Dry Cleaning Tips

First and foremost, your man Jeeves believes that gentleman’s ties should only be cleaned whilst necessary. Unless a spot of food or a bit of oil on the knotted area becomes apparent, your tie should not be cleaned.

Ties are extremely fragile in construction and if made of silk, the fabric itself may be very delicate.

If a spot does appear, do not attempt to remove the stain with a cotton napkin dunked in water or seltzer. Most food based stains have an oil component (butter, olive oil or fat), and oil and water do not mix.

Say your tie gets drenched in beer because you went to the Yankee games right from work, what should you do? Blot the stain to absorb the beer and bring your tie straight into Jeeves as soon as practical.

As a proper gentleman who cares for his wardrobe you should:

• Hang up your tie as soon as you remove it at the end of the day.
• Allow the wrinkles created from the note to naturally fall out over a few days time. Try not to wear the same tie two days in a row.
• When traveling, roll your ties and use a travel case designed for this purpose. In a pinch you can insert the rolled tie into a shoe for protection.
• Never use a stain kit or a dampened napkin to attempt stain removal.

Jeeves New York does wonders with stained ties, and if you don’t live in New York, ties can be sent to their Madison Avenue boutique for cleaning.

Jeeves can be contacted at 212-570-9130 or through their website, JeevesNY.com.

Thanks for listening, your man Jeeves.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Dry Cleaning Tips

Extreme example of salt burned shearling.

If you wore your shearling over the winter and it was splashed with slush or snow it should be checked for salt damage.

Salt can burn the skins of a shearling making it difficult or impossible to correct during cleaning.

Areas of shearling burned by salt will appear dark and will become stiff or hard. The texture of the shearling will change from buttery soft to card-board like in burned areas.

If your shearling is black, navy or other dark color the burned areas may be difficult to see. You should feel the bottom of your coat near the hem for damaged areas.

Consult an expert in shearling cleaning for any garment you suspect was burned by salt.

During cleaning, oils can be hand applied to the salt burned areas in some cases the issue can be helped, but usually the only way to completely correct the damaged area is to remove or replace the damaged skin. The coat to the right needed to be shortened 12 inches to remove the salt damaged area.

Your man Jeeves’ cleaning method keeps shearling looking fabulous and maintains the “soft as butter” feel, and is considered an expert in shearling cleaning.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

New Yorkers did not suffer this past winter, in fact the only significant winter weather episode occurred on Halloween. Despite the lack of snow, we did have some cold weather and winter wardrobes were worn.

With temperatures hovering in the mid 70′s last week in New York City, shorts and flip-flops were spied on on the Upper East Side. What should you do with your winter clothes before you switch over to spring and summer? How about sending your winter wardrobe on a spring break?

Your man Jeeves advice is simple, anything that was worn should be cleaned before being put away. This advice is not unique to Jeeves, all wardrobe experts will advise you of the same.

Moths love left over bits of food and perfumes left on your woolens. These areas will be feasted on leaving you with holes and tears in the fall.

Stains that may be invisible now can become almost “impossible to remove” yellow areas after fermenting in the heat of summer. (Champagne and white wine are stains that will oxidized over time.)

Any fabric garments stored for an extended period of time should be put away in a dark, cool and dry environment. Storing fur, leather and suede requires addition attention.

High value garments should be stored under precise temperature and humidity. Jeeves’ cold storage vault has a highly sophisticated controls for the ideal high security environment for furs, leather and suede. The Jeeves fur vault will keep the skins of your garments soft and supple for years to come.

Taking care of your winter wardrobe is easy, ring your man Jeeves, and our staff can make arrangements for cleaning and storage of anything that you wore this past winter.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Your man Jeeves knows his clients are no strangers to shearling garments. Let’s face it, shearling is a fashionable way to keep super warm now that the temperatures have dipped in the single digits in New York.

However, because shearling is an investment and the winter weather can wreak havoc on your winter wardrobe, most shearling owners find themselves hesitant to pull them from out of the closet on the nasty days.

Jeeves wants you to be happy, fashionable and warm, so he put together a little list of tips that will bring you comfort while you wear that shearling garment in any weather. Here is his advice:

#1 – Keep your shearling away from salt.
The salt can burn the skin, making it as hard as cardboard. If splashed with salt and/or snow, have your shearling garment cleaned ASAP.

#2 – If your shearling gets wet, air dry it.
Never put it into a clothes dryer.

#3 – When your shearling shows signs of soil, have it cleaned.
If you wait until it is extremely dirty, it may never look new again.

#4 – Hang up your shearling on a proper hanger.
Don’t use a skimpy wire hanger or a door knob. You will distort the skins.

#5 – Never store shearling in plastic.
Use a breathable, cloth garment bag.

#6 – Don’t store shearling in a place that gets direct sunlight.
This may cause damage to the dye of the shearling.

#7 – When your shearling needs to be cleaned, consult an expert.
Your neighborhood dry cleaner may not have the expertise to take care of your investment properly. Cleaning shearling is not like cleaning fabric.

#8 – Never put tape or stickers on your shearling to indicate stained areas.
The stickers will leave marks, that may not come out after cleaning.

Jeeves has the expertise you and your shearling need, as well as, over 30 years of luxury cleaning experience.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Did you know that Ralph Lauren boutiques world-wide have a small selection of vintage and antique garments in their collection? Jeeves is currently working on another cleaning project from Ralph Lauren to get these remarkable finds ready for sale.

The staff of Jeeves has cleaned thousands of vintage and antique garments for Ralph Lauren and we are seeing lots of crochet, lace, fringed shawls and beads and sequins from the late 1800‘s to early 1900‘s.

The last two cleaning projects that Jeeves received were items shopped from London and Paris. The buyers at Ralph Lauren have great eyes and bring back amazing one of a kind items for their boutiques.

Because vintage is so hot in the high-end market, Jeeves has assembled tips on “How to Buy Vintage Clothing”. Our next blog will be “How to Care for Vintage Clothing”.

How to Buy Vintage Clothing:

• Look for quality first, is the garment well made? Well made garments will have less issues with wear and tear. They may be more expensive to being with, but worth it in the long run.
• Check the fabric; is it separating? Vintage garments may have been exposed to excessive amounts of heat which will cause the fabric to “dry rot”. Fabric in this condition is fragile and may start to tear after the first wearing. Check the collar, cuffs, under the arms and across the seat for signs of fabric separation.
• Stains? Vintage garments may have oxidized stains which will be light to dark brown or yellow in color. Oxidized stains are very difficult to impossible to remove in some cases.
• Odor? Musty odors could indicate mold, look over the garment for small dark grey to black stains. Mold stains are difficult to remove unless the garment can be bleached. Strong body odors in vintage garments that can’t we washed may not be removable; let your nose be your guide.
• Loose beads and sequins can be repaired but this type of work in time consuming and expensive if you are not handy with a needle and thread.

Jeeves specializes in the care of vintage and antique garments, with a team of craftsmen who care for, clean and repair these types of garments on a daily basis. Jeeves is the source in New York City for expert vintage garment cleaning, repair and care.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

As summer is full tilt here in New York City, with the temperature reaching over 90 today, we have been seeing a lot of bold colors at Jeeves.

Nothing is quite as bold as the Dolce & Gabbana jacket that we collected from a client last week for cleaning. BRIGHT and ORANGE do not do this garment justice. If this garment had a dial to regulate the brightness it would be on “11″.

It seems that the Italian designers have turned on bold since the New York and London based designers were showing sheer and nude for this Spring/Summer season. One must give the nod to Versace and Dolce & Gabbana, as their shops radiate color and pattern.

This jacket is not for the “faint of heart” and my hat is off to the gentleman who will be wearing it this week after we delivered it to him today.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Rent or own? If a gentleman has the need for formal wear on a somewhat regular basis, he should have a tuxedo in his wardrobe.

This glaring difference was obvious last weekend when I attended a “pre-prom” party for my son’s friends. Not that most people would notice, but the majority of the young men at the event were wearing ill fitting tuxedos.

As to be expected when renting, the majority of the jackets were too big with sleeves that were too long. You are never going to get a fitted look with a rental tuxedo

Purchase a classic style and invest in tailoring. You will end up with formal wear that fits you wonderfully and in the long run will save you money over the cost of a rental.

If you should get a stain, spill or have perspired heavily in your tuxedo, please do have it professionally cleaned. Never try to rub a stain off of the satin lapels, you will damage the satin. Since you will not be wearing it everyday you don’t want to have issues with your tuxedo the next time you need to wear it.

Thanks for listening, Jerry Pozniak, Managing Director, Jeeves New York.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Dry Cleaning Tips

It’s hard to believe that with this Seattle-esque weather that New York has been experiencing before Memorial day marks the beginning of the summer season. If you are like your man Jeeves you have been anticipating the sun not just for the summer Fridays coming your way, BUT more importantly because of the seersucker and linen waiting for you in your closet.

While Jeeves trusts that most of you were kind enough to visit him after the last summer season to drop off your summer garb to ensure for one final cleaning before storing away, it wouldn’t hurt to give them a quick once over before heading East this weekend.

Many stains linger on white fabrics such as champagne, perspiration, and perfume that are invisible to the naked eye but may have oxidized over the winter as a result of improper cleaning. What you may be seeing now are yellow stains.

Not to worry your man Jeeves and the lads at his cleaning workshop can reverse the effects of neglected clothing—turning your whites brighter than ever! Jeeves’ craftsmen employ a liquid CO2 dry cleaning system that is heat free, gentle on your clothes and removes more stains than any other type of dry cleaning.

Give your man Jeeves a call today to give your wardrobe a quick clean before heading out of town for the weekend!

For the best dry cleaner in New York City to care for your summer wardrobe; the only choice is Jeeves New York.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Some times Jeeves is speechless. Today the Robb Report honored Jeeves and profiled our Perfect Suit Cleaning as the best way to take care of bespoke garment.

Developed for hand made garments from makers such as; Cesare Attolini, Kiton and Brioni the service is unique to Jeeves New York.

Why rehash what the Robb Report wrote? The entire article including images is here.

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner

Dry Cleaning Tips

It is another cold, damp, dreary day here in New York City. With a mix of freezing rain and snow on the horizon. I need spring and I need it now.

To get my spring fix I walked over just a few blocks from Jeeves’ Madison Avenue location to 62nd street to visit Hermes. This location of Hermes focuses on menswear only, and when you walk into the first floor you are treated to a riot of color.

Hermes ties everywhere! Color everywhere!

You are not “somewhere over the rainbow” you are in the rainbow and it is made of silk. The jolt of color from Hermes brighten my day, if only for an hour.

I walked back to the Jeeves shop with “spring” in my step. Yes it is cold, rainy and icy, but if I look really, really hard at the horizon, I can imagine spring.

Oh and if you get a spot on your Hermes tie, Jeeves will be on the spot straight away. Hermes makes ties by hand and Jeeves only cleans them by hand. Jeeves would not do it any other way!

Hermes Men, 690 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10065  (212) 308-3585

Jeeves New York, 39 East 65th Street, New York, NY  10065 (212) 570-9130

Dry Cleaning Tips - by Jeeves, NYC's FInest Dry Cleaner