Proper Care for Your Cosplay Costumes
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We know you love cosplays and conventions, or just love to casually collect cosplay costumes of your favorite anime and game characters for parties, and even just for a fun social media post for your friends and followers. That’s why you tend to take care of those cosplay costumes you have.
Whether you bought it or just given to you as a gift, or even if you are still planning on getting your first costume later on, we understand how you would like to find ways to take good care of your money’s worth and even maintain longevity of your purchase for future use.
THAT IS WHY FOR TODAY, WE WILL SHARE SOME TIPS ON HOW TO TAKE GOOD CARE OF YOUR COSPLAY SETS AND MORE.
IDENTIFY THE MATERIAL OF YOUR ITEM
Cosplay sets comes with different parts and materials to complete the overall look of the character. It is important to know each component of your set to identify the proper care from them. Each material has different ways of maintaining. Most of the time, there are back labels at your clothing which indicates what material it is and what is the recommended care procedure, which is incredibly helpful (it is recommended to follow the instructions because these were from the manufacturers of the clothing material themselves). For example, ways of washing cotton are different to washing linen, polyester, silk and wool. Also, some materials may be bad for ironing or tumble-dry. Although each material has common way to maintain, remember not all fabrics have the same upkeep procedures.
WASH AFTER USE
If you had your costume used the entire day, and you’re planning on keeping your costume for future use, you might as well wash it immediately after use. This is in order to avoid stains, sweat, and other residue from staying longer which may get stuck and affect the clothing’s quality in the long run. In relation to the first tip, you must be able to identify the material of your item so you can adjust how you would like to wash them best. Also, for tougher stains, it is recommended to wash them by hand, and add fabric conditioner to maintain good quality and texture of the item. But keep in mind that unless your dresses have an old smell or marks of sweat, do not overwash them.
MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS DRY BEFORE PREPARING ON STORING THEM
Storing clothes that are a bit wet could get bacteria to go on the fabric, in which would make it smell bad and have more stains. You can try to dry it under the sun, tumble-dry, and hanging them somewhere that isn’t enclosed. Once it is dry, you may iron clothes before storing them. In that way, you can assure that there are no more wet areas on your clothing, and you already have flattened them and fixed the necessary wrinkles that could ruin the look and quality of your clothing before you either fold or hang them somewhere safe. But remember, not every clothing material are tumble-dry and/or iron friendly, so you may put them to considerations as well.
STORE THEM PROPERLY, IN A PLACE THAT WON’T DUST THEM
Dust is everywhere, especially if the place hasn’t been cleaned and maintained for quite some time in which may make everything a dirty mess. Same with clothing items. Don’t store them somewhere that could expose them to dirt and dust, or always do regular cleaning to places that you put your cosplay costume on to avoid being dusted overtime. It is suitable to keep it sealed tight in a secured box, on a closet, most likely a part of your closet that doesn’t blend in your actual clothes, just somewhere that you can maintain easily and regularly. You wouldn’t want dust to get into your costume. The more it gets exposed to dust and dirt it may get stuck on them, especially if wasn’t taken care for a long time. So make sure you are checking on it every once in a while to assure that it hasn’t damaged yet.
BONUS: 10 CLOTHING MATERIALS AND HOW TO MAINTAIN THEM.
Here are the common clothing materials used in cosplay costumes and the basics on how to keep them in good condition.
COTTON
Cottons are the most common clothing material. It is widely use everywhere because it is easy to maintain. It could be your t-shirts, shorts, jackets and more, even denims. They are soft. Cotton are handwash, machine wash, flat-iron, and tumble dry friendly. It is advised to wash in cold temperature to maintain color and avoid shrinkage. For denim, it’s recommended to wash rarely at least once a week.
LINEN
Linen is a very lightweight material. They are quite popular as well. Washing linen is quite tricky as they could get a bit stricter than cotton. It also does shrink so avoid hot temperatures to wash. It is more recommended to gently handwash them. Also use low to medium temperatures in ironing them as this material is more sensitive to burning.
WOOL
Wool is quite thicker than cotton and linen and is widely used on sweatshirts and socks. They are known to be worn on cold seasons as they are warm, but the care isn’t difficult at all. You may want to wash them instantly after use as sweat does damage wool easily. Use a mild soap and do not bleach. Also, dry it thoroughly by drying it to the sun often.
SILK
Silk is known for their versatility, strength, and softness. In fact, they are the strongest natural fiber known. You can do both handwash or machine wash, but you can use lukewarm water as well, and you can dry clean them. However, they are wrinkly but not iron friendly. With that, you can use a press cloth between the silk garment and the iron.
AND THAT’S IT FOR TODAY.
Hope our Costume care (and a quick clothing material guide) ideas were helpful for you. Also, let us know what your best costume care practices are down in the comments. Always remember to always follow manufacturer labels and get more information on how to take care of the costume materials.
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