Lingerie Care Guide: How to Wash & Preserve Your Pieces
Beautiful Lingerie Deserves Beautiful Care
Delicate fabrics, intricate lace, and hand-crafted embroidery require a little extra love to stay looking their best. Whether you've just added a new embroidered bralette to your collection or you're looking to extend the life of a longtime favorite, this guide covers everything you need to know about washing, drying, and storing your lingerie properly.
Read the Label First
Every piece of lingerie comes with a care label for a reason. Before washing anything, check the label for fabric content and specific instructions. Silk, lace, and embroidered pieces often require hand washing or a delicate machine cycle, while some cotton styles can handle a gentle machine wash.
Hand Washing: The Gold Standard
For most lingerie — especially embroidered, lace, or silk pieces — hand washing is the safest method.
- Fill a clean basin or sink with cool or lukewarm water. Avoid hot water, which can shrink fabrics and damage delicate fibers.
- Add a small amount of gentle lingerie wash or mild soap. A little goes a long way.
- Submerge the garment and gently swirl it in the water. Do not scrub, wring, or twist.
- Let it soak for 5–10 minutes.
- Rinse thoroughly with cool water until all soap is removed.
- Gently press the water out — never wring. Lay flat on a clean towel, roll the towel up to absorb excess moisture, then unroll and reshape the garment.
Machine Washing: When It's Allowed
If the care label permits machine washing, follow these steps to minimize damage:
- Use a mesh laundry bag to protect straps, hooks, and embroidery from snagging
- Select the delicate or gentle cycle with cold water
- Use a lingerie-specific or gentle detergent — avoid anything with bleach or optical brighteners
- Wash with similar colors to prevent dye transfer
Caring for Embroidered Pieces
Embroidery adds texture and dimension to lingerie, but it also requires special attention. Always turn embroidered pieces inside out before washing to protect the stitching. Avoid soaking for extended periods, and never use a brush or abrasive cloth on embroidered areas. When in doubt, hand wash.
Drying Your Lingerie
Heat is the enemy of delicate fabrics. Here's how to dry your pieces safely:
- Never put lingerie in the dryer — heat can warp underwire, shrink fabric, and damage elastic
- Lay flat to dry whenever possible, especially for bras and embroidered pieces
- Hang dry only for items that won't stretch out of shape (like briefs or soft bralettes)
- Dry away from direct sunlight, which can fade colors over time
Storing Your Lingerie
How you store your lingerie matters just as much as how you wash it.
- Bras: Stack them cup-to-cup in a drawer, or lay them flat. Never fold one cup into the other — this crushes the padding and distorts the shape over time.
- Delicate pieces: Store in a breathable fabric pouch or a dedicated lingerie drawer away from rough fabrics that could snag lace or embroidery.
- Avoid overcrowding: Give each piece room to breathe so it holds its shape.
How Often Should You Wash Lingerie?
As a general rule, bras can be worn 2–3 times between washes (rotating between a few bras helps them last longer), while underwear should be washed after every wear. Delicate or embroidered pieces that are worn less frequently can go longer between washes, but always store them clean.
A Little Care Goes a Long Way
Investing in quality lingerie means investing in pieces that are meant to last. With the right care routine, your Somewhere Never pieces will stay as beautiful as the day you first wore them — so you can keep reaching for them, season after season.
