I don’t care how much I thrift, I still get the ick before I clean the gently used clothes I buy. Because yes, I love the lifestyle of thrifting, but I refuse to inherit the blood, sweat, and tears from someone else into my life.
And no, I don’t buy items with actual blood on them, just in case your mind was going in that direction.
So after an exciting trip from the secondhand stores, I come home with my big bag of clothes and either allow it to sit on the floor for days, or start the cleaning process immediately.
Now as a seasoned thrifter, I’ve developed a system to cleaning used clothes. From the last decade, I made a ton of mistakes trying to strip the ick out of them, and even ruined a white cashmere coat in the process.
Ughhh… I know.
So allow me to give you the best ways to clean the clothes you thrift, and make them new and yours!
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Presoak First
To start the cleaning process, I presoak my gently used clothes in a large storage bin with hot water, white vinegar, baking soda, and laundry detergent. But there’s a method to my madness.
First, you want to separate your clothes from the lights, darks, and fabrics. Never mix a white cotton shirt with blue jeans during this process. You will create a baby blue tone shirt, so yeah… there’s that.
So each pile gets its own storage container. I use very large storage bins like this to fit more clothes in them to soak.
2 Storage Bins
64 Quarts each
You can use your tub if you don’t have anything else, but I don’t recommend it. I used to do that until something stained my tub and it took forever to get it out. So be careful doing so.
Hot Water & Vinegar
After you have your piles ready to soak, put them in the storage bins in the tub, and fill them with hot to warm water. Once the clothes are covered, add a 1/2 cup to 1 cup of white vinegar in the bin.
Usually, I’ll just pour until my ancestors tell me when to stop, but I’m not gonna do that to you. Depending on the amount of clothes in the storage bin, adjust the measurements.
Add Baking Soda
Now, add the baking soda. This is my favorite part. I love hearing it sizzle and make foamy bubbles in this process. While I don’t have any measurements for the baking soda, I will tell you to sprinkle it like you would sprinkle carpet freshener on your carpet before vacuuming.
Last, add your laundry detergent of choice. Add the amount you would use in the washing machine, then use your hands to agitate the mixture into your clothes. You want to concentrate on the garments in a whole, but really focus on the armpit areas and other possible stains.
Let It Soak
Once your done, allow it to sit in this mixture for 2-3 hours. I go back every hour to re-agitate the clothes in the mixture to ensure everything is getting cleansed properly.
When done, if the water has turned any shade of brown, congratulations! You’ve successfully clarified most or all the ick out of your thrifted clothes.
Wring Out Clothes
Now, grab an empty laundry basket, preferably hard plastic, and wring out each item from any excess water. Drain the storage bins, and head to the washing machine.
Wash In Washing Machine
Now it’s time to wash your clothes in the washing machine. But let’s address the elephant in the room first. Now you may be wondering, “Ash, why did you have to do all of that for the presoak when you can do the same thing in the washing machine?”
Well darling, I’m glad you brought that up. See, my washing machine doesn’t allow me to do a presoak in hot water. For some reason, it only soaks in COLD WATER! And in my experience, a good soak won’t happen unless its done in hot or warm water.
But if your washing machine can do that, by all means, DO IT! But if you want to get your hands dirty like I do for some reason, go with the presoak method above.
OKAY! Now that the elephant is address, you can now proceed to washing your clothes in the washing machine. But don’t mix the piles together. Keep them separate for the best end result.
Wash in hot/warm water for lights, and cold for darks. I don’t think dark clothes can withstand two hot water washes without some fading. So be careful.
Do a long cycle if you can, to ensure a thorough clean. Air dry or tumble dry accordingly.
Dry Clean Special Items
Now some items can’t be presoaked or washed in the washing machine at all. Any clothes that has silk, suede, wool, leather, or velvet fabrics must be dry cleaned. Otherwise, you’ll end up like me trying to presoak a white wool coat and completely ruining it.
Don’t do that.
And since we love the sustainable lifestyle, you can find a green dry cleaner, since others use harmful chemicals to clean clothes. That line right there sounds like a walking contradiction.
So if you don’t know of any green dry cleaners in your area, do a quick Google search and type in “eco friendly dry cleaners near me”. And a list of businesses will pop up.
I hope this helps you.
Happy thrifting.
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