To make the most of your Mexicali clothing and keep colors bright, your best bet is washing by hand. Here's how to do it:
1. Identify the location.
You are looking for a space big enough that you can swish your clothing around, with walls high enough to contain all splashing activity. The kitchen sink is usually your best bet, but you could also use the bathtub, the bathroom sink, or a utility bucket.
2. Fill it with cool water and add whatever cleaner/detergent you are using.
Note: You are almost definitely using too much detergent. The right amount of detergent is counterintuitive: more detergent should equal more clean. Instead, using too much detergent will leave soap residue in your clothing, even after rinsing. Pro Tip: To prevent overdoing the detergent, use a tablespoon instead of the cap to measure!
3. Use your hands to pump up and down to fully submerge your clothing.
Alternatively (to make things fun) if you are using a tub, gently stomp around on the clothing with clean feet to suds things up!
4. Soak the clothing in the soapy water.
Heavily soiled items: 60 minutes to overnight
Silk and delicate fabrics: 10-20 minutes
5. Drain the dirty water, wipe down washing space, and refill with clean water.
6. Swirl clothing around in water. Drain and do a second rinse, either by refilling or just running the garment under the tap.
7. Air dry.
