Question: You just bought fresh, new clothes and you’re super excited to wear them out!

Do you:

A) Put your new clothes in the wash first? or,

B) Prepare them to be worn without washing?

If you said A, congratulations, you’re right. If you said B however, I think you better re-think about how ‘fresh’ your new clothes really are.

Many of us think that it’s okay to wear newly bought clothes straight away without washing because it’s already ‘clean’. Truth is, new clothes are dirtier than they seem. They’re full of chemicals and likely germs, so you NEED to wash your new clothes before wearing them.

Here are the reasons why:

1.  Exposed to harmful chemicals

   During the production process of your clothes, most synthetic fabrics are dyed with azo-aniline dyes, and a preservative chemical gas called Formaldehyde resin is used on the clothes to prevent wrinkles and mildew from developing. These chemicals are not particularly skin friendly and can cause severe skin irritations and reactions, especially to those who may be allergic to them. The reaction will create rashes which are liken to that caused by poison ivy. 

2. Transferable germs

   It is often that you find people trying on clothes in the store because what better way to decide to buy it than to see how it looks on you?! The problem with that is, you don’t know how many people have tried on the item of clothing you bought, let alone how unsanitary those people may be. Just think about the possible ‘invisible’ bacteria that may have been transferred onto the garment from multiple people. Also, other bacteria such as fungus and even head lice may be transferred onto the garment/s on too. 

Final thoughts…

Though these issues may not be as alarming as you might have thought them to be, it’s best to stay on the safe side and ALWAYS wash your newly bought clothes before you wear them. Keep up with good hygiene and keep your skin safe from unwanted chemicals.

If the thought of laundry is the reason you’d rather not wash your clothes, then schedule a laundry & dry cleaning collection with us today and we’ll get that sorted for you for tomorrow!