How to Wash & Care For Your Wearable Art

by Risa Iwasaki Culbertson

My original Wearable Wins coveralls are nearly 6 years old now. Aside from a little fading with the markers, I’m still very happy with how they look. I wear them quite often and they look really well preserved. My personal motto when it comes to clothes is: “If it can’t survive me, it’s not meant to be.” I like climbing trees, and I constantly get paint on myself (even when I’m not painting, somehow). I jam multiple laundry loads into one machine, blast that with some hot water, and then throw everything into the jumbo dryer on high at the laundromat. But, these coveralls (and anything else I’m making art on) get special attention.

image of a white coveralls decorated with colorful paint markers with images of smiles, eggs, bacon, and other whimsical graphics against a white door

Washing Tips for Wearable Art

The things that have helped me are:

● Always removing dangly charms that are easy to clip off
● Flipping my garment inside out
● Putting it in a mesh laundry bag
● Cold setting in the wash (this is important for any stick on patches or hot glue embroidery)
● No dryer, just hang dry
● Reading the care instructions for garments and materials I’m using

image of light pink garment with a big sad face drawn in black Krink marker — What my Krink marker look like after many washes.

image of free form machine embroidery words in black on a white canvas background — Free motion machine embroidery on a bandana after a few washes.

image of wearable art on white coveralls: two illustrated hands reaching for a rainbow — Screen printing ink vs. paint markers after 6+ years.

close up of a green felt applique that looks like a witch's bony finger to illustrate what wearable art looks like after many washes — Hand-sewn felt appliqué. A tiny bit pill-y but part of the charm!

close up of wearable art on white canvas clothing with drawn images of fruits and candies and an embroidered person's face with yellow skin and a beard — Free motion machine embroidery holding strong!

Extra Care for Special Materials

For pieces I added a different material to (needle felting or patch), I like to pull and stretch directly on and around the area while still wet from washing. Different materials are going to shrink in different ways and pulling will stretch to match both layers. I use this a lot when I needle felt (wool) on a vintage or pre-washed denim jacket.

closeup image of the top of a pair of white coveralls with a dark blue embroidered bear face on one side and 3-dimensional felt flowers coming out of a pocket on the other side — Pulling the petals after a wash has kept these felt flowers wilt-free over the years.

Yarn fringe can get a bit frayed and tangled sometimes but I haven’t had many issues. If they do, I just comb them out before hang drying.

image of closeup of wearable art coveralls with fabric paint, embroidery and yarn fringe depicting egg,s bacon, strawberries, and the letter R — A little fraying on the cotton yarn fringe. Also shown: fabric paint and embroidery.

I do have a green, wool jacket that I get dry cleaned when necessary. Only because I’m concerned about how to wash the actual jacket and not the pieces I’ve added to it. I’ve seen too many shrunken wool sweaters at the thrift to take a chance with this one!

image of wearable art: a green wool coat with appliqués of cheese and bread and salami and ants depicting a picnic — Any little add-ons like these ants will need some extra reinforcements.

What If Something Fades, Falls Off, or Gets Damaged?

We can all do our very best to bring longevity to our wearable art, but sometimes things just happen: a coffee spill that won’t come out, a hole chewed through by our favorite pet, or that one unbearably hot day where you panicked and made everything into cut-offs. When those things happen, I think of it as a new collaboration with the piece. Was that a moment that deserves to be captured? What can we add to cover that spot? Can I attach different sleeves to my cut off shirts?

These pieces not only celebrate the stories at the moment of creation but get to accompany you through the years. Some memories don’t feel as crisp as they used to be, sometimes we lose a favorite charm or feel a little bit frayed and that’s ok. Revisiting, mending, adding to, and caring for these can be part of the love we pour into our creations. Maybe that in itself is a win worth adding.

image of felt applique on white canvas of a blue eyeball with arms reaching out

Risa Culbertson is a multimedia artist (@Risa_Iwasaki_Culbertson) and letterpress printer (@PapaLlamaMama) based in the Bay Area. She is experienced in a wide variety of mediums including fiber arts, paper, edible art, sculpting, illustration, stop-motion animation and more. Specializing in wacky, whimsical, and colorful pieces to brighten up the gloomiest of days, her work is all about being playful as a way to recharge the creative spirit.