How to Prevent Fading in Clothes ?

Many people love dark clothing because it is versatile. After wearing your favorite navy blue pants or a little black dress a few times, you may notice that these colors fade very quickly or, even worse, the dye may spread and stain other light-colored items.

If you want your clothes to keep their vibrant color for a long time, it's important to follow a few simple rules. First of all, facing the problem of clothes fading in the wash is often a headache for many people. To prevent things from losing their color, certain measures should be followed.

Often we allow a black dress to lose its rich color over time, attributing this to the natural wear and tear of the garment. With each wash, clothes gradually lose their color and darker shades become less saturated, while bright clothes can take on unpleasant gray tones.

However, there are several steps you can take to prolong the brightness and aviod clothes fading. In addition to separating your clothes by color, effective laundry techniques and proper care can help keep them looking their best for years to come. By using simple laundry tips and tricks, you can keep your clothes bright and fresh. For example, choosing the right laundry products, separating by color, and using delicate washing modes will help your clothes retain their original look, making them almost like new even after multiple washes. Such steps will allow you to enjoy your favorite clothes in unchanged brightness for a long time.

So, what are the common situations when clothes fade in the wash? How can you avoid clothes fading while washing? This article will resolve your doubts once and for all.

The main reasons why clothes fading in the wash are poor-quality fabrics or incorrectly selected washing programs.

If the fabric is made of thin, unstable fibers, it may stretch and fade during washing. You can prevent color loss by washing on a delicate cycle.

When clothing manufacturers use inefficient dyeing methods or cheap dyes, there is a risk of clothes fading. Sometimes the dyes are simply unstable or don't set on the fabric for long. This is one of the reasons why it is so important to separate linens by color. However, their peculiarity is that you can't tell by looking whether the fabric is shedding or not. In some cases, a white shirt can remain the same color even when washed with darker items.

Another reason why the fabric can fade during washing is excessive concentration of detergent or its wrong selection. Aggressive detergents, stain removers, and bleaches can damage the structure of the fibers, causing the dye to leach out of them. Always choose detergents designed for specific types of fabrics.

Clothes fading can be caused not only by washing but also by drying in the sun. Therefore, be careful and take care of your clothes according to the manufacturers' recommendations.

There's nothing like taking washed clothes out of the washing machine and finding that the colors of colored or dark shirts or pants have faded into dull versions of their original hue. Clothing loses its vibrant hue when warm water breaks down the individual fibers in the fabric, causing the dye to be released.

If you want to avoid clothes fading, you need to follow a few rules. In addition to separating items by color, you can take several steps to ensure that your clothes stay bright for as long as possible.

Read the labels on new clothes
The first thing to look at is how you should wash these items: in the washing machine, by hand, or take them to a dry cleaner. Also, check if you can use bleach. Finally, see if your clothes can be ironed and how they should dry. By following the instructions on the label, you will keep the item in good condition longer.

Turn your clothes inside out
This is one of the easiest things you can do to avoid clothes fading. By turning your clothes inside out, they will stay just as clean in the washing machine, but you will reduce friction (rubbing the fibers against each other) on the outside of the garment. While you're doing this, make sure the zippers are fastened before you throw them in the washer to minimize friction and avoid snagging.

Wash your clothes in cold or warm water
This is another easy task, especially since most fading is caused by the fact that hot water relaxes the fibers in the fabric and makes them more likely to break down. Using warm water instead of hot water will help prevent clothes fading during wash, but cool or cold water will help even more.

Don't overload the washing machine
Loading your washing machine with as much laundry as possible will create more friction between your clothes, which we already know is a big no-no. It also increases the risk of your clothes not being cleaned or rinsed thoroughly enough during the wash, so make sure your wash drum is full, but not full to the brim.

Keep your clothes out of the sun
The sun's ultraviolet rays are another major contributor to your clothes fading. You can still hang your clothes to dry outside but try to choose a shaded spot with plenty of room for air circulation. This way, you'll still get the benefits of air drying in the sun while avoiding discoloration in direct sunlight.

Check colorfastness
Before washing dark items for the first time, always check the colorfastness, or the fabric's ability to retain dyes without fading or spreading. To do this, wipe a damp cotton swab over the inside seam or selvage and if there is color left on the swab afterward, you'll know to wash it separately or with the same colors.

Bonus Tip: Care instructions, such as "wash separately/separate" and "wash with similar colors," often indicate that the fabric may be unstable in color or contain excess dye that clothes may fade in the first few washes.

Use detergent for dark-colored clothes
The choice of detergent can also affect the color of your clothes. Choose detergents specially formulated for colored or dark clothing. These products retain the dye, keeping the color-saturated, and can avoid clothes fading.

To prevent clothes from fading or to refresh color, the following home remedies are suitable:

Vinegar
Vinegar is a true all-purpose remedy. It acts as a natural fabric softener and ensures that detergent chemicals do not ruin your clothes. Moreover, it envelops the color pigment like a protective mantle. Add some vinegar to a basin of cold water and let your clothes lie in this mixture to prevent clothes fading during the wash.

Milk
To restore the shining whiteness of a yellowed or discolored blouse, put it in milk, preferably overnight. The lactic acid will make the colors clearer again.

Leavening agent
Add half a cup of leavening agent before washing to brighten white clothes. In addition, the leavening agent also freshens black clothes as it is chlorine-free. Truly a multi-purpose product!

Coffee
This hot beverage helps to look fresher not only for you but also for your dark clothes. Coffee acts as a natural dye and enhances the black color. Soak your clothes in coffee and then wash them at a low temperature. Extra tip: black tea is also perfect as a natural dye for your black laundry.

Table salt
Popular housekeeping textbooks from the early part of the last century urged housewives to add a tablespoon of table salt when washing. It not only softens the material, such as jeans but also fixes the color, preventing clothes fading. Some people claim that salt can even slightly refresh already washed colors, but this is still closer to an urban legend, nevertheless, the benefit of using salt will still be. Table salt can be added to water both for hand and machine washing - don't worry, at such a small concentration salt will not harm the machine.

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, your linen still fades. If this is not due to the use of low-quality dyes, you can try to revive the color. Sometimes it is enough to wash it in a special detergent for washing black things. After three to five cycles, you will see that black and dark colors have acquired a more saturated shade.

Quality laundry detergents and gels contain ingredients that fight clothes fading, which makes clothes look worn and laundered. In particular, specialty products for washing black clothes may contain an inhibitor that traps any dye particles that are released during washing and then prevents them from sticking to other clothes in the washing machine. In this way, the black conversely becomes brighter.

To darken faded clothes, you can also use commercially available special dyes.

Applying them is very simple:
Put the thing in the washing machine and add 2 tablespoons of table salt.
Dissolve the dye in a glass of boiling water and pour it into the container where the powder is poured. Rinse it with hot water to remove any dye residue.
Turn on the cycle of long washing without spinning at 80-95 degrees.
At the end of the program, rinse the fabric by hand in warm water with a little vinegar and salt.
Clean the washing machine of dye residues by setting the program to the longest wash with detergent.