Cameo Cleaners & Arthur Copeland

LABOR DAY?! ALREADY!?

Where did the summer go? Whether you are packing your bags this evening for the last weekend of the season, or planning to stay around the city for a relaxing three day weekend I am certain there is one thing that has crossed your mind…

“How am I supposed to wear all of this white and linen in three days before I am forced to retire it to the back of my closet.”

It has been a well established fashion faux pas to wear white after Labor Day. However, fashion expert Charla Krupp challenges this and suggest that those who prefer to keep white in their wardrobe through the fall and winter do so in appropriate materials. While creams and winter whites can be a stunning look on anyone prancing around in linen pants and sheer cotton dresses will earn you some well deserved looks on the street this fall.

For these whites that require storage I would strongly recommend cleaning them before to prevent permanent stains and moth damage. Many clear liquid stains are not visible to the naked eye, however after being put under the bed or in the back of the closet for 9 months that stain will have oxidized and your favorite white dress will be a thing of the past.

Moths are attracted to food, oil, and perfumes so if any of these are lingering on your garments before storage you are risking moth damage to your wardrobe.

To prevent both of these wardrobe maladies from happening simply drop your summer clothes of with the staff at Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park or Arthur Copeland Cleansers who will be more than happy to care for your whites. AFter being cleaned in the exclusive ECO2 Cleanse system your clothes will not only be whiter, but they will be safeguarded for storage and ready for summer 2011.

Give us a call today either at 212.677.3949 for Cameo Cleaners of 516.295.2198

If you are anything like me, you are trying to make the most out of the next 12 days until you have to banish your beloved white jeans to the back of your closet or under the bed. ** Make sure to clean your whites before storing, so that stains aren’t left to set for 9 months… Cameo Cleaners ECO2 Cleanse system is perfect for this pre-storage treatment!

Don’t fret my fellow fashionistas the hibernation of your white denim will leave you anything but outfitless with the fabulous fall denim trends on display in every store window, billboard, and magazine.

I must confess that I have neglected the section of my closet devoted to denim for the past three months, but how can you blame me with the sweltering heat that dominated Manhattan this summer. Besides everyone knows that white compliments ones tan much better than your favorite pair of faded jeans.

With the first taste of Fall weather I immediately grabbed for my go-to jeans that can withstand this inclement weather… which got me excited about trying out these looks for myself.

To ease you back into this denim craze Cameo Cleaners has provided some helpful tips to care for your denim that are simply put, pure jeanius.

• First, and most importantly READ THE CARE LABEL
• Wash in cold water to avoid unwanted shrinking
• Try to get as much use out of one wash to prevent from wear& tear and fading
• Bring them to Cameo Cleaners for any necessary alterations or repairs

For all your clothing care needs and helpful tips please stop by or contact Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park.

Earlier this week The New York Times published an article about zero waste design, essentially creating a garment without the normal 15 to 20% of wasted fabric going into landfills.

This design concept is not as easy as it sounds because when creating a garment the main concerns are fit and fashion. Therefore getting all of the pieces which make up the garment to fit into fabric with minimal waste involves compromises. Some of these compromises will involve supply lines and the existing infrastructure,  thus changes which can become very costly.

The zero waste campaign has the potential to be very beneficial to the dry cleaning industry, for it could initiate the shift to environmentally responsible dry cleaning. The secret to responsible dry cleaning lies in the cleaning and packaging methods.

Dry cleaning is a very wasteful industry based on cleaning and packaging processes. Many dry cleaners use wire hangers, reams of tissue and polyethylene bags as part of the process. Though wasteful, this type of packaging does prevent wrinkling and protects the freshly cleaned garments on their trip home.

Before you get too discouraged and swear off dry cleaning listen up for there is an alternative! Many dry cleaners offer re-usable fabric garment bags as well has re-usable plastic hangers. Tissue can be removed from packacking within  the body of the garment though wrinkling may occur without this addition.

My shops, Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park and Arthur Copeland Cleansers offer “Naked Cleaning” which is our dry cleaning process that cleans clothes without harmful petro-chemicals along and offers a re-useable garment bag (from Green Garmento), no tissue packaging and re-useable hangers. What you get back is your wardrobe free of all chemicals and packed without any waste at all!

Our chemical free dry cleaning process is accomplished using the Solvair process which uses liquid CO2 in place of petro-chemicals. You can go to our website for more information.

Thanks for listening. Jerry Pozniak

A week ago Cameo Cleaners received a call from a production assistant working on the foreign markets Christmas  commercial for cosmetic and wellness brand Avon.

The models being used in the commercial had not been fully fitted for their outfits, and the production assistant needed someone on set that was able to provide last minute alterations, and promptly.

When the shop manager finished the call he knew exactly which of his of able tailors he would send to assist on set the following day. Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park has two exceptional tailors both of whom can care for any and all of your tailoring needs.

The following morning Alaina Zulli was sent to Long Island City and kept very busy fixing neck details,  altering hems, seams, and other miscellaneous wardrobe malfunctions over the course of the ten hour shoot.

Even though it is still summer we are already looking forward to the holidays, so we can see for ourselves the magnificent work Alaina did.

If you are looking for a tailor or seamstress in New York City Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park is the place to be.

Is your little munchkin messier than most?

Does he/she attract dirt and grime like a moth to a flame?

If you have answered yes to both or either of the questions above than your tot’s stroller is probably the bane of your existence. No matter how many times you try to reduce food going near this formidable mode of transportation your child’s chariot most likely resembles a fraternity house in it’s sticky and stained ratio…

Once again Arthur Copeland Cleaners & Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park have the solution for all of you moms and dads. The stroller cleaning service that we provide will have you and your little one cruising the streets in style in no time flat.

Stroller cleaning Service includes:

• Detailing
• Stain Removal & Fabric Restoration
• Sanitization
• Deodorization
• All wheels protected by Armor All

Graco, Combi, Bugaboo, or Maclaren it doesn’t matter… Arthur Copeland and Cameo Cleaners are equipped to handle the messiest of strollers return it to like new status. The same trust that you place in our stores to keep you and your wardrobe looking their best will not be bestowed upon your child and their carriage.

For the best stroller cleaning in New York and Long Island visit Arthur Copeland in Cedarhurst and Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park.

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As much as I hate to admit it I am very guilty of opening the doors to my closet and staring longingly at the vast collection of clothing I have acquired over the years, yet remain immobile uninspired by anything.  Coincidentally I do the same thing in front of full refrigerators so maybe we should chalk this one up to indecisiveness?

Anyways back to the wardrobe… I am confident that I am not alone in my inability to select the first, second, or third thing I see in my closet and always coming full circle with the dreaded statement of ” I have nothing to wear.”

This statement is in fact a blatant lie, because I have more than enough to wear… probably enough to keep me outfitted for weeks if not months in fact so what is my problem?

An article in today’s New York Times evaluates this common disposition through a new project that is catching on around the world. It goes by many names some of which include “shopping diet” and ” six items or less” and challenges people to significantly minimize their wardrobe to see if it makes a difference.

This challenge requires that individuals limit themselves to a six item wardrobe for 30 days. Yes, you read that correctly six items of your choice to be mixed and matched and washed and rewashed across the span of one month.

Many claim that nobody notices and while this may be true I would notice and that would bother me enough. That being said I could clearly never manage this challenge despite my creativity and originality when it comes to my wardrobe. Of course I have my favorite jeans or a favorite shirt that I wear more frequently than others, but not twice weekly??

If you are participating in this challenge, or have toned down your wardrobe volume a good dry cleaner is absolutely necessary so that you can maintain the original qualities of this pieces you hold so dearly.

Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park and Arthur Copeland Cleansers both operate with  a CO2 cleaning system so that your clothes float while being cleaned thus significantly decreasing the wear and tear on your pieces during cleaning.

So if you are braver than me and have accepted the challenge of 6 items or less, or perhaps just prefer the life of a minimalist give Cameo Cleaners or Arthur Copeland a call to handle all your cleaning needs, and extend the life of your wardrobe.

Having never lived among men with a genuine interest or any interest for that matter in fashion ( my father still wears jeans from 1980, and until a recent stint in London my brother was perfectly content to take on the day in gym shorts) bearing that all in mind summertime in New York has been anything but dull.

As an avid reader of the NY Times style section I couldn’t help but to take note that many of yesterdays articles were not only about men’s fashion, but more specifically pants.  Call me crazy, but in this 90 degree weather the absolute last thing I am thinking about are pants. I recognize that men’s clothing options are limitedfor it is generally frowned upon to see a man take to the streets in a dress, but then again it’s New York… anything is possible.

After reading both articles I found two striking features I believe are worth mentioning, and in an attempt to be as non-analytical as possible will quickly highlight these two things. First, the similarity. Both articles convey these pants as an artistic expression, a direct correlation to one’s attitude.  The difference between the two was the use of the word ” feeling” one article uses feeling to describe texture and the structure of the pants, while the other incorporates uses it as a barometer of one’s mood and individuality.

No matter if you prefer your pants cuffed, pleated, textured, pressed, rolled, plain, pink, or classic Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park can handle each and every need you and your pants could ever have. Pants too long so you have to roll? Come visit our expert tailor so that you can opt to cuff your pants and not act out of necessity.

New York is hot, hot, hot today.

Not just regular NYC July hot; but “someone is blowing a blow dryer on me” hot.

So hot that the New York Times wrote a story about frying an egg on the sidewalk. No, you can’t fry an egg on the sidewalk, but you can sear tuna.

So what does this opressive heat have to do with keeping your clothes clean?

Perspiration. Sweat.

On days like yesterday and today your sweat can take a tremendous toll on your wardrobe. Wrinkles we can fix, odor we can remove; but sweat can discolor and ruin your clothes, and that we can’t fix.

Certain fabrics and dyes will react badly to sweat and actually discolor. Underarms, collars and the backs of garments are all areas that we have seen damaged by sweat.

Silk and certain cottons seem to be most affected. We have seen French blue shirts and red silk blouses rendered unwearable by sweat.

Usually the underarms are the first to go with an orange stain appearing, though it’s not a stain. It’s sweat causing the dye to fail.  Sweat can act like a mild bleach and discolor dye.

What to do?

Try to minimize your perspiration on your clothes and clean them as soon as possible. The longer your perspiration remains in contact with the garment the greater the damage that can be caused.

Just get those duds off and into Cameo Cleaners or Arthur Copeland right away; you have enough to sweat about with the heat. Let the staff of Cameo Cleaners do their magic and make sure your sweat doesn’t damage your wardrobe.

As you may have heard the staff of Cameo Cleaners and Arthur Copeland Cleansers become an intrinsic part of numerous weddings in and around Manhattan and Long Island.  Typically it is brides and bridal retailers who rely on the talented staff of these two firms to clean, preserve, or alter their gowns; but that does not mean the services at the stores are limited to bridal care.

On his way out the door last Thursday owner Jerry Pozniak received a call from a top custom shirt maker (who shall remain nameless) who had a very large issue with one of their custom-made tuxedo shirts. A gentleman had returned to the custom shirt maker  to retrieve the shirt he would be wearing for his wedding Saturday to discover that the white of the “bib” was quite different from than the balance of the rest of the shirt.

With less than 48 hours until the wedding the manager quickly looked up the number for Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park, as they had come highly recommended by clients as being the best in clothing care. Especially for luxury custom and tailor made items.

Pozniak understanding the severity of the situation waited after regular store hours for the discolored shirt to be delivered, so that he could process it properly to be sent to the production facility that evening so work could begin immediately.

Early Friday morning one of the senior cleaning technicians for Cameo Cleaners and Arthur Copeland set to work to remedy the situation utilizing a very intensive  restoration process. This process involves multiple bleaching steps as well as dye stripping. In under 8 hours the technician was able to match the white of the bib front to the rest of the shirt. Restoration jobs such as these typically take up to one week , and our technician was able to complete the task in less than a day.

Once completed the shirt was back on a delivery truck headed for Manhattan ready for the groom to pick up first thing in the morning on the day of his wedding. The groom was undoubtedly grateful, for he has an uncommon sleeve length and purchasing a shirt of the rack to wear during his wedding was not an available option.

For all cleaning needs and emergencies that may present themselves on your wedding day or any regular day call on the experts at Cameo Cleaners of Gramercy Park and Arthur Copeland Cleansers.