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WASHING METHODS FOR THE ACRYLIC STONES THEMSELVES
The rhinestones can be washed by hand
The rhinestones can be washed by machine but we recommend turning
the garment inside out, or placing it in a bag, and running on gentle
cycle to reduce the chance of scratching, chipping, or grabbing
off, by the action in the machine. Cold or warm water recommended.
Machine dryer or any other sources of heat should be avoided.
WASHING METHODS FOR THE ACRYLIC STONES ATTACHED WITH METAL SETTINGS
same as above
WASHING METHODS FOR THE ACRYLIC STONES ATTACHED WITH GLUE
This will depend on the glue used, and how it has been employed.
If successfully employed then -
The glued rhinestones can be washed by hand
The glued rhinestones can be washed by machine but we recommend
turning the garment inside out, or placing it in a bag,running on
gentle cycle, to reduce the chance of scratching, chipping, or grabbing
off of the stones, by the action of the machine. No hot water.
Machine dryer or any other sources of heat should be avoided.
ABOUT DRY CLEANING
In general
it is not recommended to dry clean garments with acrylic stones.
Whereas the acrylic resin itself has some resistance to the dry
cleaning chemicals such as tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene),
it is not completely resistant.
Repeated exposure to these chemicals will craze the surface, (a
plastic's term for creating tiny fissures on the surface).
With repeated exposure to the chemicals, more and more crazing develops,
making the plastic surface look cloudy.
There is a similar occurrence when you wash your acrylic glassware
in the dishwasher; with each cycle the surface of the acrylic develops
similar crazing.
With time your goblets look cloudy and damaged.
Also since there are so many independent cleaners out there, you
never really know to what concentration of chemicals your goods
are exposed to.
Some cleaners will use low concentration and some much higher concentration
of the solvents. Obviously the higher concentrations will damaged
your goods more readily.
If your stones are glued on, the glue can also become yellowed or
brittle from exposure to the solvents.
We suggest you check with your glue supplier, or better still, perform
tests on dummy products beforehand.
But that's not the whole story about dry cleaning. There's more.
Surprising to most people is the fact that it's not the chemicals
that cause the most damage during the dry cleaning process.
The truth is, it's the HEAT. The heat
from the cleaning process is one source, but it is the HEAT
from the subsequent pressing that is the major culprit.
Drycleaners want to process your goods as fast as possible and usually
won't take care not to apply the hot iron over your precious embellishments.
If they press it, you can expect to find a flat piece of plastic
on your garment where the stone used to be.
Insofar
as the silver foil backing is concerned, it seems to be the part
that withstands the dry clean process the best.
We say that with reservation, and only because whenever we have
examined dry clean damage, the foil seems to have remained mostly
intact.
However we make no claims as to the resistivity of the foil backing
during the process. Please perform your own tests.
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