Cleaning Delicate Sheets

Do you have some favorite silk or satin sheets that need to be cleaned? Well, don't simply throw them in the laundry as you would anything else. Cleaning delicate sheets takes a little bit of extra care and precaution on your part. All you need to do is follow these steps to ensure that your silk and satin sheets are clean as possible.

Silk:

1. Look the sheet over. Always inspect your silk sheets to see if there are any noticeable stains. If there are, then try to spot wash them away. Do this by gently washing the dirty spot with a soft sponge and warm water. Rub gently, but do not scrub the fabric to hard. If you scrub too hard you can inadvertently damage the sheets. While you are looking for any stains, look for any tears or holes. If you find any, have them repaired.
2. Use the delicate setting. Set your washing machine on its delicate setting, using lukewarm water. Use the standard cycle length only, do not use any extra cycle since it could cause the sheets to stretch, tear, or otherwise get damaged in some way. Also, make sure that you remove the sheets before they reach the spin cycle since it is also too hard on the sheets, and can cause damage that you don't want.
3. Mild detergent only. When adding detergent or soap to your silk sheets, make sure that you are only using the mildest detergent that you can find. Feel free to also use some fabric softener, but make sure that it is also a mild version as well. Follow the recommendations of the detergent and fabric softener manufacturer as to how much to use when washing your sheets.
4. Hang dry. Do not dry your silk sheets in the dryer, instead hang dry them. Do not hang dry the sheets in direct sunlight, since it can damage the sheets. Rather hang the sheets up, and allow them to drip dry. As soon as they are finished drying, remove them from the line, and fold them up and put them away to avoid wrinkles. If you absolutely must use a dryer to dry your laundry, make sure that the setting is on the lowest possible temperature setting, and that you remove them the minute they are dry.

Satin:

1. Determine the type. Typically there are two kinds of satin sheets. The first is made from silk or acetate, and the second is made from nylon or polyester. If your satin sheets are made from silk or acetate, then either hand wash them or wash them according to the silk sheet instructions above. If they are polyester, or nylon then continue on.
2. Machine wash. You can wash your nylon or polyester satin sheets by using the delicate setting on your washing machine, and the coldest possible temperature. Once again, wash your sheets using the standard cycle length, removing them before reaching the spin cycle.
3. Dry on lowest setting. Dry your sheets in the dryer, using the lowest possible heat setting. It would be preferable to not use any heat at all when drying your sheets in the dryer. Check frequently to make sure that the sheets have not become tangled during their drying.
4. Remove quickly. As soon as your sheets are dry, remove them from the dryer and fold them. This will allow you to store the sheets without wrinkles, and ensure that they are around for as long as possible.