Avoid the washday blues and greys
Do the colourfastness test and avoid the washday blues – and greys! It's easy. Check the care label and follow our simple instructions.
Colour fastness
In general it's best to wash your dark colours separately. But it's worth knowing if clothes (especially new ones) are colourfast, before putting them in with a regular wash. That way you'll avoid dyes running into other clothes, leaving them an undesirable - often indescribable - shade! So check the care label and do this test for colorfastness.
Dampen a small area of hem or inside seam with water, then iron a piece of white fabric or kitchen paper on to it. If the paper soaks up any colour your garment is not colourfast, so should be washed separately.
How do I wash non-colourfast items?
Non-colourfast items should be washed separately in cold water, and rinsed immediately without soaking. Dry cleaning is safer for garments that lose a lot of colour, but check the care label first.
What should I do if I get dye run into other clothes?
If a non-colourfast item accidentally slips into your wash, a reversal product, such as Dylon Run Away Dye Remover could come to the rescue. It's available in most supermarkets and chemists.
If an article washed in your machine has released a lot of dye, put your machine on an empty wash cycle before doing the next load. This will stop the loose dye runing into the next wash.
Is my garment sensitive to fabric washing oxygen bleach/perborate?
Some laundry products, such as Persil Handwash contain colour-safe oxygen bleach specially designed for excellent stain removal when washing whites and colours. This is different to household bleach which is chlorine based and can easily damage colours. But some items are sensitive to colour-safe bleach, and their care labels will probably be marked "Do not bleach".
If you are unsure whether your garment is sensitive to colour-safe bleach, try the following test.
Make a paste with Persil Handwash and water.
Place a small amount on a part of the garment which doesn't normally show (eg inside a hem) and leave overnight.
Remove the paste carefully.
If any colour is lost, the dye is not stable and the garment should not be soaked or washed in a product that contains oxygen bleach.
