove the cloth and allow the garment to cool and dry before you move it.

If you're dealing with a woven fabric then ironing on the right side is preferred, unless it's a stone washed silk and then iron on the reverse side. Ironing on the right side ensures you give attention to the detail that's actually going to be seen and leads to less mistakes being made. Use continuous steam if possible with a vacuum underneath as this will dry the fabric quickly, and keep it in position while drying. Otherwise use steam and then iron with no steam so you get rid of as much moisture as possible, leaving the garment on the board to dry and cool for a minute or two.

Leave any garment to hang and dry fully before putting away otherwise the silk will look limp and lifeless.

If possible wrap the garment in acid free tissue paper (available from dry cleaning suppliers) and place in the dark. If the garment has puffed sleeved then place the tissue paper inside the sleeves to puff them out. This is also a good way to keep bows in the correct shape.

It's important that the garment isn't distorted, so hangers should correctly fill the shoulders and if possible fill the body to simulate your own body (body formers are available) and sleeves, bows and features, such as silk flowers, should be in their correct position before storing. Then place the garment in a purpose made cover in a dark wardrobe where there's no damp.

Wedding dresses should either be placed in a special box made for the purpose or hung in a special bag with a gusset so they are not crushed. Then, once again, keep them away from sun light in a dark wardrobe or cupboard.