How to: Clean Suede Shoes!

Suede Shoes Before-

Suede Shoes After-

We've covered general leather cleaning and how to clean leather lounge suites, now it's the shoe's turn!

Leather is a hard-wearing fabric perfect as a shoe covering. However, our feet are often subjected to the harshest terrain and can result in dry, cracked leather shoes that are falling apart at the seams. Shining and polishing shoes has been around since the invention of foot coverings, adding years to the life of your leather. Follow these steps for caring for leather shoes, from boots to children’s school shoes.

HOW OFTEN?

Good quality leather shoes should be polished once a month to preserve their life if they’re worn regularly. As you could clean your dry cleaning items or other specialty wearables, clean and polish shoes whenever necessary. If shoes are worn occasionally, clean once per month and polish and shine only as needed.

LEATHER CLEANERS

Before polishing and waterproofing footwear, it needs to be cleaned. Dirt, debris and other matter easily embed themselves into leather. A good cleaning will also help remove scuffs and other minor stains from shoes. To clean leather properly, determine which type of leather you have. Smooth leathers are treated differently than suede.

CLEANING TIPS

Salt stains can removed from shoes with a mixture of 1 cup hot water and 1 tablespoon white vinegar. Mix well and apply to shoe with a soft rag, gently scrubbing affected area. Allow to air dry.

Shoe brushes can also be used on leather shoes to help remove dirt and debris.

LEATHER SHOE POLISHES

Shoe polishes come in four basic premixed forms: waxes, pastes, liquids and creams.

Wax

• Will give a glossy shine and prevent moisture from seeping into leather

• Used on shoes which are regularly exposed to outdoor elements

• Can dry shoes, causing them to crack. So it’s important to use conditioner first

Creams and Pastes

• Add moisture to your shoe

• As they penetrate the surface of leather, they cover scratches and other imperfections

• Work well on all types of shiny or smooth leathers

Liquid

• Easy to apply

• Doesn’t penetrate or condition leather

SUEDE LEATHER

Suede shoes require special attention. Suedes and patent leather should never be shined. They can be cleaned, waterproofed and conditioned, though.

Suedes can be cleaned by rubbing stains and imperfections with a common pencil eraser or small piece of fine grain sandpaper. Once cleaned, rub suede with a bath or kitchen towel to help restore its nap and remove any shiny or damaged spots. Condition with specialized suede conditioner.

For more on how to clean your beloved at home sign up to our garment alerts! 

Product Test Run!

Monday mornings are filled with phone calls about dresses worn out on the weekend that now are coloured brown, fake tan being the number one culprit!

Of course dry cleaning ( special mixture of chemicals) removes fake tan with ease, along with special care and a good press ensuring the dress is like new again! However if you are like me an enjoy wearing a fake tan and white, it is more like a daily fight to clean garments with fake tan. So, I was nominated to be the new test run take home bunny for Cinderella's Stain Remover.

Firstly, I would like to point out that the smell of this product instantly takes me to summer days drinking pina coladas by the pool, how could you not love it!

The First Garment:

A white cotton tee, yes very simple but one of my wardrobe staples! Tan marks clearly on the arms of the tee.

The direction: Test on a small discrete surface area before commencing to ascertain suitability. Can be used on Carpet, (wow, I can attack those nasty red wine stains left from last christmas!) upholstery, clothing fabric. Spray the offending stain then rinse with a damp cloth using a light dabbing motion. Do not rub the stain. Advanced stains may need extra application.

 

So with the instructions I spray two sprays onto the affected area. Dab with a cloth and water, the tan marks suddenly disappear. I throw the tee in the wash, hang to dry. The following day the tan marks are gone.

 

Garment Two:

A strapless cocktail dress, worn twice. There is one very noticeable tan mark around the top of the dress, it could also be bronzer there as well. Please don't judge!

I start to think that if I drench the bodice of the dress with the stain remover and leave it to sit for five minutes I wont have to dab out the stain as much. Five minutes pass..... the stain still appears so I roll my sleeves up and get dabbing. 10 minutes of dabbing and the stain is less severe, I spray more stain remover and leave for another 5 minutes, the stain disappeared. Strangely enough I soak the dress in water and leave to air dry.

Of course I pressed the dress and there are no more tan marks, until next outing of course!

 

The product smells great, can be used on all different types of fabric and the best thing of all, it doesn't contain any nasty chemicals. No bleach, just plant based stain removing ingredient. The label also says its 100% people proof however Im not sure it is boyfriend friendly however I have left it conveniently out for him to try haha....

 

SHOP IT NOW and try yourself you may just surprise yourself. I know I am a loyal Cinderella product user!

 

If tan removal is just not your thing bring it on in to elaundry we will look after your after party mis haps!

 

Stay EDUCATED! With elaundry's garment alerts!

 



Safety class 102: Chemicals in the laundry!

Continuing on from Monday, I will now highlight the importance of storing your laundry products correctly to ensure your little ones are safe in your laundry!

If you haven't been converted to organic and natural laundry products and even if you have it is important to store them properly to ensure the safety of your little ones! Intrigued by natural and organic laundry products click here!

From bleach to stain removers they can be toxic if consumed. Wipe, mop and clean buckets, floors and laundry tubs to avoid any chance of your little one coming across such harmful chemicals. If you are using liquid capsules or soft packs if it highly important to keep these products up high away form the chance of your child digesting such products. liquid capsules are tempting to children as they have a squishy type texture.  One squirt of a bleach to the eyes of a child can cause cornel burns. This is a real and very usual case which many emergency rooms see!

Remember never leave any type of chemical in the grasp for your children.

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Stain Alert : Remove Mildew Naturally

Firstly what is it? Its a tough harder when trying to treat something you have no idea about, mildew is a mold or fungus.

How do I remove it?
This seems more prevalent to the bachelor but leaving wet towels in a laundry basket or hamper, or even worst leaving a load of freshly washed clothing in the washer for a few days creates mildew and somewhat of a mouldy smell. Relax, it is easy enough to remove the mildew and smell, all two cups of white distilled vinegar to a hot wash. Wash clothing on usual cycle then wash again with usual detergent.

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Handy Hints: For the home!

Give your tub a scrub:

Here's a nontoxic yet very effective way to clean your bath tub: Clean your tub at least once away to keep nasties at bay!

 

Add one teaspoon of liquid soap such as Eco Store Cream Cleanser, add several drops of an antibacterial essential oil such as Bosistos Eucalyptus Oil to one cup of baking soda. Add just enough water to form a paste, and use it with a sponge or brush to scour bathtub surfaces. Enjoy a clean tub!

 

Find Eco-Friendly Towels

Generally, towels are composed of cotton, a crop that accounts for about 25 percent of the world's insecticide use, such insecticides include some of the planet's most hazardous chemicals. YES! It's true! To add matter to the fact manufacturers often use dyes based from petroleum composed in a high polluting process generally leaving chemicals gushing into waterways, ravaging aquatic habitats, and clinging to the towels you bury your face in. Cotton looks like your new worst enemy! So in turn look and search out for eco-friendly organic cotton and or bamboo towels such products are made with plant-based or low-impact dyes.

 

Turn Off the Damn Tap!

Running the bathroom tap for a matter of just two minutes while brushing your teeth wastes more than 6 Liters of water shocking isn't it. And as our water bill grows and grows it is the small things that save us money!

             

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Garment Alert

The garment:

A pink, white, black geometric printed design cotton jacket with various size black plastic stones around the neck, front, hem and cuffs. The care label reads, " Professional Dry Clean Only" with a warning that states, "press and steam on backside". There are no international cleanability symbols.

The problem:

After drycleaning in perchlorethylene solvent the black plastic trim partially dissolved resulting in an objectionable appearance to the trim, as well as self-staining of the base fabric and the lining. The plastic used to make this decorative design dissolves during drycleaning. Steam finishing and/or heat are not factors, so the label warning is not viable.

Who's responsible?

The manufacturer, since all components on a garment must be able to withstand the recommended professional cleaning process, as labeled.

What to do:

This jacket should be returned to the place of purchase or manufacturer.

This multi-color print jacket had plastic trim that dissolved during acceptable drycleaning procedures. This close up view of the lower front portion reveals the dissolved stones and self-staining of nearby fabric and lining after drycleaning.

Since the trim damage is related to solvent power, a process using a lower power solvent (such as petroleum, hydrocarbon, or GreenEarth) may have been successful. In some cases, depending on dye colorfastness and fiber type, professional wet cleaning may be an option. However, according to the United States care labeling regulation, this garment could be drycleaned safely in any solvent including perc. This interpretation may differ in other countries.

For more information on other garment alerts check out Elaundry's home page.

Stain Alert: Remove Rust

 

Man proof your laundry! YES- I said it.... As we all know men get into all sorts of mud, dirty and yuck from sweat to blood. However one that is somewhat an uncommon but garment destroying is rust. It may not happen every day but pulled over to the side of the road with a flat tyre the man in your life may just get a touch of rust on his favorite power suit, slacks or shirt.

 

So here's a simple how to guide in removing rust with the help of a simple rust remover, these rust removers are generally safe enough to be used on fabric. The acid within these removers are the key ingredient. However always check your care label before attacking the stain with a rust remover product.

 

Lemon juice is also a great acid based remover and at times this is all that is needed. Add a touch of salt and leave to dry in the sun this can be all it takes and is best used on colour fast items of clothing.

 

Avoid putting the rust stained garment in the dryer this will only cook the stain further into the garment.

 

And when in doubt bring the garment into elaundry and we will bring it back to life!

 

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Product Alert: Cinderella Multi-Purpose Spray

Baby sitting five children over the weekend saw my house lookig more like a war zone than a stylish home. So with a spare hour inbetween dinner and showers, I reached for the Cinderella Multipurpose spray.

I hit the kitchen table a few squirts saw hand prints and the rest of dinner wiped off in seconds, all with a fresh minty smell.

The stainless steal fridge also had hand prints and grott all over it, not any more, again off in seconds.

I attached the plastic toys now as germs seem to be spreading quicker than anything in the months leading up to winter so with a squirt here and a squirt there they smelt and felt clean again.

I dont have to worry about the chemicals in this cleaner why? Because they are organic perfect when dealing with five little terrors running around the house!

So why not try it! Family friendly cleaning products are the way of the future! Check it out HERE!

Repair or replace: When is it time to replace?

Time to throw your washing machine out?

Laundry is one thing and when your laundry appliances seem to die you are in a whole world of trouble, many of our emergency pick ups are from customers calling because their washer or dryer has decided to give in, and its going to take a week or so to have a handy man fix it. So is it really worth fixing the machine or just replacing it?

The answer is easy, if the repair is going to cost more than half the price to replace, get a new one! Its going to cost you added extras to get the washing done by sending it to a dry cleaners, although we really don't mind looking after your laundry at all! Finding your new appliance is not as stress full as you think do your research and always ask questions don't be afraid to bargain with the sales man, he/she wont be offended and you will get yourself a new machine and have clean laundry again!

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Handy Home Hints: Disinfect sick bed linen

Husband got "man flu"? Kids got the sniffles? Yes its about that time of the year, Flu Season. 

Here's how to disinfect sick bed laundry, in order to decrease the likelihood that your family will get sick this season.

A big part of taking care of someone who is sick is making them feel as comfortable as possible. And, if they have something contagious, it's also important to keep everyone else in the household healthy.

The best sheets for a sick bed are those that can be washed in hot water and disinfected with chlorine bleach. You will probably need to change the sheets everyday, if not more often. Sometimes just changing the pillowcases will make the sick one feel more comfortable.

For your own protection, place the sheets in a laundry basket or hamper to carry them to the washer. If you carry them in your arms near your face, some germs can remain on your clothing or hands and cause problems.

If you have blood, vomit or medicine stains, treat these first. Sheets should then be washed in the hottest water possible with detergent and chlorine bleach to help kill germs, bacteria and head lice. Line-drying sheets in the sun will also help to sanitize them.

Still got a question? Facebook, twitter or email elaundry we would love to hear your feed back!

How to Remove Color Bleeding in Laundry

How to Remove Color Bleeding in Laundry

Ever opened the lid of the washing machine and gazed at your freshly washed clothes with pleasure that quickly turn to horror? If you have ever experienced this then you know the disaster of colors bleeding in the laundry. Dark-colored clothes sometimes transfer colors to lighter-colored clothing if you wash them together by mistake. While this can also happen to some degree with dark clothes, when it happens to your white or light-colored clothing, it can be devastating. When colors bleed in the laundry, take a few quick steps to minimize the permanent damage.

1. Sort through your laundry load and remove all of the clothing that has color stains. Try to find the article of clothing that caused the problem also, and remove it from the laundry load. Place any clothes that do not have color stains into the dryer, and finish drying these clothes.

2. Place the color-stained clothes back into the washing machine. Fill the washing machine with cold water just until the clothes are under the water level. Set the washing machine to an agitate cycle, and agitate them for three to four minutes.

3. Stop the washing machine. If the clothes are all white, add approximately 1/2 cup chlorine bleach. If the clothes are not entirely white, use color-safe bleach instead. Use 1 cup of white vinegar instead of bleach if you prefer.

4. Start the agitate cycle on the washing machine again, and agitate the clothing for five minutes. Turn the washing machine off, and soak the clothes for approximately 15 minutes.

5. Drain the water from the washing machine and add an appropriate amount of laundry detergent to wash the clothing in a regular cold wash cycle. Set the washing machine to a normal wash cycle, and wash the clothing normally.

6. Examine all of the clothing after the wash cycle finishes. If the color stains are gone, dry the clothing in the dryer as you normally would. If the color stains persist, repeat Steps 2 through 5 to try to remove the stains again.

Dye Migration During Dry Cleaning

Problem Garment: Dye Migration During Dry Cleaning

The problem: Colored yarns, trims, panels or printed designs bleed during dry cleaning, causing dye transfer and staining of the lighter areas of the same garment.- UHHHHH is generally the reply to this problem, followed by, "this is an expensive garment"- Read on to be informed!
What does it look like? In most cases, only local areas of the lighter color fabric will show transfer of the fugitive dye. This can be seen in random splotches or streaks or only along the nearby edges where the colour panels or yarn meet. in other cases, the dye bleeding may have discolored the entire lighter areas of the garment.
What Causes it? The dye or pigment used to create the darker coloured fabric, yarn or design print was soluble in dry cleaning solvent. Therefore, during this professional dry cleaning this solvent soluble dye bleeds out and stains lighter areas of the garment.

Can It be Prevented? There is no way the dry cleaner can prevent solvent soluble dyes from bleeding during dry cleaning. Also, since most colors on dry cleanable items are colorfast to dry cleaning, the cleaner would have no cause to suspect that any particular fashion would have a problem with colorfastness.
Who Is Responsible? When fabrics are properly dyed there will be no fading and dye migration during cleaning. The textile manufacturer who applied the original fabric color or design is responsible for its colorfastness, therefore, the manufacturer must be held responsible when such dyes fail in cleaning.
If this happens to you work with your dry cleaner, and generally they will be able to send the garment off to the Dry Cleaning Institute of Australia to follow the case up. We are here to help!

For more information on this topic read more on elaundry!

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Elaundry- Valet Van Man Here at your Service

Shared your morning coffee with your shirt and tie again?
Snag in your stockings?
Suit covered in pet hair?
Winter Static making you look like you have been electricuted?

One call, One txt msg, One email, elaundry's New York style valet man will be at your every office emergency need. Equipped with everything from Pantyhose to Anti Static Spray and ofcourse urgent dry cleaning deliveries, No more embarracing office meetings! Call: North 3868 1311 South: 3394 2488 Email: valet@elaundry.com.au TXT: 0438 80 80 80.

HOW TO: Its a Greasy Situation

Winter is around the corner and raining days are the usual around this time of the year your dryer is getting its first real work out of the year. Ever wonder why sometimes your clothing comes out of the dryer with a grease spot or two?

The "grease" stains are being caused by your liquid fabric softener and/or dryer sheets leaving deposits on your laundry. Yes so choose your fabric cleaning products wisely- Murchison-Hume being a favorite of the elaundry team not only for its ability to remove stains all while being eco friendly to the environment.

To erase these types of stains, try rubbing the spots with a wet bar of soap or liquid dish washing soap and then rewash.

Don't use laundry detergent because it can actually set in the stains.

1. To avoid the spots, place the dryer sheet on the top of the clothes and start the dryer immediately.

2. Don't overload the dryer and don't bury the sheet in the middle of the load. Dryer sheets should not be used when you are using air fluff or low heat.

For liquid softener, dilute with an equal amount of warm water before adding to the washer to help disperse the liquid.

3. If your machine has an automatic dispenser, clean it out regularly by flushing with hot, hot water. You'll be amazed at the clumps that will fall out YUCK! It's those clumps that stain your laundry!

If you are at dis-pare with all this rain, why not bring your 'dirty duds' into elaundry- remember wash dry fold all for $34.95. Contact us today. Easy!! Call- 07 3394 2488 or simply email.

Still got a question? Would love to hear from you! Email us!

Laundry Bag: Product Alert

Tackling a Red Wine stain is somewhat of a traumatic experience, YES white skirt now a red wine skirt indeed it can be traumatic to say the least! To avoid these mis-haps elaundry has compiled some great and well tested solutions to your problems.  

If you're out and about, there are a few things you can do in the very short term to treat a red wine stain before it sets. First, don't panic - wherever you are, you're likely to have access to one of the following: club soda, salt, or white wine. Start by moistening a clean napkin or cloth with soda water and blot the stain carefully, or do the same with white wine. If you only have access to salt, pour a generous amount on the stain and wait for a few minutes, then rinse with cold water.

Tackling Red Wine Stains at Home

These quick fixes should be able to get you through dinner or a cocktail hour, and at least lighten the stain enough that when you're talking to people, you don't have to worry if they're secretly laughing at you in their heads. Once you get home, it's time to get bring out the big guns.

Start by making a great non-bleach based universal stain remover by mixing one part dish-washing liquid and two parts hydrogen peroxide in a small bowl. The soap will make the stain soluble, and allow the peroxide to do its trick.

Laundering Red Wine Stains

One quick caveat here for the laundry uninitiated: peroxide does act like bleach, so be sure not to use this miracle mix on fabrics that are not either colorfast or white. Always be sure to check your tags as well - if they happen to read "Dry Clean Only" or if you think the color is likely to run, your safest bet is taking your stain to the cleaners. Soak your stain for about 20 minutes, then wash in the hottest water your fabric will endure. Remember to NEVER put your garment in the dryer until your stain is completely gone.

Solutions for Tough Red Wine Stains

After the soda and the salt and the miracle mix and the laundering, if you're still having trouble, it might just be your dish-washing liquid. I hate to play favorites here, but everyone seems to agree on this one: use the blue kind, of the brand that starts with a "D" and rhymes with "lawn"...

Still got a question? Email Us we love laundry and would love to hear from you! If not follow us on Facebook and Twitter for up to date information on everything laundry and home keeping!

Penny Pincher: Save Money by Being Green!

Simple ways to avoid the money hungry washer and dryer! Enjoy!

Go for Texture

Textured fabrics provide camouflage for dirt and stains much better than flat, shiny weaves. Saving on washing and drying!

Read the Label

Always read the care label before you make an apparel purchase. Does it require hand washing or hot water for cleaning. This all may save you a lot of your time in the long run time you can spend with family and friends instead of the laundry room.

Go for the Cold

Heating water for the washer takes a great deal of energy - about one-third of the energy expenditure per load. Use only cold water, preferably in a high-efficiency washer that opts for low water levels.

Choose the Right Detergent

Select a detergent that works well in cold water Bosistos laundry powder is eco friendly and will work well in cold water. If you are using a high-efficiency top or front-loading washer, be sure that you have an he detergent. Using regular detergent in one of these machines can result in oversudsing, which will actually leave your clothing less clean.

Use Less Detergent

Try using less than the recommended amount and boost the efficiency of any detergent by adding 1/2 cup of baking soda to every load.

Use the Air and Sun

Line dry or air dry clothing to eliminate the use of clothes dryers.



Product alert: Anti-Static Spray

We've all experienced it - that uncomfortable and annoying static that causes clinging, bunching, sparking, dust attraction and unpleasant shocks when touching objects. How embaracing! Nothing worst than walking through the city, with a static filled skirt that has stick to your panty hose! Now that is cringe worthy!
However you can banish static with Statique Anti-Static Spray - an instantaneous water-based spray which prevents static build up on fabrics (not just your clothes!)

Simply spray directly onto clothing, into your clothes dryer, in a rinse cycle or onto car seats to stop static in its tracks. It is simple and easy to use, and will eradicate all signas of static!

Why not give it a go this winter, and be static free!
Shop it! NOW!
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Elaundry Nighmare Stain: Blood

Each week we have been highlighting Brisbane's nightmare stains, as can be seen on the elaundry web site you can also have your say! This week we will highlighting how to remove blood- One of those stains that never seems to come out no matter what however, elaundry is here to your rescue.

Fresh protein stains can be removed by soaking and agitating or rubbing the stain in cold water before washing. These stains contain other ingredients but protein needs treatment first. Never use hot water because it cooks the protein making the stain hard to remove.

If the stain is dried or old, scape or brush off any crusted matter, then soak in cold water using a liquid detergent with color-safe bleach. After pre-soaking for 30 minutes and launder in warm - not hot - water with detergent. If stain remains, soak an additional 30 minutes, then rewash.

If the garment is dry clean only, come on into elaundry and we will fix your nightmare. Firstly to ensure we get that mess of a stain please point out and identify the stain to our helpful staff we are only more than happy to help.

Still got a question? Need some elaundry help? Feel free to contact us! 

Product Alert: Statuque Anti-Static Spray

We've all experienced it - that uncomfortable and annoying static that causes clinging, bunching, sparking, dust attraction and unpleasant shocks when touching objects.Never fear statique because elaundry has found your answer, Statique Anti-Static Spray.

Now you can banish static with Statique Anti-Static Spray - an instantaneous water-based spray which prevents static build up on fabrics (not just your clothes!)

Simply spray directly onto clothing, into your clothes dryer, in a rinse cycle or onto car seats to stop static in its tracks.

So now we have your static situation under control you can enjoy winter for what it really is, freezing cold!

Garment Alert: Keep SATIN looking soft, luxe and FAB!

Satin is a luxurious fabric woven to have a glossy face and a soft, slippery texture. Originally made of silk, it is now available in acetate, rayon, cotton, nylon and polyester. -AMAZING!

We here at elaundry love our clients and love keep our fabrics looking the best they can be! So here are few helpful and handy hints on how to clean satin!
Always read the care labels and know the fiber content. Acetate and silk fiber satins should be dry cleaned. Others can be washed using warm or cool water, regular detergent and a medium cycle.

For washable satins, they can be allowed to drip-dry or dried in the dryer on medium heat. If ironing is needed, use a low setting.

When in question contact elaundry we are always happy to help no matter how big a stain might be!