How To Wash Vintage Men's Shirt

If you’re going to make the effort to wear vintage gear, then you need to know how to wash men’s vintage shirts. When you're getting ready to wash vintage men’s shirts, there are two words that you need to remember—hand wash. Keep in mind that your vintage men’s shirts are delicate because of their age; the damage that has been done to vintage fabrics over the decades means that your vintage men’s shirts may not be able to stand-up to your washing machine’s spin cycle. If you’re the kind of guy who is always shirking your shirts, you may want to take your vintage shirts into a professional when it’s time to wash vintage men’s shirt. But if you’re a guy that knows his way around a laundry room, knowing how to wash vintage men’s shirt will save you cash on your dry cleaning bill and keep your vintage men’s shirts looking fresh and clean for years to come.

• lukewarm water
• laundry detergent
• Hangers
• Sponge
  

1. Break-up the dirt with lukewarm water. Fill your sink about half-way with lukewarm water. Never use water that is too hot to wash anything vintage. Water that is too hot can cause your shirt to shrink. Water that is too cold won’t make your shirt shrink, but cold water may not open up the fibers enough to release the dirt that is trapped inside. 
2. Add some gentle laundry detergent. When you’re choosing what laundry detergent to use when you wash a vintage men’s shirt, you want to use the mildest detergent you can find. The harsh chemicals that are found in normal laundry detergents can damage the delicate fabric. Using gentle laundry detergent that is formulated for the needs of delicate fabrics will ensure that your vintage men’s shirt is clean without causing damage to the fabric when you wash a vintage men’s shirt. 
3. Get your hands wet. This is the messy part of knowing how to wash a vintage men’s shirt. Use a clean sponge to push the laundry detergent through the fibers of your vintage men’s shirt and push out the dirt. You can run your fingernails over the the surface of the fabric to help break up some of the more stubborn stains. As tempting as it may be, don’t try to get rid of stains by rubbing the fabric against itself. Rubbing the fabric of your vintage men’s shirt against itself may seem like a good way to scrub out stains, but all you’re doing is rubbing the stains deeper into the fabric, transferring the stain from one side of the fabric to the other. Gently running your fingernails over the stained parts of the fabric when you wash a vintage men’s shirt will bring the stain closer to the surface so that it can be pushed out by soap and water.
4. It’s all about the rinse. When you have gotten all of the dirt out, let all of the soapy water out of the sink. After you let the water out, rinse your vintage men’s shirt with lukewarm water. A good rinse will push the last of the dirt, and soap out of the fibers of your vintage men’s shirt.
5. Time to let it dry. When you’re done washing a vintage men’s shirt, you need to dry it. The best way to dry a vintage men’s shirt is to put it on a hanger and let it drip dry. You may be tempted to put your vintage men’s shirt into the dryer to help it along, but avoid the dryer at all costs. The heat from the dryer can shrink your vintage men’s shirt, while the tumbling action of the dryer can create rips and holes in your vintage men’s shirt. The best way to dry a vintage men’s shirt after it’s been washed, is to put the wet shirt on a hanger and let it drip dry.