August is almost here, and with it comes Classic Cleaners’ August Dress For Success Indianapolis fundraiser.

 Now Classic Cleaners customers have the chance to do right by their clothes while doing right by women in our community who need a little support to help them “thrive in work and in life”.

The August fundraiser is very special, and this is Classic Cleaners’ eighth year as a very special sponsor.  Here’s how the promotion works:

FOR EVERY DRY CLEANING ORDER OF $20 OR MORE,

CLASSIC  CLEANERS DONATES $2.00 TO DRESS FOR SUCCESS INDIANAPOLIS!

A check is presented by Classic Cleaners to the DFS organization at DFS Indianapolis’ annual September fundraiser event, “Stepping Out in Style”.  In each of the past two years, Classic Cleaners’ September donation was more than $13,000!  (Won’t you help us top that this year?)

By the way, the annual August DFS promotion is just one aspect of the ongoing partnership between Classic Cleaners and Dress For Success Indianapolis.  Back in April, Classic Cleaners hosted “Super Sort” at the Bash Street plant, with DFS Indianapolis staff members, volunteers and interns gathering to help sort donated clothing and prepare it for delivery to the Dress For Success Boutique at 820 North Meridian.

August is the perfect time to organize your closets and drawers in preparation for back-to-school — or perhaps for off-to-college!  Whatever the coming fall months hold for you and your family,  your favorite outfits can be clean, pressed, and ready to make just the right impression.  Isn’t it nice to know you’ll be helping Dress For Success Indianapolis in their mission “to promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life”?

Make a special point to take advantage of the Classic Cleaners August special!  

by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

“Nothing commands attention like a man in a well-fitted suit,” exclaims B.A.T.. “He exudes a sophistication that is impossible to recreate by any other means or in any other clothing.”

At Classic Cleaners, we agree. Once you find a suit that fits well in which you feel comfortable, we want to help you keep it looking its best just as long as possible. We even want to make sure your tie adds to your sophisticated business or evening look, so we’ve developed a special process for pressing neckties to give them a perfect rolled edge.

The other day we blogged about buttons, and how careful Classic Cleaners’ technicians are in making sure buttons are sewn on tight and not cracked. On a man’s suit, only the top button of a two-button jacket is fastened; if there are three buttons, either just the middle button or the top two are fastened. With the exception of the one button jacket, the bottom button is never fastened. That means, if any button is likely to need re-sewing, it’s the middle one! So, while we check all the buttons, we start with that middle one.

There are three ways to acquire a suit:

1. Bespoke: Your suit is custom-made from a pattern the tailor created from your measurement.
2. Made to measure:  Your suit is tailored from a pre-made pattern and modified somewhat to fit you.
3. Ready to wear or off-the-rack: This is the least expensive and most common.

However you acquired your suit, you can be confident, when you bring it to Classic Cleaners, it will receive all the specialized attention it needs. We take care to preserve the inner construction of each suit, including the facings, the lining, and the shoulder pads, all things that give the suit its shape and fit. And, if a suit needs repair or alterations, Classic Cleaners experts are on site to help.

At Classic Cleaners, our aim is for you to command – that is, command attention in your clean, well-pressed suit!
 by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

At Classic Cleaners, we’ve never met a button we didn’t like. On the other hand, we’ve prepared ourselves to deal with some of the special challenges buttons can pose in the course of dry cleaning and laundering your garments.

• We have a special Classic Cleaners button guarantee: Should there be any broken or missing buttons on your laundered shirts, we sew on new ones!
• If one of your garments has very delicate buttons (rhinestone buttons on evening clothes, studs, or beaded buttons, for example), our Classic Cleaners seamstress Ohi Suhre may carefully remove those buttons, then re-attach them after the dry cleaning process is complete.

Did you know that buttons were first used as ornaments rather than for fastening? The earliest known button, dating back 5000 years, was found by archeologists in the Indus Valley.  According to SocyBerty.com, the Greeks took the button a step closer to use as a fastener by creating a loop for it out of strands of thread. Mass production of buttons came about during the industrial revolution, and the rest is button history!

One really fascinating aspect of buttons has to do with the feminist movement. In the course of campaigning for equal rights, women gradually adopted men’s clothing styles. But for some reason (there are different theories about why this is so), women’s clothes have always buttoned to the left, while men’s garments continue to button to the right!Whether you fasten your clothing east to west or the reverse, as a Classic Cleaners’ customer, you may be sure your clothes will be returned to you clean, fresh, and ready to –  button!

by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

Table linen care at Classic Cleaners

If you’re like most families, it’s not an everyday occurrence, dining at home on a table spread with tablecloth and fine cloth napkins, that is.  Still, there’s no denying the fact – nothing adds elegance to a meal like crisp, clean, perfectly pressed table linen. 

And, at Classic Cleaners, we know table linen.  We give linens the old one-two-three :

1.   Our first task is removing stains. We’re so proud of our stain removal process that we guarantee removal of 100% of fresh stains (or the cleaning is free)!
2. Next comes laundering the linen in a special cleaning solution that helps restore the original beauty of the cloth.
3. At Classic Cleaners, drying and pressing happen in a single stage, which is possible only because of our large, professional press. Try as you might, it’s impossible to duplicate our process at home.  In fact, most dry cleaners cannot provide this kind of finish for table linens.

Two important reminders for you:

• Linens are breathers, too! Avoid storing clean table linens in plastic bags. (Tip: Clean pillowcases make great storage bags for fine linens.)
• It’s important to bring in all the pieces of a matching set to be cleaned at the same time.  Even if only seven of the dozen matching napkins were used, it’s best to bring in the entire set. As yourvalet.com points out, the same advice  holds true for matching sets of drapes and seat covers, sets of bedspreads, pillow shams, and drapes, and the top and bottom halves of suits. 
  

With Classic Cleaners’ professional expertise, you can be sure the color will be a perfect match! 

 by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team