Best way to wash/clean your kilt at home?

[Allan Kiesler]

Halò, ciamar a tha thu?
I need help from you guys. Due to prevalent situation, we can't go out. What you guys think is the best way to wash/clean my kilts at home?
I'm really upset, my kilts are getting dirty.

[Father Bill]

First question is what the material is and to a lesser degree, the construction.

[Tobus]

For the most part, unless you've seriously soiled your kilt, a simple brushing should suffice. It can be followed by spot cleaning with cool water and a wool-safe detergent on areas where you may have spilled a drink or something. Steaming can do a lot of good too, in terms of freeing up minor grime.

But if for some reason you've gotten your kilt so filthy that minor treatments won't work, you can wash the whole thing in the bathtub. Again, cool water and a wool-safe detergent. Squeeze and swish gently, but you shouldn't need (or want) to use any harsh agitation or scrubbing. Rinse thoroughly with a cup and/or sprayer. Let it drip for a bit. Roll carefully in a large fluffy towel and squeeze as much water out as you can, then hang carefully to dry, ensuring that pleats hang straight and hold their original creases. You can use clothes pins if you want to help keep the pleats from curling during this air drying process.

If you need to press it, you can try to do it one pleat at a time or go "whole hog" by basting the pleats and pressing the whole kilt. Do use a press cloth between the iron and the wool. Check the leather straps at the end of all this and see if they need any leather treatment.

[MichiganKyle]

Or, if it's P/V, follow the directions from the maker. Which is generally: throw it in the washing machine on cold. Supposedly you can dry them in a dryer, but I usually hang mine to dry.

I believe the same advice applies to acrylic - check the maker's directions, or check for a tag, but it's probably going to be throw it in the wash on cold.

Do not do this if it's wool, though. Bad things will happen. Possibly up to and including earthquakes, floods, and an attack by Godzilla.

[revdpatience]

Allan:

I do have to wonder, if you are not leaving the house, what is happening that your kilts are getting dirty?

I've been working from home for four weeks now, and have done very little laundry in that time. Nothing gets so stained by a day's wearing that I can't wear it again. (Socks and undies excepted, of course.)

Others have given the technical answer to cleaning a wool or other type of kilt, but I want to press the question of cleaning it at all. I have worn my eight-yard wool kilt pretty frequently (summer and winter) over the last three years or so, and have not once had to clean it.

Rodger

Due to prevalent situation, we can't go out. What you guys think is the best way to wash/clean my kilts at home?
I'm really upset, my kilts are getting dirty.

[Mpfox1733]

I hang mine to let it air out between uses, very rarely need to wash them

[John_Carrick]

I've never cleaned a kilt in my life and my oldest is 34 years old, apart from occasionally sponging chocolate or mayonnaise or something from part of it. I hope I'm not a slob.

[Dr Bee]

I've never cleaned a kilt in my life and my oldest is 34 years old, apart from occasionally sponging chocolate or mayonnaise or something from part of it. I hope I'm not a slob.

Interesting you mention chocolate - the only time I've ever had to get a kilt dry-cleaned was when I carelessly got some melted white chocolate on one of mine. White chocolate is I believe almost pure fat and I just couldn't shift it even though the kilt in question is tailored in one of Houston's own teflon-coated 16oz tartans. Fortunately my kilt returned from the dry-cleaners as good as new.

[SunriseEarth]

Here in California, dry cleaners are considered "essential" and are still open. But I haven't worn my wool kilts since we've gone under "shelter in place", so I haven't needed to take them in.

For my Sport Kilts, I machine wash on the permanent press setting and then air dry them.

[Allan Kiesler]

First question is what the material is and to a lesser degree, the construction.

It's acrylic wool. I'm worried, If something went wrong, I may end up losing pleats.