With winter nearly half gone in some places, it is time to start thinking about storing winter clothing for the spring and summer. Good storage habits extend the life of your clothing by protecting the garments against those things that encourage them to age faster. They also let you wear winter clothes season after season – instead of giving it away every spring and buying new each fall.
Below are a number of tips for storing winter clothes, compliments of The Stockist. The Stockist is a Salt Lake City clothing boutique that sells popular brands for men, women, and kids
1. Wash and Dry First
The first tip for storing winter clothing seems obvious, yet people do not necessarily do it: wash and dry whatever you plan to store for the winter. Some of your clothes can be tossed into the washing machine at home. You can dry them in the dryer or hang them on a line. You may want to take other items to the dry cleaner to have them professionally laundered.
At any rate, the goal here is to make sure you are not storing anything that is stained or carrying undesirable odors. Stains allowed to set over the winter are more difficult to get out in the fall. And of course, storing clothing with embedded odors is not going to be pleasant to the nose when you pull the arms back out in six months.
2. Choose a Cool, Dark Location
Clothing is a lot like photo albums and newspaper clippings. It does best when stored in a cool, dark place. If you have space under your bed frame, it’s a perfect location for your storage containers. Not only will your clothing be out of the way, but it will also prevent an entire army of dust bunnies from accumulating in that space over the summer.
3. Use Opaque Containers
Plastic storage totes are a great option for storing winter clothing. Whatever containers you choose, make sure they are opaque rather than transparent. The goal is to keep the light out as light can cause clothing to fade. It also breaks down fabric fibers over long periods of time. You wouldn’t notice the break down from one season to the next, but you would notice it over several years. Opaque containers take care of that.
4. Treat Shoes and Boots
There are a couple of things you will want to do with any footwear you plan to store. First is sprinkling a little baking soda inside. This will absorb any leftover moisture and odors so that they don’t spoil everything else in your storage container. The second thing you’ll want to do is stuff them with crumpled up newspapers, tissue paper, or paper towel. This helps them retain their form over the summer months. Just remember to remove the paper and vacuum out the baking soda next fall.
5. Fold the Natural Fiber Garments
If you have any expensive natural fiber garments, you might be tempted to leave them hanging in your closet for the summer. That is not a good idea. Natural fibers tend to stretch more than synthetic fibers. Leaving the garments hung up all summer without any use can leave them stretched out and ill-fitting next fall. You are better off folding the garments and storing them in plastic storage totes or garment bags.
There are plenty of more tips where these came from. As spring approaches, start thinking about how you are going to store your winter clothing. The better you are at coming up with effective storage methods, the longer your winter clothing will last.
