In order to make your clothes last as long as possible - free from moth holes, stains, bobbles and creases, you might want to think about investing in some of these products. Taking care of your clothes keeps them looking new for longer and means you’ll stay in love with them for longer and get more wear out of them - sustainable and joyful!

Hangers

You should aim to hang most of your clothes - tops, dresses, skirts and trousers - unless they are very delicate (knitwear being the exception) or are gym/loungewear/pyjamas and underwear, which can happily be stored in drawers (check out the Marie Kondo method of folding your clothes, which means that you can see what you have in your drawers). Hanging the majority of your clothes means you get to see what you own, plus they get less creased - organise them by type and by colour and you will find putting together outfits easy.

Velvet hangers are the best in making the most of your space, and being kind to your clothes. Also, things don’t slip off, so they really are worth investing in. I like to think of a wardrobe as your personal boutique, full of clothes you love - and boutiques always have matching hangers! It really will bring you more joy when you look in your wardrobe to see all the hangers the same and make you more likely to look after your clothes

You should fold knitwear if possible - or you can fold and hang over these hangers if you don’t have any shelf space.

Use the clip hangers for skirts and trousers. You can hang trousers from the hem (if they have a crease) or the waistband. All this depends on the space you have and the height of your hanging space - trousers can of course be folded over the standard hangers if you don’t have any long hanging space, but they tend to get creases where they’re folded over (see below for steamer!)!

If you have coats and suits or coats you wear infrequently and you want to protect them from dust (and dry cleaning bills), then these breathable dust covers will help.

Use acid free paper to separate any delicate knitwear with embellishments that may pull other items. If you’re using clip hangers with a leather skirt or trousers, use the acid free paper between the clip and the leather to protect it.

Shoes

In an ideal world, if you have lots of space (or not many shoes), your shoes should be kept in boxes - preferably boxes where you can see the contents. Tall boots should be kept from flopping over and damaging the leather at the point they fall over with the boot shapers.

Jewellery

For costume jewellery, you need to be able to see your jewellery. I have this organiser hung to the inside of my wardrobe. It doesn’t hold everything, but it helps me choose which jewellery to go with my outfit, when I’m getting an outfit together.

Stain Removal

Tide to Go is a must-have for any special occasion - or any day when you’re wearing something light. Apply to the stain immediately and 9 times out of 10, it disappears. To keep your whites white, this Vanish for whites is brilliant - works on stains too. For red wine stains, you might want to keep this one in the drinks cabinet!

Dye your clothes

And don’t underestimate the power of Dylon - dye faded black back to deep black, dye faded old jeans and give them a new lease of life. Or add some warmth, coolness or softness to anything you own. Be warned, the dye is strong so you might not want to use the whole pack on one item if you are tweaking colours. You can only dye natural fabrics - beware, as many items that are a natural fabric might have synthetic stitching and the dye won’t take to the stitching.

Bobbles and creases

If you aren’t a fan of ironing, then a steamer was made for you. I absolutely love mine and use it a lot. Sometimes only an iron will do, but I’d say in 90% of cases, steaming is great at getting the creases out. It is also a good way of getting rid of bacteria and bringing knitwear back to life - it doesn’t flatten the fibres like ironing does, so it can revitalise knitwear and means you don’t have to wash it so often.

Most knitwear will bobble - from cashmere to synthetic fabrics - so keep a depiller handy and be prepared to spend a bit of time taking care of your knitwear. In theory, cashmere will stop pilling after a while - and then you only have the moths to worry about!

Clothes Storage and Moth Repellant

If you have invested in cashmere, wool or mohair, there’s nothing more annoying that getting out your knitwear for Winter finding it’s been nibbled by moths. In order to stop this from happening, launder or dry clean before putting away - or pop in the freezer in a bag for 24 hours, which will get rid of the moth eggs and bacteria. Fold your knitwear in acid free tissue paper and store away with cedar blocks. Plastic boxes may not be the best way to store fabric, but if you are storing away for a short period (6 months), then you should be ok and there’s less chance of moths getting in. If you’re storing your wedding dress or any vintage items, then take a look at this guide: https://www.vintagevixen.com/pages/how-to-store-vintage-clothing