October special:
20% off bedding
and household items!

October special on household items at Classic Cleaners

In Raiders of the Lost Ark, I don’t recall Harrison Ford finding any pillows in the tombs he uncovered, but he might have. Certainly pillows have been found in Ancient Egyptian tombs.

Not everyone was privileged to use pillows, though.  In Tudor England, it was believed only women giving birth and weak men should use them.

“Nonsense!” is Classic Cleaners’ reaction to that one.  We wouldn’t dream of sending our loyal customers – male OR female - off to dreamland without clean, soft pillows.  And it’s not only pillows that make for a great night’s rest.  Classic Cleaners’ expertise in bedding extends to:

• quilts
• bedspreads
• duvet covers
• sheets and pillowcases
• sleeping bags

When it comes to pillows, Classic Cleaners professionals deserve a five-star rating for their special five-step pillow-cleaning process:

1. Discard old ticking
2. Toss pillow filling in a tumbler with rotating brushes to break up clumps and sift out dust
3. Sanitize the filling with germicidal ozone and with light
4. Volumize – fluff the down and feathers and add more as needed.
5. Re-tick in a beautiful new 100% cotton casing.

Hello, rejuvenated pillows! Goodbye, allergies!

Remember, the October special includes drapes, slipcovers, even sleeping bags.

Whatever the time of year, you need your beauty rest.   And, with Classic Cleaners, a good night’s sleep is a givenl
 by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

History’s a favorite school subject at Classic Cleaners. Not only are Classic Cleaners owners proud of their own twenty-five year history serving customers in Central Indiana, they love studying the history of dry cleaning around the world.  Today our history trip takes us to the island country of Haiti.

Back in 1946, Jimmy Plinton, former flight trainer for the famous Tuskagee Airmen (the all-black U.S. Army AirCorps’ 99th Pursuit Squadron), was visiting Haiti.  Trying to have a pair of pants cleaned, Plinton learned Haiti had no dry cleaning plant, and he proceeded to establish Haiti’s very first dry cleaners in Port-au-Prince.

It’s fascinating to realize how much of an effect the dry cleaning business can have on the general economy in an area. Without a dry cleaning business, Haiti’s seamstresses and tailors could use their skills on only linen and cotton, and ready-to-wear shops were almost non-existent. Even diplomats had trouble caring for their uniforms and medal ribbons!  By getting dry cleaning started in Haiti, Jimmy Plinton gave the country’s entire economy a big boost! Haberdasheries, women’s ready-to-wear shops, tailers, fabric-makers, and other dry cleaners soon sprang up in and around Port-au-Prince. In fact, when World War II was over, Jimmy Plinton was invited by the Haitian president to develop the Haitian International Airlines. Haiti awarded Plinton its highest honor, the National Order of Honor and Merit.

Like “Jeemie” Plinton in Haiti, Classic Cleaners stays involved with the local community, doing its part to contribute to the growth of its neighbors’ businesses from Broad Ripple to Cicero, from McCordsville to Zionsville and everywhere in between. Proud member of the Chambers of Commerce of Fishers, Carmel, and Greater Indianapolis, Classic Cleaners continues top serve as a link in the chain of dry cleaning history!

Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

Dry cleaning in Indianapolis is big business for Classic Cleaners, don’t get me wrong.
But, sometimes, after watching all the celebrities show off their beautiful designer clothes on TV, I can’t help wondering…who cleans those couture evening gowns after a big White House or Red Carpet event? (Tell me they don’t throw the gowns away after one wearing!)

To my relief, I read in Savvy Sugar that (apart from official dinners) every United States President and spouse are responsible for all of their everyday expenses such as food, drink, and dry-cleaning bills! Does someone keep track?  Apparently, the White House functions like a luxury hotel.  At the end of each month, the president receives a bill for food and incidental expenses.

When it comes to TV and movie stars, at least one, Ellen Pompeo of Gray’s Anatomy, was spotted dropping off a bag of clothes at a Hollywood Hills dry cleaners. And, if you should happen to visit a Hollywood dry cleaners yourself, don’t be surprised if food expert Rachael Ray is the one taking in your order.  The CBS show I Get That a Lot puts celebrities in “normal person jobs” to confuse customers, and Ray served at least one stint as a dry cleaners clerk. The show’s executive producer Ed Horwitz remarked that, since a large portion of the Rachael Ray show audience use their local drycleaners, it would be fun to put her into that environment.

 While Classic Cleaners has no plans to open a store in Hollywood, when it comes to the cleaning and restoring of delicate evening gowns, our professionals are up to the challenge.

• Hand cleaning: Each gown is treated individually, while protecting beads, embroidery, lacy, and sequins.
• Anti-sugar stain treatment: Often stains from sugar, salt, and acids dry clear, These stains cannot be initially be seen, and do not disappear with normal dry cleaning.  Over time, though, the stains can turn an ugly brownish-yellow.  At Classic Cleaners, your gown will be given a complete anti-acid conditioning.
  
  Gloved handling and Inspection: Each gown is lovingly protected from skin oils and from contact with other garments.

Not all our customers are headed for Hollywood Hills or the White House, but with Classic Cleaners, you can be ready just in case that engraved invitation is delivered tomorrow!

by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team

Interviewed for the August 1, 1960 issue of the Indianapolis News, 80-year old Bertha Lee Redden Shaw, had this to say:

“I am a Hoosier, born in Marion County, Pike Township, Indiana, at Traders Point, and very proud of it.”

Traders Point was an appropriate name for the village in northwest Indianapolis that grew up on land surrendered by the Miami Indians in 1818. Farmers would congregate there to barter and to exchange everything from hogs and horses, to harnesses and carts.

Fast forward to 2010, when Traders Point is home to a large, bustling, outdoor shopping and dining mall near the intersection of highway I-65 and West 86th Street, with a Classic Cleaners store occupying a prominent spot near the front of the mall.

Classic Cleaners is proud of its own history, which goes back 25 years. One year ago, Classic Cleaners beame one of the many “Northwest traders” at the growing Traders Point mall. Manager Wendy Matthis feels right at home in her busy store, which attracts residents from Zionsville and Brownsburg, in addition to many who work in the numerous office buildings and hotels in the neighborhood. Many of Wendy’s customers drop off and pick up their garments, then get their shopping done at Traders Point’s other stores.

Wendy, who prides herself on quickly learning and remembering the names of hundreds of Classic Cleaners

Wendy Matthis, manager of Classic Cleaners at Traders Point

Traders Point customers, has become a favorite with the employees in the nearby Dow Chemical headquarters.  In fact, all the “word-of-mouth advertising” her clients have done at Dow has prompted Wendy to offer a special 10% Dow Dry Cleaning Discount!

Living in such a historical area, many Traders Point residents are history buffs.  One customer brought in a set of antique burlap sacks, wanting to be sure the lettering would be preserved through the cleaning process.  The beautifully finished sacks now hang on the wall of this loyal customer’s antique barn!

It’s an interesting contrast – Classic Cleaners’  ultra-modern, “green” dry cleaning technology in a neighborhood from which soldiers went off to fight in the Civil War!

by Reb of the Classic Cleaners blog team