If you have ever done laundry, you've probably run across at least one article of clothing with the label "Dry Clean Only." These clothes are made of fabrics that can't just be tossed into a washing machine with water and detergent.
What's so special about fabrics like rayon, silk, and wool blends? Well, these materials may shrink, change colors or lose their shape if washed in water.
Garments made of rayon become rumpled and misshapen because water is attracted to the hydrophilic fibers in this fabric. When submerged in water, the fibers expand because water molecules form hydrogen bonds with individual molecules within each fiber. The water molecules also interfere with weak attractions between adjacent fibers, and the fabric as a whole can lose its strength.
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