The warm weather and sunshine are just around the corner. Do you know what this means? More people will be spending time outside: at the theme park, at the ballgame, at the outdoor exhibits. Hermits are finally escaping their nests.
Spring and summer are big seasons for mascots, whether it is at a community baseball game or at a neighbourhood fair. Every event usually needs a mascot, otherwise it will be a bit dull.
If you’re in the industry, then you understand first-hand just how dirty your costume can become. Everything from your sweat touching the fabric to the mess (chocolate, ice cream, or messy hands) that children make on your suit, it is easy for costumes to be a complete mess.
You don’t need to keep spending money on expensive dry cleaning. You can employ several cleaning measures now to ensure your suit looks immaculate for the next day.
Here are five cleaning tips for mascot costumes:
1. Disinfect Important Areas of the Costume
Should the material of your mascot costume touch sensitive areas of your skin, then you need to take advantage of disinfectant sprays or wipes and to apply them to these parts of the attire. This will shield your skin from bacteria.
Moreover, these types of cleaning products will make certain that not only is the costume clean, it will be void of foul odours.
Want to take it one step further? Place a dryer sheet in your shoes or somewhere in the outfit.
2. Use a Soft-Scrub Brush for Suit
There are two ways to clean your whole mascot costume: manual or automatic. Let’s first examine the former.
You can utilize either a soft-scrub brush or a wet-vac. Either way, you can remove dirt and terrible smells from your costume. You just need to foam the head, body, and feet and then proceed to clean the foam by hand.
Voila. You’re as good as new.
3. Wash Costume in Cold Water
If you’re choosing to machine wash your costume, then here are a few suggestions to remember:
- Place only one layer at a time in the washing machine.
- Only wash your costume in cold water with a small amount of detergent.
- Select the gentle cycle on your machine.
- Be careful how you wash certain fabric and lighter colours.
By adopting these measures, you can ensure you look fresh every day.
4. Hang Dry Your Mascot Costume
What professional mascot has the time to hang dry a costume? Well, you need to find the time.
Every expert recommends to hang dry mascot costumes to prevent the fabrics from getting roughed up, knotted, or even melted. If you do this, then the lifespan of your costume will be expanded and you won’t need to invest in any additional outfits.
That said, if you do decide to pick a drying machine, then only dry your clothes on the no heat or low heat function. This will prevent shrinking or getting damaged in some way.
5. Be Sure You Store the Outfit Correctly
Although most mascots understand how to store their outfits, many do not know this art form.
Like washing or drying, storing can enhance the length of time your costume survives.
Here are a few tips to correctly storing the mascot costume:
- Place the costume in a well-ventilated room or closet.
- Store your head that doesn’t apply any pressure.
- Air out your costume before storing it.
- Hang the body components.
These storage methods can be just as effective in keeping your costume clean as putting forth the effort to scrub, dry, and wipe your attire.
Summer can be a horrible time to be a mascot. For eight hours, you’re burying yourself in fabric under the hot sun. It’s rough to be a mascot, but it’s also rewarding and fun. To ensure you’re being the best mascot you can be, you must clean your costume correctly and often.
