Hand washing

• Anything silk, or with a silk trim.
• Anything heavily laced, particularly fine Leavers lace.
• Moulded cups, which crease permanently under mechanical pressure.
• Anything with silicone strips, which pick up detergent residue and stop gripping.
• Anything that matters, which is a legitimate criterion.
• Anything with a broken wire channel that has not yet been retired, since a wire end in a machine will destroy other garments.

1. Fasten every hook and eye. This takes five seconds and prevents most of the damage that happens in a basin.
2. Fill a clean basin with cool water, up to about 30 degrees. Cool to the wrist, not warm.
3. Add a small amount of mild liquid detergent, roughly a teaspoon for two or three garments, and mix it fully into the water before anything goes in.
4. Submerge the garment and press it gently through the water with open palms for two or three minutes. Do not rub, twist, scrub or wring.
5. Leave it to soak for no more than ten minutes. Longer does not clean more and gives dye time to migrate.
6. Drain and refill with clean cool water. Press the garment through it again.
7. Repeat the rinse until the water runs completely clear and there is no slip on the fabric between finger and thumb. Two rinses is usually not enough.
8. Lift the garment supporting its whole weight, never by one strap.
9. Lay it on a dry towel, roll the towel up and press along its length to absorb water.
10. Reshape moulded cups with the hand, then dry flat. See drying and storing.

The rinse is the part people skip and the part that matters. Detergent left in a fabric stiffens it, attracts soil and irritates skin.

A mild liquid detergent, used at roughly half the dose on the bottle. Liquid dissolves completely in cool water; powder frequently does not, and undissolved powder lodges in a lace ground where it abrades from the inside. For silk and for anything with wool or silk content, use a detergent formulated for those fibres: it will be pH neutral or mildly acidic and free of protease enzymes, which digest protein fibres directly.

Fragrance free is the safer default for anything worn against skin, which is a principle that extends beyond laundry: the same reasoning applies to washes made for intimate skin, of the kind stocked by inWonderstate, where added fragrance is the most common cause of a reaction. Skipping fabric softener entirely is part of the same logic: it coats fibres, reduces elasticity and leaves a residue that some skin objects to.

Antiperspirant and body oil

The usual cause of yellowing at the underarm and along the band. Deal with it promptly: once heat has set it, it is close to permanent. A little detergent worked in with a fingertip and left for ten minutes before the main wash is the gentle approach.

Blood

Cold water only, immediately. Heat sets protein stains permanently. Soak in cold water, then wash normally. Never start with warm water.

Dye transfer

Wash new dark and red pieces alone for the first few washes. Once colour has migrated into a pale lace, it is usually there for good.

Silicone strips

Wipe with a damp cloth after each wear and let them dry fully. Do not use detergent on them directly; it leaves a film that permanently reduces grip.

Up to 30 degrees for anything with elastane, silk or moulded foam, which is nearly everything in this category. Cotton briefs with no lace and a cotton gusset can go warmer, up to 40, and that extra ten degrees does meaningfully improve cleaning where it is safe. Above 40, elastane starts to suffer measurably and there is no benefit that a modern detergent does not already deliver cool.

Cold water below about 15 degrees is a false economy in the other direction: most detergents work poorly at low temperature and oily soil will not lift, which leaves residue behind that ages the garment. Cool, not cold.