Laundry and dry clean
Laundry and dry clean
Christmas party dry cleaning is easiest when you send everything once, in late November, rather than piece by piece through December. Sydney packs work functions, client lunches, Christmas Eve dinners and New Year events into about six weeks. Usually the same three or four good outfits do all the work. For a quote, email info@washmate.com.au.
The end-of-year run is the busiest stretch in the Sydney social calendar and the hardest on a wardrobe. Outfits get worn twice in a week, in heat, with drinks. The people who sail through it are the ones who cleaned and pressed the whole rotation before the first invitation landed.
The work functions begin in the last week of November and run solidly to about 20 December. Client lunches and team dinners stack up through the first fortnight. Add Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year, and most people wear their good clothes six to ten times in a month. That is a very different pattern from the rest of the year, when a suit or a cocktail dress might get worn once a quarter.
Everything in the rotation, in one go, in the second half of November. That means the suits and blazers, the cocktail and party dresses, the good shirts, and anything that has been in the wardrobe since last summer. Clothes stored over winter carry oxidised marks that were invisible when they went in, plus the faint mustiness of a closed wardrobe in a humid Sydney winter. One booking before the season beats five panicked ones during it.
Standard turnaround is 3 to 5 business days, so the practical answer is at least a week before the first event, and ideally two. December is the peak month for every dry cleaner in the city. The earlier you book, the more room we have to treat anything the inspection finds. Express and same-day dry cleaning are available subject to availability, on pickup and delivery across Sydney metro as well as in store. Book online, email info@washmate.com.au or call 0403 861 744 and we will tell you what we can do for your dates.
A suit worn to three functions in a fortnight needs cleaning at the end of that run, not at the end of summer. Underarm perspiration and aftershave build up in the lining, and once they oxidise the marks are permanent. Dinner jackets and tuxedos need pressing before the first wear so the lapel and shoulder sit properly. Shirts are the cheapest way to look sharp all season. We wash and press them from $8, or $5 each on ten or more, so send them in one batch. Suits are dry cleaned from $37 and jackets from $29.
The same five every year. Red wine and cocktails land at hip and chest height and dry clear, so the sugar caramelises into brown patches weeks later. Sunscreen moves from skin to necklines at outdoor lunches. Fake tan transfers into linings and straps. Deodorant and perspiration mark underarms in the heat. Food, chocolate and oily canapes finish the set. Our summer event stain guide explains how to treat each one in the first ten minutes.
Plan the rotation, then clean in batches. Pick three or four outfits and have them all cleaned and pressed before the last week of November. Then send each one back after two wears rather than at the end. A recurring pickup makes this genuinely easy through December, because the collection simply happens on schedule while you are busy. Our recurring pickup guide explains how a standing weekly or fortnightly collection works, and discounts are customised to your volume.
It piles up faster than usual, because the good clothes take the attention and the ordinary loads get skipped. Wash, dry and fold laundry is $9.90 per kilo, weighed on arrival, so you pay for exactly what you send. It can travel in the same bag as the dry cleaning. We sort mixed bags on arrival and send each item to the correct process. Dry cleaning comes back on hangers and laundry comes back folded.
Yes, and they suit the people who are impossible to buy for. A WashMate gift card covers dry cleaning, laundry or a pickup. That makes a useful present for new parents, someone who has just moved, a busy professional, or a family member who would never book it themselves. It is available in any amount and can be used across every service, including pickup and delivery.
We dry clean dresses from $28, two-piece suits from $37, and jackets and coats from $29. Shirts are washed and pressed from $8, or $5 each on ten or more. We quote sequinned and beaded pieces after inspection, because we handle them by hand. Laundry is $9.90 per kilo, weighed on arrival. Pickup and delivery runs across Sydney metro seven days from $15 per order, and that one fee covers the whole collection rather than each garment. All prices are starting prices confirmed after inspection. See our pricing page for the full list.
Old perspiration and deodorant that have already yellowed silk cannot be reversed, because the fibre has changed colour rather than being coated. Red wine that has been through a dryer is usually set for good. Dye transfer from a dark lining into a pale bodice tends to be permanent, and so is heat shine from a home iron on satin. We inspect every item, tell you honestly what is realistic before we start, and say so when something is past saving. That is why the December booking made in November matters.
Party season overlaps with the two other big Sydney occasions. If you have a Cup lunch or a marquee day, our race day dry cleaning guide covers preparing and rescuing those outfits. If there is a Year 12 formal or a graduation in the house, the formal dress cleaning guide covers the before and after. Sending everything in one pickup is cheaper and simpler than three separate bookings. If it is fabric, ask.
In the second half of November, before the first function. Standard turnaround is 3 to 5 business days. December is the busiest month of the year for every Sydney dry cleaner, so booking early leaves room to treat anything we find.
We dry clean dresses from $28. Sequinned or beaded pieces are quoted after inspection, because we handle them by hand. All prices are starting prices confirmed once we have seen the garment.
Yes. We dry clean two-piece suits from $37 and jackets from $29. Shirts are washed and pressed from $8, or $5 each on ten or more. Express options are available subject to availability if the function is close.
Fresh red wine comes out far more often than people expect, provided the dress has not been through a dryer. Blot the excess, keep it out of the sun and book the clean within a day or two, because the sugar left behind turns brown later.
Yes. A WashMate gift card covers dry cleaning, laundry or pickup and delivery in any amount. It makes a practical Christmas present for new parents, busy professionals, or anyone who would never book it themselves.
Six weeks of functions, one wardrobe, and a lot of heat. Send the whole rotation once in November and the season looks after itself. We dry clean dresses from $28 and suits from $37, and laundry is $9.90 per kilo. Pickup and delivery runs across Sydney metro seven days from $15 per order. We confirm every price after inspection. Book online, email info@washmate.com.au or call 0403 861 744.
Follow @washmate.sydney on Instagram for before-and-after garment transformations, care tips and a look behind the scenes at how our Sydney team works.
