Where to send ornate vestments for cleaning?

[gatorsmom]

An order of Friars care for a church I volunteer at. They recently had a change of sacristans and the new one was asking me how to remove stains from some very ornate cassocks. The care label says they are made of rayon and they were purchased in Spain but it doesn’t say where. There are no local dry cleaners that would be willing to try to clean these garments. I was wondering if anyone here knew of a dry cleaner who specializes in ecclesiastical garments.

I worked in a dry cleaners for 3 years in high school and learned enough to know that dry cleaning will likely curl and discolor the beads and sequins. It will remove the sweat stains on the front of the garment around the neck, however. If we try to spot clean with water, it will certainly leave a water ring around that area.

Neither I nor the Friars are willing to clean these garments ourselves because of all the things that could go wrong. Can anyone here recommend a special cleaners who could help? TIA

 

[Minks]

An order of Friars care for a church I volunteer at. They recently had a change of sacristans and the new one was asking me how to remove stains from some very ornate cassocks. The care label says they are made of rayon and they were purchased in Spain but it doesn’t say where. There are no local dry cleaners that would be willing to try to clean these garments. I was wondering if anyone here knew of a dry cleaner who specializes in ecclesiastical garments.

I worked in a dry cleaners for 3 years in high school and learned enough to know that dry cleaning will likely curl and discolor the beads and sequins. It will remove the sweat stains on the front of the garment around the neck, however. If we try to spot clean with water, it will certainly leave a water ring around that area.

Neither I nor the Friars are willing to clean these garments ourselves because of all the things that could go wrong. Can anyone here recommend a special cleaners who could help? TIA

@gator(name removed by moderator)

I’ve been absolutely amazed at the things that can be cleaned with something similar to the name Liquid Ones. Other brands don’t compare. They’ll remove fresh lipstick stains and every food stain that I’ve used them on. They’re great for car carpeting, upholstery, and fabric covered roof interiors; also walls, woodwork, carpets, and even many wallpapers. I don’t know how they’d do on set-in stains, but I’d try saturating the stains and blotting from underneath and on top. It may take several repeats.

It took me 7 cans of hairspray and blotting galore, but I finally removed all traces of red permanent marker from a very white carpet. I don’t know how that might work on the vestments.

I have a new-fangled dryer with a steam feature that I’ve not yet tried. You might ask in the church bulletin if any of the ladies have had success with the steam feature in their dryer.

The grocery had something to put in the dryer which was supposed to be a cheaper version of dry cleaning, but not the actual dry cleaning process. I don’t know about the success rate.

Perhaps a CAFer from Spain could help chase down the company?

 

[gatorsmom]

You have lots of good suggestions. Thank you! You mention something called Liquid Ones. I googled that and couldn’t find a product with that name. Could it be called something else?

Unfortunately, the Purel product sold at Walmart for at-home dry cleaning does nothing but add a fresh sent to the item in the dryer.

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[Minks]

The product comes in a plastic canister. In my Kroger it’s sold near paper plates. The name has to do with how a liquid feels on your hands: not dry, but _ _ _ Ones. Does that ring a bell? If not, PM me. It was the first cleaning type “cloth” in a canister that I remember hearing about.

 

[TheHolyTrinity]

Found this site, may help or direct you to a dry cleaner that has experience. Best of luck.

https://www.gaspardinc.com/vestment-care

Did you know that Gaspard Inc. offers custom dry cleaning services for those hard-to-clean items (those jobs your regular dry cleaner shakes his head at)? Just send us an email at Clean@GaspardInc.com or give a call, and we’ll consult on your cleaning challenge, and how to send us your items. If we can’t get it clean, no one can! And, if it is beyond cleaning, we can probably repair it, and we can certainly replace it!

 

[Minks]

Found this site, may help or direct you to a dry cleaner that has experience. Best of luck.

Vestment Care - Gaspard

Did you know that Gaspard Inc. offers custom dry cleaning services for those hard-to-clean items (those jobs your regular dry cleaner shakes his head at)? Just send us an email at Clean@GaspardInc.com or give a call, and we’ll consult on your cleaning challenge, and how to send us your items. If we can’t get it clean, no one can! And, if it is beyond cleaning, we can probably repair it, and we can certainly replace it!

@TheHolyTrinity

This is a much better suggestion than any of mine, especially for such precious cloth! I’d searched with different phrases, with little luck.You’re a better googler than I! You must have google eyes!

Lol! That reminds me of a tune often heard in a song and dance routine on TV throughout the 50s, having to do with the comically big eyes of the comic character, Snuffy Smiff (Smith), in the Barney Google comic strip: “Barney Google (With the Goo-Goo-Googly Eyes),” by Eddie Cantor.

I just now, uh, googled it, and was surprised to learn that it’s taken on a new life of its own since 2009, thanks to Chris Ballew’s Caspar Babypants kiddie creations. Had to rephrase to find the Barney Google versions. Sorry! I don’t know how to link.

Anyhow, your post is a great answer for the soiled vestments!

 

[HeDa]

OP. Contact your diocese or other local parishes and ask them where they send precious items to be cleaned.