I first observed people doing this when washing clothes by hand, in the Philippines. I presumed it was a local folkloric nonsense.
Just recently, I noticed that the fine print of the Care Label of my jeans, includes a instruction to turn inside out before washing.
What is the reason for it?
I believe it is so that whatever rubs against the fabric, it will rub the inside and not the outside. It will wear thru from the inside out, instead of the outside in, which in turn will not fade the color outside. Hope you understand.
Maine-iac Rose @->-- remove the thorns to email me
My textile-engineer-friend says it reduces abrasion on the surface of the clothing for one thing. Also lint and threads collect on the inside rather than the outside. It also helps keep the buttons and zips from snagging on other items.
It's something my grandmother did (and she always had a machine) and my mother did and I do now. Also a good opportunity to look for seams about to fail and to clean out the pockets :)
Even something as seemingly gentle as washing is abrasive. It accelerates wear and, in the case of jeans, fading. If you turn them inside out to wash, they stay newer looking longer.
and if you throw the jeans in the dryer after washing, the inside-out configuration will help keep the legs from forming that annoying "minicuff" on the bottom...
admom
I believe it also has something to do with the color bleeding and setting again. A lot of my newer jeans have said to wash inside out just for the first few washes. Joanna
If you look at some other clothing labels, they will also say to iron on the inside: this prevents iron shine, especially on knits. It annoys my DH no end, but I have *tried* to explain it all to hem...
No one mentioned that the inside of clothes is where all the dead skin cells, body oils and sweat accumulate as well. I'm sure it gets cleaner inside out.
Laura B.
Because we don't "wear" clothes out, we "wash" them out. The top loading machines with the big agitator really are hard on clothes. The thing that really impressed me was how little lint ends up in the filter of my friend's dryer after they have been in the front loading washer. She cleans her filter after every 8-10 loads. I have to clean mine after every load. That lint is the fabric of your garment. I don't know that I want a front loader next time, but I would like one of the top loaders with the agitator that swings from side to side rather than bouncing up and down. Cindy
Explain it all to "hem"???? hehehehhe. Guess we can all figure out what Kate is working on today.
Cindy
I swear the keyboard is more dyslexic than I am some days!
He does the ironing... I just make things!
Actually, at the moment he's putting up a big mirror for me while I re-organize the sewing room after yesterdays trip to IKEA. I need to stop and cook the dinner, as it's just gone six here.
My fantasy has been that inside-out washing of jeans prevented uneven fading due to washing machine parts rubbing on them.
S'pose it's true? In addition to the other reasons posted.
Tom Willmon Mountainair, (mid) New Mexico, USA
Sure it's funny! Now beam my clothes down Scotty!
Net-Tamer V 1.12.0 - Registered
If your current machine's agitator goes up and down you are going to hate the ones that rotate/swish side to side instead. They don't clean as well, and you still have the same amount of lint as your current washer. You might want to think seriously about getting a front loader instead. They clean clothes really well as long as you don't overload the machine, and they are the gentlest on fabric, and they use less water and a lot less detergent. If you live in the US and you think you need to buy a special detergent, don't worry. You don't have to buy expensive special low-sudsing detergent, just use half as much (or less) than what you use in a top loader. The expensive "special" detergent is a gimmick invented by one name brand front loading washing machine manufacturing company that also owns a company that makes a name brand detergent.
Note: If you live in the US, research front loaders before buying one because many of the name brands sold for home use in the US are not as good as they should be. Someday, hopefully soon, the US brands will have front loaders for homes that are as good as the ones the European brands sell for homes.
Debra in VA
Have you ever noticed that dark clothing stays dark on the inside, and fades on the outside? For that reason I turn all my dark clothing inside out before washing. I've had much less fading since I've done this. And that might be the reason for the directions to turn your jeans inside out.
Karen > I first observed people doing this when washing clothes by hand, in
Lurker and sometime simple sewer coming out of hiding.
Oooooh Laura, I had not thought of the body oils, sweat, etc. That's a great tip!
I do wash all my things inside out though because some things have decorations on the outside and don't want them damaged in the wash by other items. Screen printed t-shirts come readily to mind.
The only reason that I am hesitating is because I don't want to get down on my hands and knees to get clothes out of the washer. I know that's an exaggeration, but not by much. I realize that there are pedestals for the w/d to sit on, but then I lose valuable "flat surface" in my utility room. I guess everything is a trade-off.
Cindy
On Sun, 12 Sep 2004 11:52:33 -0500, teleflora wrote: What is the reason for it?
Interesting that you mention the front loader, Cindy. I have one of these my DH bought for me 4 yrs ago and I would never go back to a top loader. The front loader is much gentler on my clothes and washes up to 95degC for whites (but I use it for tea-towels too). I just so love it compared to my old top loader. It is much smaller too.
Mavis
On 2004-09-12 snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com said: >Newsgroups: rec.crafts.textiles.misc,rec.crafts.textiles.sewing,alt. >sewing [snip] >>getting a front loader instead. >The only reason that I am hesitating is because I don't want to get >down on my hands and knees to get clothes out of the washer. I >know that's an exaggeration, but not by much. I realize that there >are pedestals for the w/d to sit on, but then I lose valuable "flat >surface" in my utility room. I guess everything is a trade-off. >Cindy I have a tumbler washer, like a front-loader, except that it is cleverly designed with a hatch in the drum periphery and a top opening for loading. At 68, I don't want to squat for my laundry either.
This machine is made by Staber, in Ohio, and much of its design is excellent. It is intended to work on solar power systems (which I have), is quite efficient. Unfortunately it went into production before some real deficiencies were corrected.
Tom Willmon Mountainair, (mid) New Mexico, USA
If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
Net-Tamer V 1.12.0 - Registered
What brand did you get, that it has lasted 4 years? I hear all sorts of complaints about various brands and haven't found one yet that seems to be reliable.
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