3.2 how do i keep black clothes black?
From: Sarah Bell
Machine wash in cold water only, with other dark clothes, using Ivory Snow or some kind of soap that bills itself as environmentally safe. 95% of the time, I hang black garments to dry instead of tumble-drying them.
From: J. Patrick Platter
To help prevent fading, wash the article inside-out. Since the fabric wears down from grinding against the washing machine tub, other clothes, etc., turning it inside-out will spare the exposed surface. Also, I even iron things inside out to prevent shine, scorch, and fade on the outside. It doesn't look as nice as it could, but it's a good trade-off.
From: Starriest
One of the reasons our dark clothes fade is the huge amount of chlorine in our municipal water supplies. As we all know, chlorine bleaches. I saw a report on this just a sort while ago. It said to help prevent this problem, use either an additive (or detergent with one already in it) that neutralized the chlorine. Make sure you add the detergent before putting the clothes in. I can't remember for sure the list of detergents they said had the neutralizer, but one for sure was Cheer Color-Guard.
From: B.B. Bean
Use the detergents with the Cotton Incorporated logo -- they have a special enzyme that helps keep cotton from fading.
From: JohnnyV
The best way to keep your blacks black is to make your water highly ionic. In layman's terms, pour a cup of salt or vinegar into the water. I use baking soda. Organic dyes hate an ionic medium and will cling to the fabric to avoid the ions in the water.
From: Kris Dow
Resign yourself to occasionally needing to redye things, no matter how you wash them. :) (Ime, blacks just do eventually fade from wear and tear, etc.) I do this every so often (maybe once or twice a year, atm) with clothes like jeans and cotton t-shirts, and it's not too much trouble if you have access to a washing machine. Most machine-washable clothing will stand up to being dyed.
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