Keeping Your Brightest Dress Shirts From Fading

Perhaps the most versatile component of any formal ensemble also happens to be one of the most ubiquitous, and we're of course referring to none other than the dress shirt. While neckties come as a close second in this regard due to their innate ability to enhance virtually any style or look, the dress shirt is the fundamental backbone that allows a suit or tuxedo to function both stylistically and practically. Dress shirts, whether they stand alone or pair with a tie, synergistically work with the suits that envelop them and go a long way in setting the tone of an overall outfit. Aside from the suit itself, a dress shirt will have the greatest amount of visible surface area, and this attribute in combination with the dress shirt's color and pattern will have a profound impact on whether one's personal style shines through or falls flat.

As we've established that dress shirts aren't exactly an optional component of formal wear, dress shirt maintenance is just as important as maintaining suits, trousers, jackets, tuxedos, and sport coats. And because they tend to be worn more often than suits, they can also experience more wear and tear than the outer layers of formal attire do as a result. Proper storage, handling, and laundering methods seem to be simple enough to understand, but to further complicate things, different styles of shirts require different methods of care. The material of a shirt is an important aspect to consider, but the color of a given shirt also plays a part in determining a dress shirt's longevity. Brightness unfortunately fades over time, but there are several ways to mitigate and slow down this inevitable phenomenon. In this piece, we'll go over the best ways to keep your brightest dress shirts from

fading, so you can focus more of your attention on style rather than worrying too much about replacing your shirts when they start to lose their luster.

--Brightness As It Relates To Material--

When it comes to shirt fabric and the color of the dye used, the general rule of thumb is that longevity will be inversely proportional to the color saturation of the given fabric. Keep in mind, however, that this is not always so, especially when you consider how frequently a person might wear a shirt in a given month, as this can greatly affect the longevity of one's clothing. On the other hand, longevity is also closely tied to the actual material of the shirt, regardless of the color of the dye, so understand that there can be multiple factors at play in determining how long a shirt will typically last. Some materials also tend to hold their brightness much longer than others even if cotton, for example, doesn't shine quite as brightly as silk in the beginning. The common thread here is that there is always going to be a bit of a tradeoff in terms of balancing shirt brightness with longevity, and we'll get into why some materials tend to be more even-handed than others in this regard.

Across the board, cotton is by far the most common material used in dress shirt manufacture. It's durable, it's comfortable, and it does a very good job of keeping moisture away from the body, so it makes sense why cotton is and has remained such a popular material. As cotton fabric is derived from a natural source, it is unfortunately, over time, prone to degradation, in particular when cotton fibers are dyed to give us those stylish deep blue hues and bright pastel shades. If you hang onto any cotton dress shirt for long enough, you'll likely notice that its color isn't quite as bright as when you purchased it. Even when you take extra care to not

put too much unnecessary stress on your cotton shirts during the laundering process, those bright colors will tend to fade and lose their initial boldness.

Cotton blends tend to fare a little bit better in terms of retaining their bold colors compared to 100 percent cotton fabric, but the tradeoff is slightly less comfort. When we're talking about dress shirts, cotton blends normally interweave strands of synthetic fibers into the material, thereby boosting the shirt's durability and color retention for longer periods of time. As a result, the benefit of a blended material is that you don't have to take as much care when you launder it, but in order to keep those colors shining brightly for longer, you might want to anyway. Using lower water temperatures and separating colors between laundry cycles at a bare minimum is just one simple way to keep your dress shirts bright and bold for longer.

While silk isn't quite as popular as cotton due to its normally higher price tag, a silk dress shirt can make a bold statement when applied to formal settings, even without bright colors. Because silk is a delicate fabric, gentlemen who have silk dress shirts tend to either hand-wash or dry clean them, in which case both processes in and of themselves will prolong the life and color of the fabric. Silk shirts aren't so much prone to fading as they are to tearing or coming apart due to mishandling and improper maintenance, so careful storage and laundering techniques are a must.

Although we tend to discourage the use of synthetic fabrics in the context of formal wear, nylon and polyester dress shirts are certainly as common as cotton ones are, and have a few added bonuses in terms of color brightness and durability.

As synthetic fabrics are inherently more durable than their natural counterparts, the bright colors of a synthetic dress shirt won't fade very easily, even with heavy use and less delicate methods of care. If bold, bright colors are a must for a particular occasion, consider keeping a few synthetic or semi-synthetic dress shirts on hand for those less formal evenings out, and you'll have something that's interchangeable with more casual daytime affairs, as well.

--Colors, Patterns, and How To Handle Them--

It's quite difficult to pinpoint exactly when a white dress shirt no longer carries that same brightness as you did when you bought it, and some would even argue that white dress shirts are incapable of fading at all. Although fading is harder to spot, they would be wrong in assuming that a white shirt will stay that same shade forever. In some cases, a white dress shirt might even be more prone to discoloration, since it will stain more easily and is more susceptible to subtle changes in both indoor and outdoor air quality. But before you start running for the bleach and adding it into your washing machine (seriously, don't do this), you have to consider that most dress shirts will require a much greater attention to detail than, say, towels, bedding, or undershirts. In order to keep those white shirts shining brightly, you might be better off taking them to the dry cleaners. But if you insist on doing it yourself, always make sure to use non-chlorinated bleach. Too much chlorine can cause a yellowish hue to form on your white dress shirts, so to be on the safer side, it's best to use stain-lifers that use hydrogen peroxide instead. To continue erring on the side of caution, hand-washing your white shirts, at least during the bleaching process, will put less wear and tear on your shirt fabrics.

For your other patterns and colors, maintaining that initial pristine boldness is a little trickier. Before you do anything at all, make sure to check the labels on the shirts for proper care instructions, as some fabrics require a little more finesse than others. Separating light-colored dress shirts from dark ones is always a good habit to get into when you're doing your laundry, as this will prevent colors from bleeding into each other. But there are other things you can do besides the obvious.

If you choose to launder your clothes at home, make sure that when you wash your dress shirts with patterns and colors, do so on a more delicate setting on your washing machine. While the repeated jerky motions of a typical wash cycle are known for unraveling fabrics over time, this can also take a toll on the dyes used in the fabrics. While many swear by hand-washing their dress shirts, this is not always practical, so if you decide to throw them in the machine, try to use a setting that's gentler on your clothes, even if it may take more time to complete.

Another thing you can do is add fabric softener to a load of dress shirts. Fabric softener reduces friction while your clothes are being laundered, and will therefore reduce the amount of time it takes for the dyes in the fabric of your clothes to fade. This small trick works well for shirts with light and dark colors. Just make sure that you don't use too much, otherwise you might end up staining your clothes inadvertently.

It's no secret that heat can damage clothes, especially when you're dealing with any sort of dress shirts with sensitive fabrics. If you choose to dry your dress shirts in the dryer, always avoid using the highest heat setting, and you might even want to take them out before the cycle is done and air dry them for the remainder.

Just like hand-washing clothes, time doesn't always make this practical, so keeping the heat setting on your dryer to the lowest level you can get away with should prevent your dress shirts from fading prematurely.

Whether you're just starting out in the professional world or need to beef up your wardrobe for the New Year, Enzo Custom has you covered, head to toe. Don't hesitate to make an appointment with us at one of our showrooms, or if you feel more comfortable at home you can chat with one of our expert clothiers via videoconference.