I just about committed a murder.

As I do, once and a while, when my CW clothing gets too foul for even me to wear, I took some things to the dry cleaner. Specific instructions, I make them write down every time, "do not press." It was on my pick up tag too. I know, it wasn't the nice high school aged girl behind the counters fault.

My Federal Corporals and Privates trousers now have a nice sharp crease, front and back.

How in God's name can I get rid of them?

I could scream.

 

Grumpy, you could try hand washing them in the utility sink in tepid water, and laying 'em out flat to dry.

This is one dang thing I haven't had happen to me and my uniforms, but if it makes you feel better, some modern dress shirts have had buttons destroyed over the years. Then again, those trousers may have been so foul that they did this on purpose to keep you from bringing them back for repeat cleanings.

Grumpy,

An easy solution. Just hang the trousers flat on a hanger in the back of the shower. The steam will remove the creases. Of course, I am assuming you shower between events.  

Grump,

It happened to me once too, I took them back and made them redo them.....while I waited. Either that or you can wear them as is while the rest of us point and laugh

Just start wearing them around the house and to play with the kids in.. That should get those creases out of them in time for W64..

Dave -

What Bill said about steam. Hanging them in the shower is one way, or hanging them up on a trouser hanger and lightly passing a steam iron over should do the trick. The same happened to me with a pair of dress trousers before Rem Day last year. Got the trousers out of the bag and about had kittens. At least there was a steam iron in the room.

All of the above, although my first reaction was the same as -- dare I say it? -- Mr. Heath's.

I've never considered having my stuff dry cleaned.  Someone once told me that a classic English bespoke suit is never dry-cleaned, just brushed and aired.  Or maybe I'm just cheap.

When my old sack cried out for more (rather, I cried out when I actually smelled it after an event too far), I soaked it in luke warm water with a ph neutral shampoo and hung it up in the basement with weights clipped to the bottom seam until it dried.

Don't know if that's the best thing to do, but it eliminated the stink, for a time, and otherwise did no harm.  The same treatment might do for the creases.

Alternatively, just be a man, dude, and wear it like you're proud of it.  See who dares to call you.  Tell them the laundress pressed it between two boards to get the wet out.  Lord knows, maybe it actually happened once or twice...

I'm facing a similar issue.  The difference being that I did not instruct the dry cleaners not to press the trousers.  Having only one season under my belt, I just plum forgot.  When I picked up my trousers and sack coat, and removed them from the plastic, I saw the crease and shouted "SON OF A @&%#$!".  But I have noone to blame but myself.  

The bright side is that I was considering selling them and getting a new pair as they are too big (thanks to a 15-20 lbs wieght drop since I bought them), so really I can just make it someone elses problem  

--Last edited by TheBaldYankee on 2008-01-25 07:48:20 --

  This may sound crazy but i have gone as far as throwing them in the washing machine with woolite and cold water!! works pretty good as long as you just let them air dry!! If you think about it, How many times have you been out in the cold rain soaked to the bone, Just let them air dry and you will be good.

Actually, to mention both rain and Mr. Towsen in the same sentence is the same as invoking the Almighty to send forth lightning bolts from the heavens.  

I own a shell jacket that was so full of salt, it would just stay damp at events. The lining was actually stiff with salt. I had it drycleaned and the process never even touched the salt deposits. I finally turned it inside-out, hung it on the clothes line, and sprayed it with a hose. That did the trick. A lot of salt washed out of the lining and the wool barely got wet.    

.Dave,

maybe you can wear a tie with them.  That way no one will notice the seams

"How many times have you been out in the cold rain soaked to the bone, Just let them air dry and you will be good."


Ummm every event I've attended since October 2003, save one or two in 2007. I have over herd folks at events talking about getting rich by sending me to Africa. Does that count?

Me, head Rain Jonah.

Dave,

Would you mind posting your 2008 event schedule? It might save me the use of some vacation days.

I don't think Grumpy needs to actually attend the event to make it rain there; all he has to do is refer to it in a positive manner.

Step one:  Put on your affected uniform items.
Step two:  Jump into the shower.
Step three:  Turn on the water; not too hot, not too cold.
Step four:  Wear them until they dry, performing acts of manual labor, etc.

Alternative:  Take 'em back to the cleaners and have them do it again, this time properly.

Problem solved. Washing machine, "delicate" cycle, woolite, hang dry in basement. No shrinkage, creases gone.

Okay, I'm going to have to try that.  

Dave,

The same thing happened to me but I never told them not to press them.  
You need to get your iron and a spray bottle of water.  Place the iron on the wool setting and let it warm up.  Next spray the crease so that it’s completely soaked with water.  Once you have done that place the iron on the area and move to over the spot repeatedly until it’s only damp.  This will be time consuming but will eventually get ride of the crease.   You may want to do this    after your done but it does work.

Hope this helps,

Mark

I did not see that you were able to fix your problem before I posted.

I solved the problem by pooring water into the iron, setting it on the wool setting and pressing the old steam button while ironing out the crease.  Worked like a charm!