The Business of Fashion - Avoiding simple mistakes

As we come across close to processing 2 lakh pieces in a month, we come across certain issues that make us wish that these mistakes are corrected at the source. We would like to bring them to your attention so you can make better choices when it comes to your money and the lifetime of the clothes that can be dear to you.

1.      Buy pre-shrunk curtains or get them stitched to measurements after you have cleaned them once

     The most important point and the most problematic lot. The polyester & poly blend curtains are a piece of cake. But the cottons, linens & silks pose a problem even for the most advanced of cleaning technologies. If it’s woven (machine or by hand), it invariably is has warps and wefts and fibres that shrink when in contact with any cleaning solvent. Thereby, curtains do shrink, whether it is cold wash or dry clean, if it is not pre-shrunk. If the inner lining is a natural fibre and if the outer layer is of a thicker and heavier thread-count, obviously the lining would shrink more and would not sit well when draped. 

Our advice: Clean them once and then stitch them to measurements. That way, there is less to no shrinkage on subsequent washes. 

2.     Clean your lighter, thinner drapes more regularly. 

We don’t clean the curtains as often as we should. The heavier curtains are fine but the lighter, thinner silk, organza etc should be cleaned more often. What we see is a mix of several environmental factors - like dust, dirt, sunlight and gravity weakening these curtains that the fibres tear apart if you clean them after a year. The tear like paper even if they go through the gentlest of cycles. 

Our advice: Clean them every couple of months. Getting the dirt and dust out of the way makes them less susceptible to forces of gravity. 

3.     Be careful with the lining and falls.

Most often, if we are not careful, as is the norm, our tailors will choose the most cost-efficient lining and falls for the clothes. The problem with them is they are not dye-fixed nor are they pre-washed. This leads to colour bleed on to the main article and the falls to shrink, leaving the drape of the saree or lehenga in a less-than desirable state where the shrunken falls will have an uneven, unsightly pull at the bottom of the saree. 

Our advice: If the saree is expensive, it is worth the effort to get the lining and falls, washed and ironed before they are stitched. 

4.     High on the bling, high on the money. Down in the dumps on quality - We are talking about little girls’ frocks and dresses.

Yes, no one can turn away from the adorable layered frocks with elaborate bows and coloured stones and fancy glittering brooches and colourful layers. But the problem with these unbranded dresses are that most of these fixtures are just glued on to the fabric. They are not stitched and be it dry cleaning or the gentlest of wash cycles - they tend to fall away. Also, the inner linings. Some are plastic, some are of the weirdest materials that we are amazed that they don’t self-combust. They shrink and shrivel in the most comical ways. 

Our advice: These busy frocks don’t have a lifetime because of the build quality. 

5.     Piping and tassels on fabrics

Same as our complaint on falls and lining. If you are asking your tailor to give a piping and tassels of a different fabric,  on the main fabric, check the former’s quality and colour fast-ness. They will bleed on to the main fabric, no matter what, if they are not checked. 

Our advice: Test the piping and tassel fabric for colour fastness before getting it stitched on to the main fabric. 

6.     Please wear sweat pads if you are wearing a blouse or a top that is fitted comfortably close to your body. 

We have seen thousands of blouses with sweat marks that have leached on to the silk fabric leaving unsightly marks and ruining the silk. Any deodorants, body sprays makes the damage worse. We cannot get rid of these sweat stains on silk without a. Lightening the fabric b. Altering the tensile strength of the fabric. 

Our advice: Wear sweat pads when wearing a blouse. In addition to the advantage that there will not be visible sweat patches, it protects your blouse from these stains and enhances its lifetime.