Stains are a fairly tricky business in the dry cleaning world. No two stains are alike. The success of stain removal hinges on a few things; the type of fabric, the type of stain, how long has the stain been there, and perhaps most importantly is making us aware of the stain. We aren’t claiming we can get them all. Some fabrics are too delicate which limits the effectiveness of the removal, and some clothing dyes are soluble, which means they’ll come out along with the stain. Ink stains can be impossible to get out. But we’ll certainly try our best.

Help us help you with stain removal.

1. Bring us the stained garment as quickly as possible.
2. Tell us what the stain is, or what you think it could be.
3. Show us the location of the stain.
4. Let us know about any removal techniques you’ve tried.

Time is of the essence when it comes to stain removal. The less time the stain has to set-in then the better the chance at removing the stain. Some stains can breakdown materials which can cause thinning and holes in the fabric. Stains react differently on different fabrics. The way we would treat a coffee stain on cotton varies greatly to the way we would treat a coffee stain on silk. What starts out as a simple coffee stain on your pants can quickly turn into you buying a new pair of pants.

The disappearing stain.

If you spill a little white wine on your blouse you may notice that once the stain has dried it has pretty much disappeared. Fantastic! Right? Unfortunately it’s a trick. The stain is still there. Some stains dry clear, but when exposed to heat or cleaning chemicals they reappear. At which point it becomes almost impossible to remove. We carefully examine every garment brought in for cleaning. But we can’t see what isn’t there. Therefore showing us the location of these “not there stains” can save us all a lot of headaches.

Do it yourself?

We appreciate your attempt to get the stain out before you bring it in, but sometimes you can do more harm than good. We’ve all seen the ads on TV where someone squirts ketchup on their shirt, quickly grabs some seltzer, and starts to vigorously rub the stain. DO NOT rub a stain into the fabric! Rubbing a stain can break the fabric’s fibers leaving it vulnerable to holes and irreparable damage. Lightly blot a stain to remove any excess substances, but NEVER rub a stain.

Again, please let us know if you have tried any stain removal techniques at home. Maybe you pre-treated it with detergent or a stain stick? Whatever you used to pretreat that stain may react negatively with our own cleaning chemicals.There is no such things are over-sharing when it comes to stains on your clothes. Be as thorough as you can. We promise to do the best that we can to remove your stain. The best thing to do is bring it right away and let us work our Swiss magic.