Caring for metal mesh and sequin garments

Metal mesh, chain, and sequins are built differently from woven cloth. The sewn-in care label is the instruction that belongs to that garment. The notes below are general cautions for when you handle these materials.

The label comes first

A care label may say dry clean only, spot clean, or do not wash. Follow it. If the label is missing, as on some older pre-owned pieces, treat the garment as dry-clean only until a cleaner who works on beaded and metal clothes has looked at it. Home experiments are how links discolor and sequins melt.

Metal mesh and chain

Rabanne became known in the 1960s for clothes made of linked metal and plastic, and the house still sells metal-mesh and chain pieces. Those garments have weight. Hang a heavy mesh dress from a wide bar or a padded hanger, or fold it in a box, so thin straps are not the only support. Do not crush mesh into a tight drawer. Bent links stay bent.

Water, perfume, and hairspray sit on metal and can mark it. Put fragrance on before the garment, and let it dry. Wipe metal with a dry, soft cloth. Do not use household metal cleaner, bleach, or a washing machine. A dishwasher is for dishes.

When you sit, the links press against each other and against the chair. A lining, when the piece has one, keeps mesh off the skin and off upholstery. Check clasps before you wear the piece. A sprung clasp drops a panel.

On a pre-owned mesh piece, look for missing discs, cracked links, and green or cloudy metal. Those are condition notes to price into the purchase. They are not an authenticity test. See how to check a pre-owned piece.

Sequins and paillettes

Sequins are often plastic or metal film stitched onto a base cloth. Heat softens many plastics. Keep sequined clothes away from irons, clothes dryers, radiators, and a closed car in the sun. Steam can lift or curl sequins even when it does not scorch the base fabric.

Rings, bracelets, and rough bags catch sequin edges and pull threads. Store the garment so the sequined face is not rubbing a zipper or a hook. If you must travel with it, use a garment bag and do not pack it under other weight.

Do not soak a sequined garment. If the care label allows a spot clean, use a barely damp cloth on the stain and keep water off the sequins as far as you can. Loose sequins can sometimes be re-stitched by a cleaner; a large bare patch is a repair, not a home wash.

What a specialist cleaner is for

Take mesh, chain, heavy beading, and fragile sequins to a cleaner who already accepts that kind of work, and show them the label. Say what the stain is, if you know. Ask them to tell you if they will not accept the piece. A refusal is cheaper than a ruined surface.

Questions about the guide: sales@sco-enterprises.com.