-----Original Message----- From: I'm Not Martha [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Monday, April 22, 2002 5:12 PM Subject: I'm Not Martha - Dry-Cleaning - 4/23/02 I'M NOT MARTHA - Tuesday, April 23, 2002 ------------------------------------------------------------ Subscribe to I'm Not Martha FREE! Get Lizzy emailed to you twice a week: http://www.shagmail.com/sub/notmartha.html <a href="http://www.shagmail.com/sub/notmartha.html";>Subscribe</a> ------------------------------------------------------------ Unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of the page. *--*--*--*--*-- Hi! I'm Lizzy!! and I'm not Martha!!! * I just read your article on perspiration and you mentioned some things should be dry-cleaned. When my clothes come back from the dry cleaners they have a terrible odor (not perspiration but from the chemicals that are used). Can you tell me how to get rid of this odor? A Reader I think almost everyone I know has had this happen at least once! I am really bothered by the "perc" smell...red eyes, sneezing, gasping for air...so maybe I notice this smell more than others. I'm just the canary in the tunnel! Anyway, dry-cleaning...it's a really good question. Dry-cleaning is more complicated than just dropping it off and picking up 3 days later. The main solvent used has a spotted past and can deliver a nasty future if you are overexposed to it. ------------------------------------------------------------ GET AN INSTANT BOOST OF VITAMIN B-12 ENERGY... -- WITHOUT THE PAIN OR COST OF INJECTIONS! Now -- you can have all the nutritional benefits of an energizing Vitamin B-12 shot without visiting your doctor�s office. This super-tiny tablet delivers a GIANT "SHOT" OF VITAMIN B-12 directly into your bloodstream. Sublingual formulation dissolves quickly under your tongue for maximum absorbency. Energy-boosting effects begin to WORK INSTANTLY on your body... and continue working throughout the day. Safe, 100% natural and no prescription needed. So stop dragging your feet... GET ENERGIZED NOW! Click to order: http://ads.pulsetv.com/al/a?aid=576&ent=668 <a href="http://ads.pulsetv.com/al/a?aid=576&ent=668";> Click Here</a> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * There are some differences in the way drycleaners process clothes, but here is how it typically works: Drycleaners usually treat spots by hand before placing garments in large machines. Liquid solvents, detergents, and sometimes a small amount of water are added to the machines. The machines then agitate clothes in a manner similar to your own washing machine to remove dirt, oil, and stains. Once clean, the clothes are either dried in the same machine or transferred manually to a separate dryer, then pressed and shaped. Used solvent is distilled so it can be purified. Distillation separates the solvent from waste residues such as detergents, dye, dirt, oil, so the solvent can be reused. In addition to distillation, most machines also use filters to clean used solvent. After the purification process, filters that contain the solvent in very small amounts, and certain solvent residues, such as perc, must be managed and disposed of as hazardous waste. Drycleaners can send them to special facilities for recycling or incineration. * You need to work with the drycleaner to get the best cleaning results. Try to do the following to get the best results: Take clothing to be cleaned before spots, stains and soil have had a chance to age or become imbedded in the fabric. Don't go at the spots, stains or soil yourself. Get them to the drycleaners as soon as possible. Point out or discuss the situation with the counter personnel so that the stains are identified and marked for pretreating or spotting. Help your cleaner determine the best way to clean your clothes by telling how they were soiled (e.g., food, ink, make-up), and by giving the fabric content information off the care labels if you remove the labels for any reason. Check over clothing before taking to the drycleaner. Repair buttons, rips and tears. Discuss your cleaning or care expectations, the clothing's condition and any problems which may occur politely and honestly with your drycleaner. * And what do you do if the size and shape of the garment has changed during dry-cleaning? This can be a familiar problem with knits. However, with woven garments it can spell disaster. KNITS If the garment changed dimensions or shape (stretched or shrunk) during the cleaning process, return to store with garment and receipt. Request that garment be reshaped or blocked to original dimensions. In some instances, garments (fabrics) may not have been preshrunk well prior to reaching the marketplace. When this occurs, shrinkage can not be corrected by the drycleaner. If the garment was hung on a hanger, or hung on hanger improperly, discuss situation with drycleaner. Knit garments stretch and frequently should be folded rather than hung on hangers. Be sure to pick up cleaning on or close to the date scheduled. WOVENS If a woven garment has come out weird it is probably because the fabric was not stabilized before construction; the most frequent problem is fabric which has not been preshrunk before garment was made. If garment has shrunk only a small amount, drycleaner may be able to steam finish and stretch item. Excessive shrinking caused by poorly pre-shrunk fabric cannot be corrected. Return to drycleaner with garment and receipt to discuss the situation. There may be an additional fee for the service. A garment made on or using bias grain can stretch out of shape. Return to store with garment and receipt. Discuss situation with drycleaner. The problem can frequently be corrected by repressing. If your garment has been placed on the hanger improperly, return to the store with garment and receipt. Discuss situation with drycleaner. Some garments need padded hangers or additional support in areas to prevent stretching. Be sure to pick up dry-cleaning on or close to the date scheduled. ------------------------------------------------------------ Does Your Golf Game Need A Little Divine Intervention? If you're the average golfer, you know how frustrating the game can be. When you consider not losing your ball on the first shot a strength of your game, maybe it's time you could use a little divine intervention of the Golfer Guardian Angel! Keep your Golfer Guardian Angel pinned to your shirt or golf bag every time you play. Stylish and stunning, your Guardian Angel will watch over you and your game, giving you the inspiration you need to play better. Its Amazing... it really works! Made of two-tone pewter and 24K gold-plated, it measures 1 1/4" and is sure to help you do your best. MAKES A GREAT GIFT! Get yours today for only $9.99 by visiting: http://ads.pulsetv.com/al/a?aid=576&ent=677 <a href="http://ads.pulsetv.com/al/a?aid=576&ent=677";> AOL Users Click Here</a> ------------------------------------------------------------ Despite its name, dry-cleaning is not totally dry. It involves the use of liquid chemicals called "solvents" that remove most stains from a variety of fabrics. * Approximately 85% of drycleaners use perchloroethylene, or "perc", as their primary solvent. PERCHLOROETHYLENE * It is a clear, colorless liquid that has a sharp, sweet odor and evaporates quickly. It removes stains and dirt from all common types of fabrics. Perc usually does not cause clothes to shrink, nor dyes to bleed. Perc is not flammable, unlike solvents commonly used to clean clothes in the 1930s and 40s. Since perc can be reused, it is a cost-effective and efficient solvent for cleaning clothes. Perc is also a toxic chemical with both human health and environmental concerns. * If you wear freshly dry-cleaned clothes at least once a week, you have a 1 in 6,700 chance over a lifetime of developing cancer from the cleaning solvent perchloroethylene, according to a study by the nonprofit Consumers Union. * And for those who operate the dry-cleaning machines, the odds are far worse -- as high as 1 in 100, according to a 1998 government analysis. * Greenpeace and other environmental and health groups want perc dry cleaners to shift to less toxic alternatives, such as water-based cleaning. But the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance, which represents the manufacturers and users of perc and other chlorinated solvents, disputes the health studies, insisting that perc is a safe and effective cleaning method. And with about 85 percent of the nation's 35,000 (!) drycleaners firmly entrenched in the perc method, ''I don't see a lot of shift,'' said Stephen P. Risotto, executive director of the alliance. * When perc was introduced in the 1930s, it was believed to be so safe that it once was used as a general anesthetic and to treat parasites in people. But for nearly 25 years, its health effects have been debated. * About 15 percent of the industry uses mineral spirits and other petroleum products. A fraction are experimenting with carbon dioxide, silicon and other chemicals. Another process called ''wetcleaning'' uses carefully controlled amounts of water to clean clothes. Consumers may have to look hard to find alternative technologies. Some use liquid carbon dioxide, and another is a petroleum product called DF-2000. The alternatives all have their limitations. For example, the International Fabricare Association says that wetcleaning is not ideal for some fabrics, such as crepe or upholstery. But perc's critics say it's better than taking chances on a potentially hazardous chemical. * Consumers Union recommends getting clothes dry-cleaned only when absolutely necessary. Many items -- such as plain silk blouses and cashmere sweaters -- can be hand washed, even though the label may say ''dry-clean only.'' * If you smell solvent when you enter a cleaning shop, you might want to consider going somewhere else as solvent odors can indicate improper processing or solvent use. * Now...Here's the answer to the question!!! That strong chemical or dry-cleaning solvent smell clinging to clothes means that the drycleaner needs to change or clean up the dry-cleaning solvent being used. Professional cleaners remove perc from dry-cleaned clothes as part of the overall cleaning process. You cannot tell by odor alone whether all the perc has been removed from your clothes. If you think all of the solvent was not removed, or if your newly dry-cleaned clothes smell like solvent, ask your cleaner to re-process your order or take them to another cleaner for re-cleaning. Don't forget your receipt! It always helps to present it with your polite request for recleaning. Consumers Union also recommends airing out dry-cleaned clothes in a little-used room, such as a garage, before wearing them. Airing in a bedroom closet can result in concentrated levels of indoor air pollution, according to several other studies. ------------------------------------------------------------ Executive Business Organizer Makes Your Life Remarkably Simple! (Was $49.99...Now Just $9.99) Loaded with features this handy carry-all keeps you more efficient & organized than ever before. "It's like taking a personal secretary with you everywhere you go". 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