Guide to Fabric Care Symbols T As of July 1, 1997, the Federal Trade Commission allows apparel manufacturers to use symbols instead of written instructions on garment care labels. T Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  Care labels often are a deciding factor when consumers shop for clothing. While some are looking for the convenience of dry cleaning, others prefer the economy of buying garments they can wash.  Some manufacturers try to reach both markets with garments that can be cleaned by either method.  The care labeling rule allows for more than one set of care instructions if you have a reasonable basis for each instruction. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  The Care Labeling Rule (Federal Trade Commission, 1984) requires manufacturers and importers of textile wearing apparel and certain piece goods to provide regular care label instructions when these products are sold.  The specifics required by the Rule are discussed in this section. Greater detail may be found in the Rule itself. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  Who is covered?  Manufacturers and importers of textile wearing apparel  Manufacturers and importers of piece goods sold to consumers for making wearing apparel  Any person or organization that directs or controls the manufacture or importation of textile wearing apparel or piece goods for making wearing apparel. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  What is Covered?  Textile apparel worn to cover or protect the body.  Exempt apparel: shoes, gloves, and hats  Excluded items:  Handkerchiefs, belts, suspenders, and neckties because they do not cover or protect the body.  Non-woven garments made for one-time use because they do not require ordinary care. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  What is Covered?  Piece goods sold for making apparel at home.  Exempt piece goods:  Marked manufacturers’ remnants up to 10 yards when the fiber content is not known and cannot easily be determined.  Trim up to 5 inches wide. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  What Must be Done?  Provide full care instructions about regular care for the garment, or provide warnings if a garment cannot be cleaned without harm.  Ensure that care labeling instructions, if followed, will cause no substantial harm to the product.  Warn consumers about certain procedures that they may assume to be consistent with the instructions on the label but that would harm the product.  Ensure that care labels remain legible throughout the useful life of the product. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  When Must Labeling be Done?  Domestic manufacturers must attach care label to finished products before they are sold.  Importers must ensure that care labels are attached to products before they are sold in the United States, but care labels don’t have to be attached to products when they enter the United States. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  How to Label Textile Clothing  Labels must be attached so they can be seen or easily found by consumers at the point of sale.  If labels cannot be readily seen because of packaging, additional care information must appear on the outside of the package or on a hang tag attached to the product.  Labels must be attached permanently and securely and be legible during the useful life of the product. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  How to Label Textile Clothing  A garment that consists of two or more parts and is always sold as a unit needs only one care label if the care instructions are the same for all of the pieces.  The label should be attached to the major piece of the suit.  If the suit pieces require different care instructions or are designed to be sold separately, like coordinates, then each item must have its own care label. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  Violations  Failure to provide reliable care instructions and warnings for the useful life of an item, as required, constitutes a violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act and could subject the violator to enforcement action and penalties of up to $16,000 per offense. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

 Writing Care Instructions  The label for textile wearing apparel must have either a washing instruction or a dry-cleaning instruction. If the product can be washed and dry-cleaned, the label need have only one of these instructions. If the product cannot be washed or dry- cleaned, the label must say, “Do not wash – Do not dry-clean.” Care Label Requirements Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Care Label Requirements  Writing Care Instructions, cont.  It is recommended, but not required, that the terms defined in the Rule’s glossary be used when applicable. Symbols that communicate care procedures may be used in addition to words, but the words must fulfill the requirements of the Rule.  The care symbols from the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) may be used in place of words, but the symbols must fulfill the requirements of the Rule. Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Sample Care Label Made by Sun Valley Mfg. Co., Anytown, TX, USA 100% Cotton Machine Wash, warm Tumble Dry, Medium Do Not Bleach Iron, Medium Dry-Cleanable Country of Origin Fiber Content Percentage of Fiber Content by Weight Care Instructions Identification of Manufacturer Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Analyzing Labels Directions: Look closely at the following labels. Determine what mandatory information is missing for each garment label. Write inside the label what item is missing. In some cases, there may be more than one item missing or no items missing KOREAN KLASSIC …an import 100% Ramie CHAUS 100% Cotton Hand wash, Cold Dry Flat Razzle Dazzle 87% Cotton 13% Polyester Machine Wash – Warm Tumble Dry No Iron 1.All care instructions, country of origin 2.Country of origin 3.Country of origin Answers: Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.

Analyzing Labels Liz Sport Machine Wash – Warm Line Dry 100% Acrilan Made in the USA Machine Wash Gentle Mild Soap Cool Iron Lagerfield Cotton Ramie Machine Wash Dry Flat No Iron 4.Country of origin, fiber content, percentage of fiber content by weight 5.Water temperature, drying instructions 6.Country of origin, percentage of fiber content by weight, water temperature continued… Answers: Copyright © Notice: The materials are copyrighted © and trademarked ™ as the property of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas Tech University.