Since so much of the holiday seasons was stifled by COVID last year, we're finding that many people are making up for lost time this year. There's no question that trick-or-treating will occur, and if you're like so many people that we know, you've invested in at least one (if not multiple) Halloween costumes for you and your family. While many store-bought costumes tend to be cheaply made, we find that many parents still want to keep a few of them for either another time or for the sake of preserving memories. Either way, chances are that if you're reading today's post, you're most interested in how to best clean your Halloween costume to get the most out of your investment, regardless of what that costume is made of.
1. How to Clean Your Halloween Costumes in the Washing Machine
Most store-bought polyester costumes or costumes made of traditional fabrics can easily be washed in a residential or commercial washing machine. However, we suggest that if you're going to wash your costume in a machine, that you wash your costumes separate from other clothes as to prevent any harm to the fabric that might be caused from mixing other materials.
That said, we always recommend that you read your garment's care tag to determine how an item should be washed. We find that many Halloween costumes do use special materials or have accessory pieces that can not simply be thrown into the wash.
2. Spot Cleaning May be Required to Clean Your Halloween Costume
If you wear your Halloween costume the way you wear your clothes and have minimal signs of wear, sweating or stains, you may not want to "wash" your costume at all beyond treating any spots that may have appeared while celebrating.
That said, be sure to treat any stains immediately should you need to, and avoid using bleach unless your costume as white. And while spray-on spot treatments are not always useful if you need to clean your entire costume, they can be useful before putting the costume away in storage.
3. Clean Your Halloween Costumes by Hand Washing
If your Halloween costume can not be thrown into your washing machine, you may need to hand-wash your garment to remove any stains and preserve it for another time.
Again, be sure to read the care tag or any instructions that may have been provided by the manufacturer. Costumes that include leather, spandex, feathers or other delicate fabrics may have special instructions for proper care.
4. Ironing is Often Necessary
If you've just pulled your kids costume out of a package, you'll likely need to iron it before your child wears it on Halloween night. You'll also want to make sure it's ironed before being stored for later use.
Can you use wrinkle remover spray or steamer instead? Yes. Often times, a spray treatment or steamer can be quite helpful for fabrics or materials that are difficult to hand wash or iron. Like all other points we've discussed today, be sure to check the instructions on the package to avoid ruining your costume in the process of preparing for the big day.
5. Have Your Halloween Costume Professional Dry Cleaned
Finally, one of the best ways to ensure that your favorite Halloween costume is properly cleaned and taken care of is to take it to your local dry cleaners. While you can have any Halloween costume dry cleaned, pay particular attention to costumes that are marked as "dry clean only." A Professional Dry Cleaner knows exactly what to do to preserve the fabric and materials that costumes are made of while also preserving your costume in a garment bag that is sealed for proper storage.
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