Where did the last year go?! I feel like I just packed away all my Christmas decor as I started to decorate this week. The tree is up and decorated and my Christmas tree skirt is in place. If you’re also starting to decorate, I thought you might want to know how you can clean your Christmas tree skirt. It appears from our analytics that this is a common search item this time of year and our original post from 2012 is receiving many views. Therefor – after consulting our in house experts, I’ll elaborate on my original post.
Tree skirts collect dirt and dust just like your area rugs, and just like your wardrobe items, regular cleaning will keep it looking like new. And, if you have pets, they may be inclined to “leave their scent” when you first bring this “new” item out of storage. Did you purchase a real tree? If so, you may encounter stains from tree sap and water marks from filling the basin.
As with all items, first look to see if there is a care label on the tree skirt. It may say spot clean only, hand wash, dry clean only, etc. If you bring the skirt to us, we are going to follow the care label. If there is no care label, we’re going to do a small test first to determine the best way to clean.
We successfully clean many tree skirts but take note on the following materials and their cleaning challenges.
Felt – Tends to be spot clean only. Felt when wet cleaned is prone to shrinking and color changes. If there is a glued on design we have to be careful not to dissolve the glue when cleaning. Big stains are hard to treat because they require more water and the felt may bleed.
Silk – Can be prone to unstable dyes. Water rings can cause discoloring and bleeding.
Cotton – This is the safest material to clean so if you’re in the market for a new tree skirt it’s a great choice 😉
Embroidery – When cleaning a tree skirt with embroidery, issues may arise when the embroidery thread gets wet and the thread has not been pre-shrunk. When the threads get wet and shrink, the skirt will pucker up around the embroidery.
Beading – If attached with glue, again we run the risk of dissolving the glue and/or melting the beading when cleaning. Keep this in mind especially if you have pets who may want to leave their mark. Urine from pets most times requires a wet clean.
As all materials are treated differently, there is no one way to clean a tree skirt. We never suggest cleaning one yourself. If you insist on trying, be sure to test out anything on a hidden area to avoid completely ruining the skirt. Never agitate or rub or clean the skirt while it’s laying on carpet as the color bleed.
If you have any questions regarding cleaning your Christmas Tree skirt or if you want to run a scenario by us, please call or text our stain specialist, Theresa at 317-607-9667. She was an excellent resource along with our plant manager, Larry, for this blog post and she’s successfully cleaned many tree skirts made of all fabrics mentioned.
– S.O.
