Do you wash your husband's professional work clothes at home?

[Mejane]

My husband also wears business casual most days. I do not wash his pants nor his dress shirts because I do not want to have to iron them. :tongue_smilie: I do wash his business golf shirts.

[LostSurprise]

Software engineer dh here...similar work clothes...I do them all, but he needs to give me 12 hours notice for ironing. I have 4 kids so I just don't need that kind of rush in the morning.

 

So generally he goes without ironing.

 

Suit jackets would be dry-cleaned.

 

I haven't noticed a big difference in wear and tear. We did a lot more dry-cleaning before we had kids (his job attire was more formal) and wear and tear was the same (except he had to remember where and when he dropped them off..jeepers :lol: ).

 

I'd rather wash them then be in an argument about it, especially if they don't take special care.

[merry gardens]

I honestly don't get it. My dh wears a suit and tie everyday. He's a VP at a large company. I wash and iron his dress shirts and when he wore more casual pants (dockers instead of a suit) I washed and ironed those. I seriously do not see how drycleaning could make his dress shirts look noticeably better than washing and ironing them at home.

 

And I'm the one who drops off and picks up dh's suits when they're drycleaned.

You may be better at doing the laundry than I am. I do many things well, but laundry apparently isn't one of them. Within a couple of washings, our clothes show wash wear. We look presentable, but the fabric just doesn't seem the same. When I worked as a professional, I noticed that even though I could get the clothes clean, they didn't last as long when I did them myself.

 

Plus, I've ruined some loads that I've washed too. I always wash his work clothes separate now. Crayons melt in the dryer and get all over everything. Sometimes I put extra effort into doing the laundry right, and that's when it seems that something goes dreadfully wrong.

[Jenny in Florida]

I do wash my husband's work clothes at home. I always have.

 

When we lived in New Jersey and the standard of professional dress was a little higher, I also ironed everything. Nowadays, since Florida tends to be a little more casual, I just wash, dry and hang.

 

We've never even considered an alternative.

 

Edit: My husband wears Dockers-type pants and a long-sleeved, button-down shirt every day.

Edited April 18, 2011 by Jenny in Florida

[CherryBlossomMJ]

My Enginerd wears dress shirts and slacks daily to work. I wash them at home, but we've made a deal that he tries to buy only the wrinkle-free type and that helps a lot with the home system. There is one or two that is not w-f and as long as they are snatched from the dryer pretty much immediately after the cycle is done they all look great.

 

I also use Country Save detergent, that might be another thing since it doesn't have the chemicals and enzymes as many brands (we also cloth diaper - hence the detergent).

[*********]

My husband dresses much like yours; dress shirt and slacks most days. I do his laundry, UNLESS it's a shirt that needs to be ironed. I HATE ironing. HATE it. DETEST it. So, if it's a shirt that needs to be ironed, I'll take it to the cleaners so I don't have to bother with it.

 

I wish the man would just buy shirts that are wrinkle free. My life would be so much easier. :)

[KidsHappen]

My hubby wears a suit and tie everyday. He is a road warrior and frequently has a new client each week. He has to make his company look good so he always has to look his best. Trust me, that would not be the case if I was doing his laundry. All of his work clothes go to the dry cleaner and I find other ways to show my love. Now, if my hubby simply didn't want to spend the money or felt that it could be done better at home, well, I would tell him to knock himself out.

[amey311]

You may be better at doing the laundry than I am. I do many things well, but laundry apparently isn't one of them. Within a couple of washings, our clothes show wash wear. We look presentable, but the fabric just doesn't seem the same.

 

Maybe this is the rub? Maybe things need to be sorted differently? I've started doing the children's clothes as two loads (one that's shirts, undies, pajamas, etc and the other is pants and shorts because "bottoms" seem to take longer to dry and are sturdier fabric that might be rougher on t-shirts in the washer and dryer), my clothes are a load, DH's casual clothes are a load, our pants are a load, etc. When DH has "work" clothes which are like your DH's, I did them as their own load and planned more carefully when I did them so I could get them straight from the dryer onto hangers because while I know how to iron, I don't like to iron.

 

Do you ahve it in the budget to use the dry cleaners? For things like those shirts and pants, they might not actually "dry" clean them, but rather launder and press them. Maybe doing some that way for a load or two and showing DH how they look will convince him? Assuming, of course, that the DC is even an option financially.

 

I wouldn't assume that basic clothing is getting dry cleaned when you take it to the cleaner - I'd assume it was getting "wet" cleaned and pressed. I know they do the pressing because I'm often asked how I want shirts done (light or heavy starch, etc).

[Cedarmom]

.

 

He dresses appropriate for his job, but he complains about not being promoted to the position he wants. His company has had seminars on dressing professional--and I take it that means they want their people dressing better. He's a skilled engineer, but engineers aren't exactly know for their fashion sense. If it were up to me, I'd dress him in a suit and tie most everyday, with heavy starch on his shirts. :D

 

My husband is an engineer too, and I thought just getting him to wear matching clothes was a step up from many co-workers! We don't dry clean. He wears nice shirts and dockers style pants. But we also live in the NW, land of casual wear, so I never thought of doing dry clean. I just try and not have him wear his sneakers with his dress pants.:001_smile:

[Ann@thebeach]

I think some of it has to do with the quality of clothes as far as how they wash up at home.

My DH wears the dress pants from Lands End or LL Bean-they are about $55. We only get the no iron twill dress pants.

 

Shirts are the same, only no iron, dress shirts. These come from Land's End, LL Bean, or Eddie Bauer.

 

I wash on cold and dry on low and get them out immediately and hang them up (I have a delayed setting that will keep them tumbling so they don't wrinkle).

They are not wrinkled and no need to iron.

 

I typically do the dress clothes just 1x per week (2 loads-1 light and 1 dark) so it doesn't take that much time- maybe 30 min total of hanging up time. It's worth saving that much money with the dry cleaner-but we're cheap too LOL

 

He has 2 suits and 2 sport coats that he only has to wear about 2x per month, these get dry cleaned but he wears them 2x before we do that so it's no often.

[justamouse]

I do them at home because I think I do a better job (and I'm another one that doesn't want him near those chemicals). :tongue_smilie: He doesn't wear dress clothes often, though, but I do his dress shirts, too. Starch works wonders.

Edited April 18, 2011 by justamouse

[ScoutTN]

Mostly. My DH can wear fairly casual clothes.

Dry cleaning is expensive and I don't like the chemicals.

 

BUT,

 

Nicer pants I send to the cleaners and even some khakis every so often.

I always try to have at least one white dress shirt and one other color ready to go from the cleaners. I cannot duplicate the sharp look and sometimes looking professional does really matter. IMO, $1.25 for a really nice looking shirt is okay.

[RoundAbout]

My dad was an engineer and always washed and ironed (with lots of starch) his own clothes at home. He had a military and boarding school background so he could iron way better than my mom.

 

My husband's cammies are no-wrinkle wash-and-wear now, but years ago with the older cammies he did them himself unless he needed to look especially nice. His other uniforms get sent out.

 

Because my dad did all the ironing growing up, I have zero skills.

[Anita in NC]

I wash DH work clothes at home. I think they turn out just fine. He has to wear dress pants and a shirt to work.

[merry gardens]

Thank you everyone for sharing your laundry habits and suggestions. :)

 

I just did the load of pants mentioned in the op. Obviously, my husband does not exclusively purchase the "no iron" fabric. :glare: I pulled his pants out of the dryer immediately and while they were still slightly damp. 3 of 4 pair had wrinkles all over. The one pair that didn't need to be ironed has what looks like grease spots on them. :001_huh: I try. I ironed his pants and he can wear them to work, (except the ones with the grease spots.) So...if you see an engineer wearing freshly washed Dockers that look presentable but not perfect, he might be my husband.

Edited April 19, 2011 by merry gardens

[Shellydon]

I do them at home because I think I do a better job (and I'm another one that doesn't want him near those chemicals). :tongue_smilie: He doesn't wear dress clothes often, though, but I do his dress shirts, too. Starch works wonders.

 

 

When you get cotton shirts done at the cleaners, they don't use chemicals. They launder them then press them, using starch if you like.

[JessReplanted]

I wash everything at home.

 

But, I wanted to add that my Dad (who is remarried), has just about all of his clothes dry cleaned. He likes to look very 'pressed', and he also doesn't do laundry. When he got married again his wife started doing his laundry for a few months - but then he went back to the dry cleaners. :lol:

 

All that to say, that if your hubby has really high standards, he shouldn't have a problem heading to the dry cleaners.

[Ibbygirl]

I don't dry clean anything so I don't know about that aspect of your question, but I do wash and iron all of my husband's work clothes at home. With starch and a little patience they come out good and professional looking in my non-dry cleaning opinion. ;) Now if he had to wear a suit I would dry clean that, but Dockers and button down shirts I do at home. A little Oxy Clean added to the washer full with water and laundry detergent can go along way to making the clothes come out really clean and nice looking. I also spot treat stains and such beforehand with a laundry bar soap like Octagon or Fels Naptha before throwing them into the wash. I think the key though is ironing. I would invest in a good iron and a can of starch and they should come out good. :) Hope that helps. I'm sorry you and your husband are arguing over this issue. I hope that you all can come to an agreement and see eye to eye on this. :grouphug:

[kitten18]

My husband owns his own business now and he mostly wears jeans and polo shirts.

 

He used to be an executive at a very large company. He wore long-sleeved button down shirts and dress slacks every day. I washed and ironed all of them. He would wear the slacks two times before I laundered them.

[QueenCat]

I just did the load of pants mentioned in the op. Obviously, my husband does not exclusively purchase the "no iron" fabric. :glare: I pulled his pants out of the dryer immediately and while they were still slightly damp. 3 of 4 pair had wrinkles all over. The one pair that didn't need to be ironed has what looks like grease spots on them. :001_huh: I try. I ironed his pants and he can wear them to work, (except the ones with the grease spots.) So...if you see an engineer wearing freshly washed Dockers that look presentable but not perfect, he might be my husband.

 

As to the spots..... I always spray the fronts of dh's pants and shirts, just in case there is something I'm not seeing. And I highly recommend investing in the wrinkle free, no iron fabric clothing. In the long run, it will save you a lot of aggravation.

[eternalknot]

My husband always washed, ironed and starched his own uniform (at home). In fact, he washed and ironed my uniform as well (no starch for me, thanks!)

 

Now he wears a tee-shirt and shorts to work, and still washes these himself. No starch, no iron :) I now wash my own uniform (no iron, still no starch).

[StephanieZ]

KEY:

 

Buy 100% cotton wrinkle-proof shirts!! Eddie Bauer's are very nice. Land's End are OK. Some others are OK. Eddie Bauer's ROCK. It is 100000% worth the extra cost.

 

They come out of the dryer looking better than ironed!! Just wash, dry, hang up, wear!!

 

Pants come in similar styles, but dh can get away with various Docker's type pants. . .

 

I will NEVER buy a non wrinkle proof dress shirt again for regular wearing.

 

Trust me. Just do it.

[StephanieZ]

http://www.eddiebauer.com/EB/Men/Shirts/Dress-Shirts/index.cat

 

Trust me. Pick a few. Order them. Try them. EB will refund if you aren't happy. ..

 

I guarantee you'll never buy a needstobeironed shirt for dh again, and that the ones he already owns will sit in the closet never getting worn while these new ones get worn and replaced time and again. . .

 

(Dh started wearing dress shirts in 2000. . . I discovered the iron free 100% cotton shirts in 2001. . . He STILL owns some of the pre-2001 shirts b/c they are so rarely worn!! We buy 3 or 4 new shirst once or twice a year. . . ONLY wrinkle free.)

[katilac]

I think: doing his laundry at home = less professional looking clothes.

 

The man is wearing Dockers. I think the finer nuances of professional dress may be lost on him :D.

 

Standard Disclaimer: There is nothing wrong with Dockers. My dh wears Dockers. My point is just that, if he were in a work environment where it mattered whether his clothes were dry cleaned or home washed, he would probably be wearing something else. Dockers are business casual; they fairly scream, "I'm wearing these because I'm not allowed to wear jeans," lol.

[Wheres Toto]

http://www.eddiebauer.com/EB/Men/Shirts/Dress-Shirts/index.cat

 

Trust me. Pick a few. Order them. Try them. EB will refund if you aren't happy. ..

 

 

 

I agree, Eddie Bauer shirts are very nice. They really do look great right out of the dryer. If you sign up for their Friends program, you'll get all kinds of coupons that are even good on clearance items. They have great sales and clearances at their website but you have to get on the first day if you wear a common size.

[Lovedtodeath]

It would never occur to me to use a drycleaners, but my DH is a construction supervisor. I was his utilikilts myself. ;)

 

But serously, I make sure that we only by clothes that can be pulled out of the dryer and hung up. I don't iron and I don't want anyone wearing wrinkled clothing.

[Tap]

I think: doing his laundry at home = less professional looking clothes.

 

The man is wearing Dockers. I think the finer nuances of professional dress may be lost on him :D.

 

Standard Disclaimer: There is nothing wrong with Dockers. My dh wears Dockers. My point is just that, if he were in a work environment where it mattered whether his clothes were dry cleaned or home washed, he would probably be wearing something else. Dockers are business casual; they fairly scream, "I'm wearing these because I'm not allowed to wear jeans," lol.

 

LOL :iagree::iagree:

[Gooblink]

We own our own business. Dh does wear button down shirts nearly every day, and I launder them at home.

 

I don't even press them - just take them out of the dryer when they're warm and hang them. If dh has a meeting or sales call, then we'll (sometimes) iron his shirt.

 

They do look much nicer professionally laundered and pressed, but...we're more frugal than vain. :)

[Dawn in OH]

When we both had professional jobs, my clothes went to the dry-cleaner and he washed and ironed his own.

 

Later, when I quit working I washed his clothes at home but he was still responsible for ironing. I don't iron. I'm not good at it and I don't like it. I make sure I don't buy myself clothing that needs to be ironed.

 

My husband's clothes always looked great. He was very particular about them, and did a very good job of ironing.

[Forget-Me-Not]

Yes, but he goes very 'business casual'. Most days it's docker-type pants and a polo shirt or a button-down. I buy the wrinkle-resistant, stain-resistant (and they really are! they resisted Iodine solution!) items and they really do hold up well. IME, the Eddie Bauer brand is really nice. The shirts come out of the dryer looking beautiful.

[Legomom]

My husband has his own business as a management consultant and wears dress shirts and slacks or dockers when he meets with clients. I drop off his dress shirts for laundry at the cleaners when I take the kids to piano and pick them up later in the week when I am grocery shopping or the following week when I take the kids to piano. Light starch keeps the shirts looking nice longer. I have worked hard to try and iron them myself but am not good at it. For me taking the shirts to the cleaners is worth it because there is no comparison to my home ironing. People definitely notice.

 

We buy wrinkle free pants and usually just hang those up as soon as they come out of the dryer. Frequent washing is hard on dockers and some of them end up looking shabby sooner than others. I would love to find a reliable brand that looks good wash after wash.