High quality natural materials, like most well-made things are destined to age beautifully and appreciate with time and wear.

 

We have carefully selected cloth that balances high-performance with low-maintenance. We have also invested in important invisible details such as a floating canvas and reinforcement stays that help to maintain the line of the coat over time. With the right cloth and construction, your coat should be able to be rolled up into a bag and spring back to life as new. In order to help ensure a long lifespan, we recommend following a few simple guidelines.

 

1.  The only regular care needed to keep your coat looking its best is spot cleaning

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In emergencies such as a spill, spot clean as soon as a potential stain occurs. Use a clean sponge or cloth dipped in warm water to gently dab the spot until it has lifted. For stubborn marks, you can gently rub with the rough side of the sponge from top to bottom. Afterwards, give the area a light brush with down strokes and leave on a coat hanger to air dry, ideally somewhere near an open window with a breeze. You can give the area a press if needed with a cotton cloth between the cloth and the iron, only using a little steam. Occasionally the tips of the collar will benefit from a light press to keep them nice and flat.

 

2.  Breathe new life into your coat by brushing it from time to time with a medium to firm boar bristle or horsehair clothes brush

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This removes dust, fibres, dirt and other debris that may have been trapped in the weave of the cloth. Regular brushing also helps to even out the natural shedding of the wool fibres. Hang the coat on a coat hanger and brush in short and long strokes up and down, always finishing with a few down strokes to smooth the grain. A light spray of water before brushing can help to lift surface dust and dirt. The spray nozzle from a steam iron can be useful for this. 

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3.  Store your coat on a well-shaped wooden hanger with some space between other garments

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This allows the cloth to be ventilated and to hang without being crushed. Applying Cedar oil to the wooden hanger once every six months or so will help to repel moths.

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4.  After rain, shake off as much water as possible and hang separately

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Place the coat on a hanger and leave to air dry somewhere that has a breeze before returning it to your wardrobe.

5. Hanging the coat in the bathroom after a shower for a few minutes is an easy way to relax any creases when travelling

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The steam works its way into the cloth and relaxes the fibres back to their natural shape. Be aware that excessive steaming could lead to some shrinkage of the cloth and puckering at the seams. At home, a warm iron over a cotton cloth will be better for flattening specific areas as it gives you more control than this quick all-over method. For even better results don't use steam but lightly wet or spray the area before pressing to isolate the steam to the area needed.

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6.  Dry clean only when necessary

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Despite its name, dry cleaning is an aggressive cleaning method that submerges the garment in chemicals instead of water and tumbles it in an industrial washing machine. The garment is then dried and pressed completely flat, losing all the three dimensionality and life of the original garment. This process can shrink the garment and will significantly alter the hand and character of the cloth as well as shortening the garment's lifespan. Only dry clean in the case of a severe stain such as a red wine or coffee spill and try to limit it to once per year at most.

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7.  Sponge and press

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If your coat is needing a refresh, a much better alternative to dry cleaning is a professional sponge and press. Any tailor should be able to do this for you or send out to a professional presser. There is no submersion in liquid or any chemicals and the garment is spot cleaned and pressed properly over curved forms to return it to its original shape.

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Email us at info@furoshikiovercoat.com if you'd like to find out about our London-based professional sponge and press service. We can also arrange repairs, maintenance and alterations for your overcoat during its lifetime.

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8.  Spare buttons

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We sew our buttons by hand to ensure they are securely attached but we have provided spares in case you lose one. These can be attached by hand but make sure you wrap the stem several times and tie off twice. Use a thick cotton or polyester thread for strength and double thread the needle.