While I could agree in theory that a "dry-clean only" or "professional dry-clean only" label *might* be necessary for silk or wool, which cannot tolerate most enzymes, it's a clear "cover your ass" move for jeans.
Any high-quality blue jeans that even remotely wants to earn the high price of the garment will have been prewashed to the point of preshrinking completely *before* garment construction.
Why is it that a $20 pair of Levi's can be washed in hot water and dried on high heat unscathed and a $500 pair of jeans can't and needs to be dry cleaned? What good practice, necessary steps have been skipped and what corners have been cut to render such a sturdy fabric "delicate" to the point of not being capable of being laundered at home?
Time was, that any sturdy fabrics like linen, cotton and jeans, would sport a laundry label saying just "hot wash, tumble dry high" and that's the end of it. They have not become delicate all of a sudden. What they are doing is buying the fabric, cutting and constructing the garments without prewashing or even without washing after construction -- that may save them money during manufacturing, but now *you* risk a garment shrinking at home the first time you wash is if you counted on a garment you tried in the store and it fit just fine but now you can't wash it.
I say screw that. It's bad enough for a piece of garment that cost just a few bucks, but there's absolutely no way that is acceptable for high-priced labels. If they *want* to be worth their high-price, they should use the best materials, construction and practices available.
The label does *not* make up for the difference between $20 and $500 or more that you pay for the garment -- don't be fooled, people who know anything about design and/or sewing will be laughing at you, 'cuz you could also had bought a much cheaper garment and slapped a five-dollar label saying the same thing and gotten a higher quality garment.
Do you want to do something about it? *Call* your favorite brands and ask why in hell they didn't sew the garments right to the point of needing a "dry clean only" label. Don't back out -- when they come out with silly arguments like "oh, we couldn't count on people knowing how to launder the items", point out to them that in U.S. the law says clearly that a garment has to have a *permanent* label that explains clearly at least *one* safe method for cleaning the garment and you are not buying dry-clean only garments. If they want to say something like "hot wash and tumble dry *or* dry clean" or some other appropriate wet washing method, you're OK with it, but if they mean it that linen, cotton or jeans need to be dry cleaned, they lost a client. If just a handful of people do that, you'll see changes in just a few months.
And, in case you did not know, dry cleaning is not really "delicate": they put the garments in a washer that's loaded with dry-clean fluid instead of water, and then it goes to a dryer. They are not lovingly hand washed and then laid flat to dry.
Anybody that thinks that a dry-clean only garment means quality has no idea of what quality means.
My dad once nearly bought a pair of Hugo Boss jeans for over $500, but came to me when he saw the "professional dry clean only" label when we were at the store. We turned the pants inside out and you wouldn't believe the bad seams, the faulty finishes (even the overlocking looked like it was made by someone who had never run an overlocker/serger before). The zipper was also low quality. The other items were all the same "level" of quality, it wasn't just one that escaped inspection either.
I know an awful lot of rich to extremely rich people, and *they* are not afraid of wearing Levi's or Wrangler's, so if it's good enough for people who are often on TV being interviewed, it's more than good enough for me. When the other brands start building quality again, I may take a look around, but my husband and I work hard for our money and will not be giving it away to people that think that just because they have a label to stick on clothes that the garment will be among my clothes, no sir.
I like my garments to look like what they cost -- if they look like they cost $20 bucks, they should not be charging $500 for them and conversely, if they want to get paid $500 the garment should be flawless, fit perfectly and be easy to machine wash-and-dry at home.
As for labels, forget it. My friends know they can count on me no matter what I'm wearing, and I have acquaintances that wear expensive labels that can only think "me, me, me!" and "how does that affect me?" among other things. If all they can see is the labels instead of the heart inside, they deserve their lack of true friends. If all your friends see is if you are keeping up with fashion, find better friends, because even billionaires are not spending that much money on their clothes.
Cheers,
-- Paulo.
