Pre-washed
Also known as: Prewashed
Made-up garments industrially washed before delivery to release shrinkage and create a soft hand.
Description
Pre-washed refers to garments given an industrial wash in the laundry after making-up and before delivery. The aims are to release residual shrinkage, produce a soft, ready-to-wear hand and a slight fade that reinforces the typical vintage look. On denim the pre-wash has been a standard for decades and is called rinse wash, one-wash or stone wash.
Process: finished jeans, shirts or sweats run in large drum washers with 40-80 litres of water per kilogram of goods, often with enzymes (cellulases) or additives like pumice for abrasion. After washing they are spun and tumble-dried at 60-80 degrees. The garment is now dimensionally stable and soft in hand.
Downsides: water and energy use are high, wastewater contains indigo dye residues and chemicals. More sustainable methods use ozone, laser irradiation (Jeanologia) or ionised nano-bubbles to save water and chemistry. Levi's Water
Properties
| Process | Industrial wash after making-up |
|---|---|
| Result | Soft hand, vintage look, dimensionally stable |
| Colour fastness | Slight colour lightening from washing |
Related product categories
Sources & references
2- Wikipedia: Stonewashed Jeans Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone-Washed
- Levi's Water<Less levistrauss.com https://www.levistrauss.com/how-we-do-business/waterless/
