How to Wash Girls' Dresses So They Can Serve for Many Occasions

When you buy a girls' dress for special occasions, you probably think about the specific event where your daughter will wear it. However, this type of outfit isn't just for one-time use. You can use it multiple times in different stylings – provided your child doesn't outgrow it in the meantime.

However, it sometimes happens that after just one wear, a little girls' dress needs thorough cleaning. After all, children aren't little adults and often during celebrations they play, run, and dance without restraint. The effects of their activities are visible on their clothes.

So how do you clean an elegant girls' dress to effectively remove unwanted stains whilst maintaining the shape and form of the outfit? Read on!

Should You Choose Professional Cleaning or Home Washing?

By taking a girls' dress to a professional dry cleaner, you can be certain that the specialists working there will match the washing method to the outfit. Thanks to this, you'll receive a perfectly cleaned little girls' dress. It will be almost like new from the shop! If you're therefore worried that you might damage this type of clothing, a dry cleaner is a good idea.

Why Professional Cleaning Might Be Worth the Investment

How much do you have to pay for this though? If you decide on dry cleaning, the price for cleaning a girls' dress starts from £15 upwards (depending on the city, number of decorations on the outfit, and its style). Add to this travel costs and the time you must dedicate to it. Also consider that you might collect the outfit even after several days.

When Home Washing Is the Better Choice

However, if dry cleaning costs are slightly too high for you or you don't have enough time to leave a girls' dress for cleaning, try washing the garment yourself at home. How should you approach this? Which cleaning products should you choose so as not to damage the outfit? Can you use a washing machine?

How Should You Wash Girls' Dresses? Here Are Several Simple Methods!

The simplest way to find out how to wash a girls' dress is to check the label sewn onto it. You'll find several symbols there as well as information about what material it's made from. These will tell you, amongst other things, at what temperature and using which chemical agents you can effectively clean this garment.

What to Do When the Care Label Is Missing

But what should you do when you previously cut off and threw away the label from the little girls' dress? Use the instructions below, which will help you properly wash the outfit!

How Should You Wash Cotton Girls' Dresses?

Cotton is a natural material. It's not difficult to keep it in good condition for a long time. What's more, cotton, thanks to its breathability, is the best choice for children. It doesn't irritate the skin and you can easily eliminate bacteria from it. Therefore, cotton girls' dresses can be worn even by infants.

Why Cotton Is the Most Forgiving Fabric to Wash

If a girls' dress is one hundred percent cotton, you can wash it even at 95°C. In the case of coloured outfits, maintain the washing temperature at around 60°C.

You don't have to set such high temperatures though – you'll also effectively wash cotton girls' dresses at standard 30–40°C. You can safely wash this fabric in a washing machine. What's more, it's one of the few materials that can be mechanically spun.

How to Properly Dry Cotton Dresses

After washing a cotton girls' dress, you should dry it as quickly as possible. You can do this using a tumble dryer (in this case, however, there's a risk of the garment shrinking) or hang it on a classic drying rack (but don't put it in the sun, as the material might fade). This is very important because cotton that has lain damp and rolled up for a long time tends to rot.

How Should You Wash Tulle Girls' Dresses?

Tulle is a very light and delicate material. Thanks to it, girls' dresses take on a girlish and somewhat royal character. However, it's precisely because of this that you must exercise caution when washing such an outfit if you want to use it for other occasions.

Why Hand Washing Is Essential for Tulle

Tulle girls' dresses are best washed by hand at low temperatures. It's important not to twist or wring the washed garment, as this can cause the material to stretch and deform. After washing, simply hang the outfit on a classic drying rack and leave it to dry completely.

What Makes Tulle So Delicate and Prone to Damage

Why isn't washing tulle girls' dresses in a washing machine recommended even on delicate programmes? Tulle is a fabric that many objects like to catch on, such as a button or fastener from another garment. This is a direct route to destroying your child's favourite outfit, and you certainly don't want that, do you?

How to Iron Tulle Without Damaging It

If you want to iron a tulle girls' dress, do so at low temperature. Be very careful too. To avoid ugly stains from an iron that's too hot, it's best to use steam ironing for this purpose.

How Should You Wash Lace Girls' Dresses?

Lace is as beautiful as it is demanding fabric. Therefore, cleaning this type of girls' dress is quite a challenge. In the case of lace, choose hand washing in lukewarm water. As detergent, use soap flakes or special liquid for washing delicate fabrics.

Why Lace Requires Extra Gentle Care

Just as with tulle, don't scrub, squeeze, or wring wet clothing. Otherwise, you'll damage the delicate lace elements. As a last resort, you can wash such a girls' dress in a washing machine, but in such a case, choose the most delicate programme, without spinning and at a maximum temperature of 40°C.

Best Practices for Drying and Ironing Lace

How should you dry a lace girls' dress? Simply hang it or lay it flat. Thanks to this, you'll preserve the proper shape of the lace. If it comes to ironing such an outfit, shield it from too high temperature using cotton fabric. You can also use a vertical steamer for ironing.

Essential Tips for Extending Dress Lifespan

Beyond proper washing techniques, here are additional tips to ensure your girls' dresses last for multiple occasions:

Pre-Treatment for Common Stains

• Food stains: Treat immediately with cold water before they set
• Grass stains: Pre-treat with gentle stain remover before washing
• Makeup or paint: Use appropriate solvents based on the stain type

Storage Best Practices

• Hang dresses properly to prevent wrinkles
• Use breathable garment bags for long-term storage
• Keep away from direct sunlight to prevent fading

When to Seek Professional Help

Consider professional cleaning for:

• Heavily beaded or sequined dresses
• Vintage or heirloom pieces
• Stubborn stains that home treatment can't remove
• When manufacturer specifically recommends dry cleaning only

Now you know how to care for elegant girls' dresses. So check our latest collection and choose the dream outfit for your daughter!