Storing Winter Garments

Spring is here! The snow is finally melting and it’s time to swap out the winter gear for those fresh spring looks.
Before we get too eager, it’s important to prep your garments for storage.
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 The first step is cleaning. The reason we clean items before storage is because any dirt or stains have the potential to become
bigger problems when left untreated for an extended period of time.
We often see garments come in that have stains that sat untreated all year, which makes them difficult to remove.
Some stains are easily forgotten about and can cause major problems on your garments. For instance, say you spilled some clear soda on your sweater and when it dried you couldn’t see it anymore.
Even though the stain has “disappeared”, you still have sugar and other chemicals that hide. Once they oxidize, it’s common for them to turn a yellowish/brown color. As mentioned above, the longer a stain goes untreated, the harder it is to remove. So even if it comes to our attention during the dry cleaning process, we still can have our experts
work on it rather than having it sit all year and turn into a much worse stain.

A huge mistake many of our customers make is storing items in the plastic you receive your garments back in. Storing your garments in plastic can cause discoloration if left for too long!
We suggest promptly removing the plastic bag when you get home.

Our favorite tip when tucking your clothes away is instead of using moth balls, try the skin of your favorite citrus.
They need to be changed periodically but you completely avoid the moth ball smell and instead are greeted by a citrus scent.

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Valentine's Stains

Every holiday comes with its own assembly of tough stains. Valentine’s Day is no exception to that rule.
With the celebration of friendship and love comes the chocolate, strawberry, lipstick, candle, and pollen stains.
But if you’re in a pinch and don’t have time to get your garment to the cleaners,
we’re here to help with some methods that can come in handy.
Keep in mind all these suggestions do depend on the type of fabric the garment is made of.
These methods are safe on cotton, however may not be successful on fibers like silk or rayon.
So proceed with caution. If you’re ever unsure, bring it to us and we can get our experts working on it.

1. Chocolate

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Whether it’s truffles, fudge, or cake, chocolate always seems to find its way on to your whitest top. The best way to approach this stain is to immediately flush it out with warm water.  Then, create a solution of water with a small amount of dish soap and blot (dont rub) the stain. The dish soap breaks down the oils in the chocolate and prevents the stain from setting.

2. Strawberry or Red Wine

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Both strawberries and grapes contain plastic elements in them. So when you get a stain, you want to prevent it from setting. We suggest flushing this with COLD water first. Using an ice cube, go over the stain in a circular motion. Then continue by blotting the stain and again, repeat using the ice cube. Continue this process and slowly the stain should pull out. Sometimes a solution of dish soap and warm water may help; however, these stains are very tough to get out. If you can’t seem to get it, bring it in to us while the stain is still saturated. Once the stain dries, its harder for us to get it out.

3. Candle Wax

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Place a thin terry cloth towel on top of a wax stain. Then gently iron over the top of the towel – this will pull the stain right out. The terry cloth acts like a sponge and absorbs the wax as you iron it.

4. Flower Pollen

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This is the trickiest of them all. Pollen is literally a dye that is used to color treat fibers. So when you get some on your clothes, it’s hard to get out. We suggest bringing this one straight to our team. Whatever you do, do not attempt to rub this one. By rubbing or trying to brush the pollen off your’re simply deepening the stain. Rubbing can also damage the fabric itself.

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Diamond Awards 2014

Congratulations to our Treasured Garment Restoration team for winning the
Mpls St Paul Magazines Diamond Award for Outstanding Bridal Preservation
This is a huge honor for us and we would like to thank everyone that voted for us!

“The expertise with which this eco-friendly company cleans your gown was not lost on our panel of judges. Their museum-quality preservation process and impressive customer services were an added bonus. Said one judge: “Brides can rest easy knowing that their precious gown is in good hands.”

See other winners of the Diamond Awards here and visit our Treasured Garment Restoration
page to click through a gallery of other preservations we’ve done in the past.


Diamond Award Judges Choice Diamond Award People Choice

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120 Years of Cleaning Service

This year celebrates our 120th year in business. As one of the oldest cleaners in the Midwest, help us celebrate!
We have a rich history of serving customers using top of the line methods to ensure a great product.

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Pictured above is out ELK location in St. Paul. Which was once owned by
White Way Cleaners until St Croix Cleaners acquired them in 2010.

Though we don’t deliver garments by horse and buggy anymore, we do pride ourselves
on the 120 years of experience we have gained.

Until the 1930s the dry cleaning process was limited to large central plants with delivery routes into all parts of the city. In 1935 the grandson of the original founder of Despatch developed the concept of the “package plant” or neighborhood dry cleaning store. He is credited nationally as the originator of the dry cleaning store concept. The first one in the country was a White Way, which he opened in south Minneapolis.

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Holiday Countdown

 

 10 days to go and counting until Christmas! It’s not to late to get last minute cleaning in.

We clean all of your unique holiday items from Tree Skirts, Stockings, to even Santa Suits!
Pictured below is a recent Holiday item we’ve cleaned.

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Feel free to speak with your local Customer Service Representative
about any of your cleaning needs regarding holiday apparel.
We want you and your home to look your very best this year and to start the New Year off right.

Here is a picture of Santa visiting our production facility last year.

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Stubborn Stain Tips!

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WATCH: Kare11 – Stubborn Stain Tips

 

 

 

 

 

Kelley Nemec from St. Croix Cleaners joined us with the dirt on stains and how to get rid of them. Here are some of her top tips.

Nylon sock: Deodorant’s worst nightmare

Rub the nylon sock lightly over the deodorant marks or foundation to remove the top layer of the stain before it blends into the fabric.

You can still wear the garment for the day, but make sure to clean it soon after, as remnants of the stain may still remain.

Dish soap: Grease’s toughest competitor

Create a solution with the following: 1 pinky’s dip worth of dish soap (the original Dawn works the best!) + 1 to 2 cups water

Flush the stain with this solution (do not just use straight dish soap). Then dab, do not rub, the stain.

Flush with water once more.

If the garment will still not come clean, bring it to the professionals!

Ice cubes: Red wine remover

Treat a red wine stain immediately by placing a paper towel under the garment’s stain Gently dab an ice cube on the top After a few minutes, place a paper towel on top of the stain and pull the stain away!

Vacuum brush: Increases longevity of your garments

Next time you’re vacuuming, take an extra few minutes and vacuum your clothes with a vacuum brush.

Dust finds its way into your closet and settles on your clothes, causing fume fading (color loss) of colored garments and browning of white garments.

By removing this dust, your garments will store and keep their color much longer.

AVOID using stain sticks or DIY stain removing tips found on the Internet. Every stain and fabric is different and some of these “fixes” can actually damage your clothing!

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Coats for a Cause

Today is the last day of our first-ever “Coats for a Cause” – supporting Ready for Success.  It’s an easy way to support your community.  Just donate your gently used, professional winter coat to any St Croix Cleaners location, and receive 20% your dry cleaning order.  We’re happy to announce we’ve collected over 200 coats so far – and in Minnesota, they are very much appreciated.  Thank you to everyone for helping with this great cause!

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Mpls. St. Paul Magazine’s Diamond Awards

Voting for Mpls.St. Paul Magazine’s Diamond Awards – People’s Choice has begun, and we need your help to ensure that St. Croix Cleaners’ Treasured Garment Restoration is recognized!

Treasured Garment Restoration is St. Croix Cleaners’ premier specialty cleaning division, specializing in the cleaning and restoration of delicate, vintage and specialty garments, including wedding gown preservation and alterations. Treasured Garment Restoration has been recognized by the Pioneer Press, Mpls.St. Paul Magazine, Fox 9 and WCCO.

To cast your vote for Treasured Garment Restoration, follow these quick instructions:

  1. Go to http://mspmag.com/Weddings/Diamond-Awards/
  2. Click on “People’s Choice Vote Now”
  3. Click on “Outstanding Bridal Alterations” and “Outstanding Bridal Preservation” (two separate awards – voting is open for each)
  4. Click “Vote” next to Treasured Garment Restoration

Thank you for supporting St. Croix Cleaners and Treasured Garment Restoration. We hope to see you soon!

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St. Croix Cleaners & Merrick Inc.

Merrick, Inc is based a nonprofit corporation out of Vadnais Heights that works with mentally handicapped adults to assist them in taking part in a job in their community. St Croix/White Way Cleaners have been working with Merrick, Inc for over 17 years to provide jobs. This opportunity gives these individuals the skills and ability to build relationships, participate, and work towards something. The skills they acquire can help them with their future goals and bring them closer to their community as well.

St. Croix/White Way employees’ check the clothes in, clean, press, package, and then it is up to the Merrick team to deliver the garments back to the customers. They go to the West 7th street location to pick up the cleaned items and deliver them to the doors of the customers and also pick up more items to be cleaned.

There are currently 8 Merrick employees working as delivery helpers ranging from ages 25-late 50’s and on average have been with the company for 13+ years.  John, a St. Croix Cleaners employee raves about how much love and respect each individual gives their co workers and how much he enjoys working with them. He sees them four days a week and says to never having once had a problem with the deliveries.  Their hard work has gained them all a very well respected place in the St. Paul community.

A former crew associate says “With the length of service all of the crew members have on the crews is a testament to how much they enjoy their job and the tasks they perform.  Cindy has been a job coach for White Way/St. Croix cleaners for 14 years, Amy for 7 years.  There are a number of businesses whose employees know the clients by name and will socialize with them for a few minutes when dropping off and picking up clothes.”

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