SOILED COLLARS. Soil worn into the fabric on collars, neckbands, and the cuffs of men's shirts must be loosened before washing. Using the same detergent that you plan to use for washing the shirts, apply suds to the soiled areas and work them in with a brush, a sponge, or by rubbing the material between your hands.



THE NEWER COTTONS. To meet the demand for fabrics that do not need ironing, textile engineers have been working on blends, finishes, and weaves that enable cottons to drip dry, ready to wear. Seersuckers and plisses are made of cotton plus Dacron or Orion, which eliminates ironing, and special finishes are given to other weaves that make it wrinkle-and-spot-resistant. Some of the new cottons are the equal of the synthetics or close to them in their "no-ironing" quality and have the advantage of being more absorbent. However, they do look better with touch-up ironing.

WATER, OIL AND SOIL RESISTANT finishes are in the test stage for cottons. A new device, simple and inexpensive, can be installed on a standard loom to produce cotton cloth with a tight, tricky weave that gives it wind and water resistance without the use of chemicals. In addition to being practically waterproof the new cotton fabrics admit cooling air and are thus more comfortable to wear than materials with sealed pores. Since these advantages are achieved by a special weave, there is no laundering problem involved.

A NEW WRINKLE-PROOF TREATMENT for cottons is also expected in the near future. Such finishes today are always applied to piece goods before they are made into clothes and are satisfactory only for simply-cut garments because they resist not only undesirable wrinkles but desirable creases, making flat seams, pockets, and pleats difficult or impossible. A new treatment being tested lets a dry cleaner give the crease-resistant treatment to the clothes after they are finished so that seams and creases, once set, will stay. Tests have shown that garments treated this way keep their creases after many launderings, need little or no ironing, and resist unwanted wrinkles. Furthermore they do not require starch. Nice going indeed. If it all works out you can take your cotton dress to a dry cleaner and have it "set." But chlorine bleaches will still not be usable.

"FULLY ACETYLATED" COTTON is also in the laboratory stage. This is heavier than ordinary cotton but it dries faster and is stronger. Also it is more resistant to heat and rot. In appearance it looks like ordinary cotton but has a harsher feel, a matter that probably will be corrected by chemical treatment. Pleats that stand considerable wear can be ironed into acetylated cotton fabrics with a dry iron set for wool. They are easily reset after laundering, but you can iron the material flat if you wish, or you can pleat it a different way.

NEW PRETTY COTTONS. In another phase of current investigation are extra-pretty cottons that are also very practical cottons that are softer, smoother, and more lustrous than any of the materials being woven today. Such cottons would be used for draped street dresses, underwear, and for jacket and coat linings. Production of these cottons involves chemical and mechanical treatment of the fibers, and exhaustive tests for laundering, bleaching, dyeing, durability, and tear resistance.

Collars, neckbands, and the cuffs mostly are parts are the most parts which become dirty, to remove the soil worn on of men's shirts must be loosened before washing; some of the new cottons are the equal of the synthetics or close to them in their "no-ironing" quality and have the advantage of being more absorbent. New wrinkle-proof treatment for cottons will need little or no ironing. Fully acetylated cottons is heavier than ordinary cotton but it dries faster and is stronger. Also it is more resistant to heat and rot. Linen fibers are absorbent and comfortable to wear in warm dry climates.