Should You Wash New Halloween Costumes?

I don’t have a lot of absolutes, but there are two things I’m pretty strict on — I won’t microwave any kind of plastic container, and I never let my family wear new clothes before washing them. But what about Halloween costumes? There have been plenty of costumes in our family, from glittery tulle witch dresses to padded Stay Puft Marshmallow Man toddler jumpsuits, and I don’t think I’ve ever washed a single one. Should you wash new Halloween costumes out of the package? What if your kid insists on wearing their Black Panther costume constantly before the holiday, and you need to get ketchup and mud stains and toothpaste splatters off of it before trick-or-treating?

Where’s a laundry witch when you need her?

Part of me feels like it’s obvious you don’t need to, especially in packaged costumes, because nobody’s had a chance to try it on, touch it, or have it really “contaminated” in any way. But another part of me just can’t quite wrap my head around putting on a whole new piece of clothing straight off the rack. I think it’s the materials that stump me: How exactly should you wash some polyester costume with padding for Spider-Man muscles?

But really, it’s just a matter of personal preference. Wendy Saladyga, fabric care expert and manager of technical performance at Henkel for Persil, tells me that since so many people (especially kids) wear clothing under their costumes, you can probably skip the prewash stage comfortably. If the costume’s going to touch skin directly, you might want to give it a wash according to the costume’s washing instructions — and double check those instructions because not all costumes will be machine-washable, Saladyga warns.

And if it’s a costume made out of synthetic material, you really need to check the garment label. “To wash delicate, synthetic costumes, I recommend turning them inside out and washing on a gentle cycle using cold water,” Saladyga says. “Air-drying is the best option for synthetic costumes. Tumble drying the fabric can cause rubbing, which could damage the decorations on the costume. Laying them flat to dry is the best approach.”

Now, what if you’ve worn the costume ahead of Halloween or want to re-wear it and need to remove some stains? Saladyga recommends pretreating stains with a “small amount of an enzyme-based liquid detergent directly to the stain and having it sit for five minutes before washing.” The Persil Original Everyday Clean is a great option, but be sure to check that the stain came out before drying. If you toss it in the dryer without the stain being fully removed, the heat from the dryer can further set in the stain.

Halloween also comes with some specific stains, and whether your costume is a synthetic one out of a plastic bag or a homemade costume with things from your dresser drawers, you need to know how to get out those specific trick-or-treating stains. These stains are a sign of a good time, but they can’t last forever, right?

Saladyga suggests removing sticky lollipop bits and chocolate stains from clothing with a blunt object so you can get rid of any excess residue, and then “rinse with cool water before pretreating with a small amount of stain-fighting detergent.” If you’ve got some grass and mud stains, rinse those in cool water, then gently scrub them with liquid detergent and launder as usual.

For Halloween makeup stains, Saladyga says you need to try gently scrubbing off as much makeup from the fabric as possible before rinsing in cool-warm water to remove any unset makeup. Pretreat with a pre-treater or liquid detergent, let sit for five minutes, and then wash. For oil-based makeup — you know, like clown paint or face paint to make you into Elphaba from Wicked — soak the stain in a water-detergent solution prior to washing.

But honestly, Halloween is not the time to sweat about laundry. Whether you’re using your own clothes from your closet to piece together a look or grabbing something off the Target aisle, Halloween costumes are meant to be enjoyed. Let kids wear those Star Wars costumes and Bluey jumpsuits and witch dresses until they’re torn and frayed... then just throw them in the wash on a gentle cycle and start all over.