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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Quick Fix For Chap Stick Stains

Ever forget to check and miss that chap stick
that’s hidden at the bottom of the pocket before putting your clothes in the washer or dryer?
We’ve seen more than our fair share of stains due to grease and chap stick come through our doors.
Some of these stains can be taken care of right at home! They often look similar to the image shown below. The fabric will appear darker and splotchy.

Chapstick
For a quick fix at home, try laying a piece of cardboard or paper bag under the stain and using a hot iron, go over the stain. The cardboard or paper will act like a sponge and absorb the grease or wax (depending on the brand). Its best to catch the stain before putting it in the dryer because the heat can cause the stain to set.

When all else fails bring it to us and our team will work on the stain!

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Grass Stains

In honor of the world coming together in the world cup games in Brazil, we thought we might remind you on how to remove the notorious grass stain.

Grass contains chlorophyll which is the substance that makes plants green. The green is what you see on the surface of this stain. Bleach can work great on white items however use caution with this because sitting in bleach too long can cause damage to the fabric. If the garment is not able to withstand bleach, try soaking it in a solution of water and detergent, then gently brush or dab the area. Be sure not to rub the stain because that may cause the stain to spread. After, wash the item. Before drying it be sure to check the stain is gone. Drying a stain such as this can cause the stain to set and make it very difficult to get out.

The quicker you deal with the stain, the better chance you have of getting it out.

When all else fails and the stain is a bit stubborn to get out at home. Bring it to us and our experts can work on getting the stain out.

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Eco Friendly Dry Cleaning

eco friendlyAs you know, we pride ourselves on being an Eco-friendly dry cleaners.
But what exactly does that mean? What sets us apart from our competitors?

We offer numerous green options in all aspects of our product.
Including biodegradable plastic bags, recycling hangers, and most importantly our actual dry cleaning solution.

You may have heard of the harmful effects of PERC recently on the news.
Studies have shows that PERC can cause harmful effects to the body if exposed.
This is why St. Croix Cleaners had decided to be one of the few cleaners to offer a newer, organic, option called K4.

K4 is a extremely innovative solvent that is safer for you and your family.
It has very different properties than conventional dry cleaning solvents.
It is Halogen free, 99% pure, and not to mention its outstanding cleaning ability that keep your clothes looking great.

For more information on K4 visit our About section on our website or go directly to the source at http://www.systemk4.com/en/products/solvonk4.html

 

 

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How Does Dry Cleaning Work?

As Featured on WCCO’s “Good Question”:

What happens between the time you drop off your most treasured garments at the cleaners and when you pick them up?

John Lauritsen of the WCCO team asked this “Good Question” last week, and we invited him to take a tour with St Croix Cleaners’ Owner, Dave Nemec, of our main facility here in Stillwater, MN.  There’s a little more to dry cleaning than you might think!  Take a look:

Or watch the video here: Check out the video here: CBS Minnesota’s Good Question

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Winter Storage Tips

We stopped by the Twin Cities Live studio yesterday to share some winter storage tips for your favorite garments!

Here are a few of the tips for storing your winter garments until next season:

  • -Clean your clothes before you put them away.  Food and beverage stains can attract clothes moths and silver fish.
  • -Once you get your clothes back from the dry cleaners, remove them from the plastic garment bag.  Your clothes need to “breathe”.   And, don’t store your sweaters on hangers.
  • -When storing winter bedding, make sure to wash and completely dry your comforters.  Remember, comforters can take up to 8 hours to completely dry.
  • -Use lemon rinds and baking soda in your closet.  Lemon rinds keep bugs from burrowing in your clothes.  The baking soda, just like in the refrigerator, will eliminate odors in your clothes.  Don’t use mothballs!  These will leave a permanent odor on your clothing.

Watch the video here.

TCL - Still

 

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Lost Sweater – Found Thanks to Dry Cleaning!

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A sweater found in a Minneapolis parking ramp was returned to it’s owner last week – all because of dry cleaning Technology!

That’s right, thanks to significant increases in technology over the past several years, dry cleaning has become an extremely high-tech industry.

Every time your shirt, sweater, pants – you name it – is dropped off with us, it receives a small barcode.  This barcode is usually placed in an out-of-sight location so it is of no inconvenience to you and your garments, but the information it holds is extremely valuable.  Within that tiny barcode holds all kinds of information about that garment, including things like:

  • the type of garment it is (shirt, pants, dress, etc)
  • the fabric, color and brand of the garment
  • who the garment belongs to
  • when the garment was checked in at our stores, where it is within the cleaning process and whether it is ready to be picked up
  • even the amount of times that garment has been to us!

This information allows us to use the utmost care and quality standards in handling and cleaning your garments. And, for one lucky customer, it helped her get her sweater back!  Another customer found a sweater on the ground in a St Paul Community Ed parking lot after a theater performance once night.  She knew we barcoded our items, so looked at the care label – and sure enough – a barcode!  She emailed us with the barcode number, and we were able to locate the customer it belonged to, and to get her sweater back to her!  She had just “written off” the sweater – which was one of her favorites and most expensive and never thought it could be located..!

It’s a great feel-good story for a nice Thursday afternoon, eh?!

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