Monday, October 23, 2017

Hidden Secrets II


Here's a second in my new series of hidden secrets.

When you buy a nice piece of clothing (e.g., fancy dress, business suit), it often comes with spare buttons and a little square of cloth. The cloth is the same material as the item.

Most people don't know what the cloth is for. Some guess, incorrectly, that it's to use as a patch for rips. No, it's not.

The real purpose of the cloth is to test laundry detergent and other cleaning solvents to see how the material will react to them. That way you won't ruin the entire garment when trying to clean it.

Isn't that clever?
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15 comments:

  1. TrueScrapAddict@blogspot.comOctober 24, 2017 at 1:20 AM

    WOW!!! That is seriously clever ... Now I am sure a whole lot of garments have been ruined by us not knowing what that piece of material was for ... Why oh why are we not taught these things???!!!

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    Replies
    1. ShybikerOctober 24, 2017 at 8:26 AM

      Exactly! That's why I'm doing these posts -- to spread word.

      Delete
  2. KezzieOctober 24, 2017 at 7:02 AM

    Aha!!! I didn't know that!!!

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  3. SuzanneOctober 24, 2017 at 7:19 AM

    I haven't ever seen a piece of clothing come with cloth, just with buttons. How interesting!

    Suzanne

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    Replies
    1. ShybikerOctober 24, 2017 at 8:26 AM

      Maybe it's more common with men's clothing. I see it often.

      Delete
  4. awhiteOctober 24, 2017 at 10:41 AM

    I actually did not know this! How clever!

    -Ashley
    Le Stylo Rouge

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  5. LorenaOctober 24, 2017 at 12:00 PM

    Ha ! I thought it was for patches too ;)

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  6. The Elle DiariesOctober 24, 2017 at 1:19 PM

    I never knew that. How clever. I also thought it was for patching.
    Thanks for this happy bit of news, I love to learn new and useful things. Even new and useless things...
    ❤️❤️
    Elle
    https://theellediaries.com/

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  7. Polyester PrincessOctober 24, 2017 at 1:29 PM

    I had no idea, Ally! I have a pink (!) Tweed coat, which came with a piece of fabric like that. xxx

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  8. KatiOctober 24, 2017 at 2:39 PM

    Haha, I always thought it was for fixing holes! :-D

    -Kati
    Almost Stylish

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  9. Jazzy JackOctober 25, 2017 at 4:28 AM

    But what about the lining? That is what usually shrinks and ruins a perfectly good outfit!
    Good idea though. xo Jazzy Jack

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  10. Pat ScalesOctober 25, 2017 at 5:00 PM

    Of course, the buttons are for when one pops off and gets lost. I have a collection of swatches and buttons that go back generations for suits that have long since been retired to the junk heap of the donation pile.
    Pat

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  11. Megan GOctober 25, 2017 at 10:27 PM

    I love the little extras. It's one thing that I feel comes with quality clothing. My All Saints stuff always came with thread, buttons and sometimes the swatch

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  12. WendyOctober 27, 2017 at 10:42 AM

    You learn something new every day. Thanks for sharing. I had no idea. Have a fabulous weekend Ally .. hugz

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  13. UnknownNovember 1, 2017 at 9:48 AM

    OMG, that's genius! I had no idea!

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