# Do you wash new clothes before wearing them for the first time? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 28, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609 "2010-12-28T16:06:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/41 "2010-12-28T22:20:46Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Second-hand clothes are always washed before they’re put on the racks, by the way. HOw do you know this? Have you ever worked in a second-hand store? ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/42 "2010-12-28T22:22:28Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > How is it that you know this? Walk into Plato’s Closet sometime — there’s an odor. A great, big “unwashed clothes” odor. Uh, yeah. I’ve smelled the odor at every place from Plato’s Closet and Goodwill to high end consignment stores (one that turned away Brooks Brothers clothing of mine, that’s how fancy it is). When the SO got his Burberry trench it went straight to the dry cleaners. So yeah, these places are not washing stuff beforehand. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/43 "2010-12-28T23:00:49Z")
I wash everything I buy before wearing it. But I don’t buy often and my usual purchase it underwear, tee shirts and athletic socks so I just throw it in with my regular wash. Call it what you will, but given the cost of what I buy, I can’t see buying it used. Maybe twice a year I’ll buy two or three pair of jeans but that’s it. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/44 "2010-12-28T23:21:56Z")
Yes. It’s not that I’m skeeved out by someone trying it on, it’s just that I assume that there’s dust and chemicals and such on them that are probably best washed off first. I’ve occasionally had to wear clothes immediately after buying (like having pants rip when I’m nowhere near home or forgetting to pack a sweatshirt on a trip) and it’s not a big deal. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2010, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/45 "2010-12-28T23:58:06Z")
No. It is one of the few times something I own is wrinkle-less. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/46 "2010-12-29T00:28:15Z")
I used to work in a clothing store for several years. And yes, I wash EVERYTHING before I wear it. I usually try it on in the store, so it does touch my skin before it’s washed, but I wash before I wear it for any length of time. There are two reasons. The first is that there are a lot of chemicals on new clothes. There’s the sizing, which is used to give clothes some body, and there’s the dyes and the stuff used to set the dyes and all the other chemicals. Then there’s the other people who have tried on those clothes…some of them have questionable hygiene, and with some of them, there’s no question about their hygiene. A LOT of people come to the store after they’ve been cleaning house, or worked a full shift of physical labor, or before they take their monthly bath, and try on clothes. And yes, people do try on underclothes and swimsuits. They are SUPPOSED to wear their own underclothes under the garments they’re trying on, but I wouldn’t count on it. Those clothes have probably been on a filthy factory floor, too. I advise everyone to wash all garments before the first wearing. I’m not Mrs. Clean myself, but I do have some standards. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/47 "2010-12-29T00:32:39Z")
Jeans or other clothing that needs to be softened up for comfort only. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/48 "2010-12-29T02:53:43Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Is this underwear bin at the thrift store?! That’s too horrible to contemplate. I mean the underwear bin at Vicky’s Secret, not the thrift store! However, there is underwear at the thrift store. I don’t buy it, don’t touch it, don’t even look at it. There is also a selection of used bras. They are hanging on hangers, all gray, or yellowed, and stretched out. Ewwww. I always launder stuff I donate, but I wouldn’t even guess that everybody does, or that the store does. FWIW the things I buy are usually dry clean only stuff, and if I get 'em at the thrift store, the first place they go is to the cleaner, even if they have a tag. ---
**Author:** ![Fair\_Rarity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fair_rarity/32/153_2.png) [@Fair\_Rarity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fair_Rarity)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/49 "2010-12-29T03:09:36Z")
Unless for some reason I have to wear it immediately (like having to buy replacements when luggage gets lost), I wash EVERYTHING. I just envision the multitude of people handling my clothes before me and I can feel my skin crawl. Plus a few years ago when I didn’t do it, I thought I was dying when my entire chest was bright orange until I realized it was dye from my sweater. It didn’t bleed onto my skin again after I washed it. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/50 "2010-12-29T03:34:24Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > I mean the underwear bin at Vicky’s Secret, not the thrift store! However, there is underwear at the thrift store. I don’t buy it, don’t touch it, don’t even look at it. There is also a selection of used bras. They are hanging on hangers, all gray, or yellowed, and stretched out. Ewwww. Oh, good. I usually buy my underwear in those little plastic bags (like from Hanes), so I don’t wash right before wearing. I wonder if I should now, though… ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/51 "2010-12-29T03:34:53Z")
Usually not, unless they have some odd smelling finish or something. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/52 "2010-12-29T03:38:45Z")
Yes. To remove sizing, excess dye, and lint. Not a health thing, just a personal preference. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/53 "2010-12-29T05:42:48Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Oh, good. I usually buy my underwear in those little plastic bags (like from Hanes), so I don’t wash right before wearing. I wonder if I should now, though… > [@rowrrbazzle](#): > > Yes. To remove sizing, excess dye, and lint. Not a health thing, just a personal preference. My advice is to wash EVERYTHING before wearing, even stuff that’s sold in bags, precisely to remove the sizing and extra dy and lint. Not to mention that I could open a bag, allow someone to try on a pair, and reseal the bag so it looked new. People, it’s one extra washing, and you can usually toss the new stuff in with a load of laundry that you’d wash anyway, allowing for color and water temp requirements. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/54 "2010-12-29T06:14:25Z")
No, and it never occurred to me to do so. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/55 "2010-12-29T10:08:24Z")
Always. I find unwashed new clothes unbearably itchy. They get one wash according to directions with a white dish towel. If that comes out ok, it then gets the same treatment as all of my other clothes - warm water, normal cycle. Clothes get no coddling from me! ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/56 "2010-12-29T11:27:19Z")
Sometimes, I will explain. If new jeans look as though they will give me blue legs, then yes, I wash them. My husband, before I met him, once bought a new, bright blue doona cover (a comforter cover, for reference.) His whole body was blue for days after he slept under it without washing it first. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/57 "2010-12-29T12:28:33Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Do people _actually_ try on underwear in the shop? :eek:. Also, what is this “sizing” you people are talking about? How else are you supposed to check that the bra fits well, otherwise? In general, yes with the next load of color-appropriate laundry. But not if it’s something like a coat which requires special handling. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/58 "2010-12-29T20:06:41Z")
I remember reading a story many years ago about people having a skin problem after putting on some new unwashed jeans (I can’t remember any details), similarly to the House episode someone mentioned earlier. I doubt this happens very often, and the story I read could have been an urban legend, but ever since then, I always put new clothes in the laundry basket along with my other dirty clothes and wash them before I put them on the first time. My wife isn’t used to washing them beforehand but I try to enforce that rule for the two kids. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/59 "2010-12-29T20:28:45Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > No, and it never occurred to me to do so. Same here. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2010, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609/60 "2010-12-29T20:56:18Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I used to work in a clothing store for several years. And yes, I wash EVERYTHING before I wear it. I usually try it on in the store, so it does touch my skin before it’s washed, but I wash before I wear it for any length of time. > > There are two reasons. The first is that there are a lot of chemicals on new clothes. There’s the sizing, which is used to give clothes some body, and there’s the dyes and the stuff used to set the dyes and all the other chemicals. Then there’s the other people who have tried on those clothes…some of them have questionable hygiene, and with some of them, there’s no question about their hygiene. A LOT of people come to the store after they’ve been cleaning house, or worked a full shift of physical labor, or before they take their monthly bath, and try on clothes. And yes, people do try on underclothes and swimsuits. They are SUPPOSED to wear their own underclothes under the garments they’re trying on, but I wouldn’t count on it. > > Those clothes have probably been on a filthy factory floor, too. > > I advise everyone to wash all garments before the first wearing. I’m not Mrs. Clean myself, but I do have some standards. Oh, hell yes. Do as \*\*Lynn \*\*says: wash. Wash everything. I used to work for a high end department store and I can back up everything she says. That chemical smell some of you have mentioned upthread? That’s not just sizing or dye you’re smelling. Those clothes you’re buying at high end department store x or at your favorite discount store (makes no difference) have been \*\*sprayed for vermin and other pests \*\*that love to eat fabric. Critters of the rodent persuasion run free in the warehouse down at my local discount store. How do I know? I worked there. I saw them. Rats. Big rats. If it’s like that here, wonder what it’s like in the countries represented by the tag on your favorite shirt or pair of slacks? Believe you me, that pretty sweater you just bought for Aunt Harriet is FILTHY. Next time you’re in one of those high-end stores, watch for those employees who are tasked with returning tried-on clothing to their places on The Floor (the open shopping areas customers are in). You’ll note that at least some of them wear disposable plastic gloves. Why? Because their hands would be grimy, otherwise. Those clothes sit for weeks or months in third-world factories or on docks and have been handled by countless people before they ever get here to the states. Those clothes that are bagged make no difference. Those clothes that are supposedly pre-washed? Don’t chance it. And, she’s totally right about the bathing suits and underwear. The gross factor goes off the charts from there without being more graphic. Doesn’t begin to explain what I’ve seen in dressing rooms. Not only do I immediately launder or have dry-cleaned anything I purchase to wear, I get \*myself \*into the shower as soon as possible. I don’t want that stuff on my skin any longer than it has to be. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-wash-new-clothes-before-wearing-them-for-the-first-time/565609.md?page=4)