The best care guide for your T-shirt: Wash your clothes to perfection?

If you want to keep your favourite T-shirts in very good condition and for a long time, this interview guide will interest you.

This is the most complete care guide for your cotton T-shirts.

The advice I give you is perfect for caring for and washing your cotton T-shirts.

And most of these care and washing tips apply to other types of cotton clothing. For example, washing a T-shirt requires the same care as washing a Lacoste polo shirt in a machine.

Care and washing instructions for your cotton T-shirts

Caution: Always read the care instructions for your clothes before washing them.

Washing instructions are important.

Each garment has its own care instructions. It depends on three things: (1) the composition of the fabric, (2) the type of knitting, and (3) the thickness of the fabric. Cotton washing varies. A T-shirt does not wash in the same way as a white towel or sheet...

For cotton T-shirts, washing instructions are simple:

1. Turn the T-shirt over before washing it (so as not to damage it in the wash);
2. Wash at 86ºF (30°C) in short cycle (no hotter);
3. Do not tumble dry (to avoid shrinking the cotton).

The cotton fabric we use is ultra soft. It is to preserve its softness that I always recommend treating it with delicacy. It's a bit like cashmere, a very beautiful natural material that deserves special attention.

Beyond the three rules I mentioned, there are 19 tips that can help you keep your T-shirts longer.

20 useful and easy tips to wash your T-shirts like a chef

Before washing the T-shirt (1/4)

Even before washing your clothes, there are some tips that can help you.

1. Keep T-shirts (and the rest of your clothes) dry and airy before washing them.
   
   This prevents the growth of mould. It is she who is responsible for the bad smells. Also avoid keeping your clothes in a ball (to avoid damaging the fabric fibres).
   
   I therefore advise you to fold them roughly before putting them in your laundry basket.
   
   
2. Separate very dirty and stained clothing from those that are less dirty.
   
   It would be a shame if the stain from another garment were to attack one of your T-shirts during the wash.
   
   For example, if you have clothes with big mud stains. Wash them separately.
   
   
   
   
3. Sort the colours of your clothes.
   
   The ideal is to have four piles: dark colors, light colors, white, and black. If you don't have enough clothes, choose a bunch of dark colours and a bunch of light colours.
   
   It is therefore preferable to avoid mixing white and black clothing. Wash white T-shirts with other white clothing or light colours.
   
   For black T-shirts, try to wash them with black clothes and appropriate laundry. Otherwise, you can put them in the pile of dark colours. In this case, I wash my coloured T-shirts with dark colours.
   
   
4. Anti-discoloration wipes.
   
   To eliminate any concerns, use special wipes to prevent one item of clothing from rubbing off on the others.
   
   These wipes absorb the overflow of colour. Be careful, they are not magical:
   
   I have mixed white with black on occasion. (Who hasn't already?) The wipe has absorbed the color, but the white has become dull...
   
   
5. Brand new clothes.
   
   Wash the clothes you have just bought with identical colours. At the first wash, they will always disgorge a little dye. That's normal.
   
   Be especially careful with red and navy blue.
   
   
6. bis. How to avoid cotton shrinking.
   
   I recommend two things to avoid shrinking your brand new cotton T-shirts:
   
   First, if you want to make sure the T-shirt doesn't shrink, wash it like a wool sweater. This means cold washing (not 86ºF (30°C), but "cold"). To do this, select "delicate" or "wool" on the cycle of your machine.
   
   Secondly, grandmother's technique. To freeze the size of a new T-shirt, grandmothers suggest soaking it in cold salted water for an entire day (or night). This way, the T-shirt will have less chance of shrinking and will stay in the right size.
   
   And of course, whatever you do: no tumble dryer!
   
   Let your T-shirts dry in the open air.
   
   
7. Turn your T-shirts over before putting them in the machine.
   
   It's very simple. But turning your clothes over extends their life span. You will prevent the fabric from getting damaged by rubbing against other clothing.
   
   
8. Finally, remember to empty the pockets of your pants.
   
   In addition to the annoyance of damaging certain objects, it would be a shame if they rubbed off on your T-shirts.

Washing the T-shirt (2/4)

The T-shirt is a simple garment to machine wash. But there is still a question: At what temperature should you wash your cotton T-shirts?

It's easy: wash your T-shirts at 86ºF (30°C).

Here are some good washing tips that will help you keep your T-shirts longer (and save money):

1. Do not overfill the washing machine.
   
   You have a big pile of dirty laundry, not enough laundry to make two machines, too much to make one. We've all done it: try to fit everything into a machine.
   
   Not really the best idea....
   
   Avoid stuffing the machine. The overload will damage your machine. And clearly, your laundry won't be properly washed.
   
   The good habit: leave the laundry room to be washed properly.
   
   
   
   
2. Choose the right washing temperature (and program).
   
   For your cotton T-shirts, I recommend washing them at 68°F (20°C) or 86°F (30°C) in a short cycle.
   
   Low temperature washing extends the life of organic cotton fibres. And there's no reason to wash any hotter. This prevents discoloration, shrinkage and unnecessary wear and tear of the fabric.
   
   Another bonus: Washing at 86°F (30°C) is cheaper than traditional washing at 104°F (40°C).
   
   On the environmental side, a study highlights the importance of choosing a 86°F (30°C) wash. Washing and drying 1 kg of clothing throughout its lifetime can produce up to 11 kg of greenhouse gases.
   
   Another study highlights an impressive fact:
   "Reducing the average washing temperature by 3°C saves energy, which represents the emissions of 23,000 cars per year in USA."
   
   You have understood this, to preserve the environment, wash at 30°C and avoid machine drying.
   
   
3. Wash in a short cycle.
   
   You do not need to wash in a long cycle. (This is the default cycle of machines that often lasts more than 1h30).
   
   Why?
   
   Soaking the cotton in water for that long will simply damage the fabric of your T-shirt.
   
   
   
   I advise you to opt for a short cycle (30 to 45 minutes). It is economical and preserves the fibers of the fabric.
   
   
4. Use a detergent adapted to the fabric composition of your T-shirts.
   
   Traditional detergents are suitable for cotton T-shirts. No need to buy a specific detergent like for wool, for example.
   
   If your water is hard, here is a little advice from a grandmother that I share with you:
   " Add 25cl of white vinegar if your water is hard to soften the linen, fix the colours of new clothes, or keep a white linen."
   
   Baking soda is also a good alternative to laundry (useful for sensitive skin).
   
   
5. Use half the amount of laundry recommended by your favourite brand.
   
   Too much detergent can damage the cotton fibres.
   
   Your clothes will be clean and the laundry will last twice as long. It's good for the planet and for your wallet.
   
   
6. Optionally, add softener/coil softener.
   
   Softener is not necessary. But it is still useful because it makes your laundry softer, more fragrant, and easier to iron.
   
   Personally, I like the smell of very clean linen that some fabric softeners give.
   
   
7. The cycles of your washing machine should not last longer than 60 minutes.
   
   Soap is an agent that holds dirt on top of the water so it doesn't get back into the fabric. The time of action of this agent is limited. A machine that is too long will let the dirt back into the fabric?
   
   The best way to find the right detergent for your T-shirts is to test several brands.
   
   

Drying the T-shirt (3/4)

Hop. Once the machine is finished, remove your laundry immediately to hang it up.

I avoid leaving wet clothes lying around in the drum. This may cause mould (and bad odours) to appear.

1. Do not dry your T-shirts in the tumble dryer.
   
   It is the primary cause of clothing shrinkage....
   
   I know that this surprises many people. But T-shirts don't dry in the dryer.
   
   So let your cotton T-shirts dry in the open air.
   
   The Threadbase database demonstrates this by testing with no less than 27 T-shirts. When a T-shirt washed at 60°C shrinks by only 1.2%, a tumble-dried T-shirt shrinks by an average of 3.5%.
   
   On a size L T-shirt, 3.5% means -2.5cm over the length... The tumble dryer is clearly not suitable for cotton T-shirts.
   
   
2. Before spreading your T-shirts, shake them so that the cotton fabric breathes and relaxes.
   
   Dry your laundry on a clothesline. Honestly, it couldn't be easier and it avoids wrinkling your T-shirts.
   
   
3. If your clothes are still wet, do not twist them to wring them out.
   
   This breaks the fibers of the fabric (especially those of cotton). Lay them out in the open air or in a room where air can circulate.
   
   
4. Avoid drying your clothes in the sun.
   
   Prefer a shaded, cool, well-ventilated area.
   The sun may tarnish the colour of your T-shirts and make the cotton fabric rough.
   
   

Ironing the T-shirt (4/4)

No need to iron your Millionaire Paris T-shirts.

Yes, you heard me right.

If you have followed the above advice, the Millionaire Paris T-shirts will be ready to wear as soon as they are dry. Wear it for a few minutes and your favorite T-shirt will return to its normal shape.

The reason? This is because Millionaire Paris fabric is denser than ordinary T-shirts. As a result, the T-shirt falls better and doesn't need to be ironed. In fact, click here to learn more about the real benefits of a thick T-shirt.

If you still want to iron your T-shirts, here's what you need to do:

1. Iron at low temperature.
   
   Select the low temperature (150°C, i. e. setting -- on your iron).
   
   
2. And iron your T-shirts backwards.
   
   This avoids burning the outer part of the garment.
   
   (For really fragile clothes, I advise you to place a protective cloth between the iron and the fabric. This is not necessary for Millionaire Paris T-shirts.)
   
   
   
   
3. Save time! Prefer a steam plant to a conventional iron.
   
   The steam plant is my secret boot to iron quickly.
   
   It makes ironing much faster. Ironing is not my favorite activity. But when I have a steam plant at hand, it bothers me a little less. ?

Your T-shirt is well washed

That's it! That's it!

Your cotton T-shirt is all clean and ready to wear.

You will love the WhiteTar T-shirts, because they will last wash after wash.

Discover the Millionaire Paris T-shirts