Tips for looking after your suit
IF you spend a lot of money on a suit, and even if you don’t spend that much, you want it to last. That much is obvious, but very few men treat their suits with the care and attention they should. Those frayed edges, creases that wont disappear and worn out linings are just as likely caused by hanging it on the back of a chair, wearing it every day, slinging it on a clothes hook in the office and other neglectful actions on the part of the wearer as they are symptomatic of the suit’s basic quality.
l The first rule is to own more than one suit – acquire as many, of as high quality, as you can, and see it as a long-term investment. Treated well, a suit will last years if not decades. Consider buying two sets of trousers for the suits you wear most commonly.
Never wear a suit two days in a row – hang it and allow it to regain its natural shape in between wears.
That process can be helped if you don’t immediately return it to the wardrobe when you hang it. Hang it out and allow the suit to breath, rather than shoving it in a wardrobe where it’s pressed against other garments, and where moths and mites get attracted to fresh sweat and stains. Yucky but true.
The cardinal sin is to dry clean a suit too regularly – it simply isn’t necessary. The chemicals in dry cleaning eat into the suit’s fibres, damaging and weakening them. “A couple of times a year at most is all that is required, even for the hardest-worn suit,” says Christ Scott Brown of Chester Barrie.
Instead of dry cleaning the suit, get a high-quality, soft-bristled clothes brush and brush the suit down after each wear. This removes particles of grit and dirt caught in the fibres. A dual-headed brush from Kent Brushes [pictured] costs £36 (www.kentbrusheslcom).
Invest in good hangers – get ones that are as thick as possible.
Use steam from a kettle or steam iron to help creases drop out naturally – the heat from the steam will relax the fabric and give it a fresh, invigorated look.
If you’re travelling and you don’t have a steam iron to hand, hang the suit in your hotel bathroom and run a really hot bath. When you put the suit on in the morning, it’ll look crisp and fresh.
If you have to press out more stubborn creases such as at the back of the knees, always place a damp cloth over the fabric, and keep the iron on a low setting.