I bought this 1990s Elastica tee in my local vintage store. The dark blue had clearly faded and was looking a little past its best, but I still loved it. I hadn’t given much thought to why our clothing fades over time until I got chatting with Niki Vadera, the marketing and digital director at Henkel, the company behind Dylon, which has just launched a new washing detergent with claims that it will have your old clothes looking like new after just ten washes.
“It removes biofilm, which builds up in your clothes when you wash them,” says Vadera when explaining how the patent pending Triple Renew formula works. “This helps with the restoration of the fibres, smoothing them out.” When I took a closer look at my t-shirt, I could clearly see the whitish bobbles on the fibres, obscuring the original darker blue cotton underneath. It is this that gives the impression that the clothing has faded when in fact, the fibres have become roughed up through washing, which has affected the colour of the tee. “There’s no dye or anything in this product,” continues Vadera. “The colour revival comes from the removal of the pilling and the fuzz.”
I was lucky enough to get my hands on a bottle of Dylon Detergent ahead of the launch and have spent the last month using it not only to test its revival claims on my t-shirt, but on all of my laundry, because it should also protect my newer clothes from ever fading and bobbling.
I’ve been an advocate of washing my clothes less frequently for years for the sake of their longevity and this mindset is one that Dylon is hoping to pass to its customers with this new gentle detergent. “60% of garments only need a gentle wash if they don’t have any stains on them, or you’ve only worn them for a few hours,” says Vadera. She goes on to explain that the enzymes in many detergents, particularly those with a focus on stain removal, cause chemical wear and tear to clothing, shortening its lifespan. As well as encouraging us to keep hold of our own clothes for longer, Dylon has its eyes on the second hand market. “You might have been put off getting something from a vintage shop thinking it looks like it needs a bit of love, and actually you can give it that TLC yourself at home.”