Can every crease be pressed out?

A client brought a new dress into Farthings recently. It had arrived folded in a delivery bag and she wanted us to remove the creases before wearing it.

Looking at it, I understood why. There were clear fold lines and the fabric looked quite crinkled.

We pressed the dress, but it did not become completely smooth.

When the client came back to collect it, she was very upset. She looked at me and asked what we had done. She was worried she would not be able to wear it that night.

I felt awful!

My first thought was, Have we got this wrong? I did not want to tell her, “That’s just how the fabric is,” without being sure. So I decided to check.

I went online and bought exactly the same dress, brand new.

When it arrived, I opened the parcel and laid it out.

It had the same obvious fold lines from being packed. But the whole fabric also had that same crinkled, slightly rumpled appearance. That was the answer I needed.

The dress we had worked on had not become crinkled because of what we had done. An identical dress had arrived from the retailer looking very similar.

When I showed this to the client, she understood and felt reassured. And, I have to admit, so did I.

Some fabrics simply do not become completely smooth.

This experience reminded me that what we call a “crease” is not always one simple thing.

A fold line from packaging is one thing. The natural appearance of the fabric is another.

Sometimes both are there together.

If a fabric already has a crinkled or textured look, pressing may improve some of the folding marks, but it will not necessarily turn the whole garment into a perfectly flat, smooth fabric.

That is important because it can be tempting to think that more steam, more heat or more pressing will solve the problem.

It does not always work like that.

Part of professional garment care is knowing how far to go.

We still have to respect the fabric. If pressing is not changing the appearance, continuing to force it may not give a better result.

Why did I want to share this?

The client’s reaction stayed with me because her expectation was completely understandable. She had bought a new dress. It came out of a bag looking creased. She brought it to us because she thought we could make it smooth. I would probably have thought the same.

What neither of us knew at first was how much of that appearance was coming from the fabric itself.

Buying the second dress helped us see that clearly. It also reminded me why we should be careful when promising what pressing can achieve.

Most garments respond very well to professional finishing. But occasionally the finish someone is hoping for is simply not how that particular fabric sits.

That does not mean the garment has been badly pressed.

It may just mean that completely flat and smooth is not a realistic finish for that material.

For me, the useful question is: What did the garment look like when it was new?

In this case, buying another one gave us the answer.

And most importantly, it allowed me to explain that properly to the client rather than simply asking her to take my word for it.

Laurence

Farthings Dry Cleaners

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143 Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 1XE

📞 Call us: 01223 755180

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 1 Anstey Way, Trumpington, Cambridge, CB2 9JE

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🗺️ Get directions to our Trumpington Branch

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✨ Who is Farthings Dry Cleaners?

Farthings Dry Cleaners is known as Cambridge and Trumpington's most sought-after dry cleaners. It's the ideal home for your high-end garments' preservation and alteration to be cared for, helping them last as long as possible and always making you look stunning. Trust Farthings where your garments are cared for like couture.