Looking After Your Rick Owens Pieces: Leather, Cotton, and Drape Fabrics
Whether it was a hard-saved leather biker, a heavyweight cotton hoodie grabbed during a Rick Owens sale, or a draped tunic dearer than your rent. Whatever it was, you’ve finally made the purchase. Regardless, you now have a garment that rewards a little knowledge and punishes carelessness. Rick Owens pieces aren’t delicate in the high-maintenance sense, yet they’re built from materials that act in particular ways, and handling them like everyday clothes is how people destroy expensive items. Happily, looking after them is mostly a matter of restraint and a few easy habits. This guide walks through the three fabric families you are most likely to own. Nail these fundamentals and your pieces will outlast most of the rest of your closet.
Leather: The Investment That Asks the Least of You
People are scared of leather, but a Rick Owens leather jacket is honestly among the easiest pieces in your wardrobe to maintain. The brand leans on lamb and calf nappa, occasionally washed or blistered for that worn-in look, and these hides prefer to be largely left alone. Never put leather through the washing machine and never dry clean it casually; only a real leather specialist, not the corner dry cleaner, should ever tackle a stain. Wipe surface dust with a slightly damp cloth and let it air dry away from radiators, since direct heat cracks the grain permanently. Treat the leather once or twice annually with a neutral, brand-safe balm, spread thinly and buffed away after twenty minutes. Keep the jacket on a wide wooden or padded hanger to preserve the shoulders’ shape, and never on a thin wire hanger. Handled this way, a $4,000 leather jacket readily survives fifteen to twenty years and looks better still as the patina develops.
Dealing with Rain and Scuffs
Though water is leather’s silent enemy, it stays manageable when you act sensibly. Caught in the rain, resist the urge to panic or hit the jacket with a hairdryer; just hang it at room temperature and let it dry slowly across a day or two. After it dries, a thin application of conditioner brings back the oils the water removed and keeps it from stiffening. Small scuffs on washed nappa often buff rickowensfashion.us.com out with nothing more than your fingertip and the natural warmth of your hand. Deeper scratches can sometimes be massaged less visible, though Rick Owens leather is meant to show character, so resist the urge to chase perfection. Salt marks from winter streets ought to be wiped off quickly with a barely damp cloth before they set in. The guiding idea here is gentle and slow, perfectly matching the worn-in aesthetic the brand prizes anyway.
Cotton: Hoodies, Tees, and the DRKSHDW Workhorses
The cotton items, particularly anything from DRKSHDW, are where most owners cause the most harm through plain overconfidence. That heavy jersey Rick Owens hoodie feels bulletproof, yet hot water and harsh drying will shrink it, fade the color, and destroy the carefully engineered drape. Always turn cotton garments inside out and wash them in cold water, ideally about 30 degrees Celsius, on a gentle cycle using a mild detergent. Skip the fabric softener entirely, because it coats the fibers and flattens the matte texture that gives these pieces their character. Skip the tumble dryer entirely and hang the garment to air dry, which preserves both the dye and the lengthened proportions the design hinges on. Washing less frequently than you assume is necessary is honestly better, because over-washing is the quickest path to a worn-out hoodie. Follow these rules and a $600 hoodie stays looking expensive for years rather than months.
| Fabric | Wash Method | Drying | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leather (nappa) | Spot clean only / specialist | Air dry, no heat | Condition 1–2x per year |
| Cotton jersey | Cold, inside out, gentle | Hang air dry | Every 4–6 wears |
| Drape / viscose blends | Hand wash or dry clean | Flat dry, reshape | As needed only |
| Waxed denim | Cold, rarely, inside out | Hang air dry | Every 8–10 wears |
Drape Fabrics: Where Patience Pays Off
The flowing tunics, asymmetric skirts, and pooled-hem tops of the drape category are the hardest of the three, since the fabric content varies and the cut is the whole point. Lots of drape garments rely on viscose, rayon, cupro, or silk blends that lose their form if handled carelessly, so read the care label before you do anything. When in doubt, hand wash in cold water with a tiny amount of delicate detergent, swishing gently rather than wringing or twisting. Press the water out by laying the garment flat between two towels, then dry it flat and reshape it by hand while damp. Hang a heavy wet drape garment and it stretches unevenly, potentially distorting that thoughtfully designed silhouette for good. Whenever you’re anxious about a piece, a trusted dry cleaner experienced with designer clothing is worth every penny. The drape is what you paid for, so protecting it is the whole job.
Storage and Day-to-Day Habits
The way you store these clothes between wears counts nearly as much as how you clean them. Give your pieces breathing room in the closet, because cramming them together creases the drape and crushes the structured shoulders on jackets. Choose padded or broad wooden hangers for outerwear, and fold heavy knits and hoodies rather than hanging them, because hanging stretches the neckline over time. Keep everything out of direct sunlight, which fades the signature blacks and dusts into uneven grays surprisingly fast. Use a breathable cotton garment bag to guard leather and drape pieces from dust while avoiding the moisture plastic traps. For seasonal storage, make sure garments are clean first, because body oils and invisible stains attract moths and set permanently over months. These minor habits cost you nothing yet add years to genuinely pricey clothing.
Common Mistakes That Wreck Good Pieces
A short list of avoidable errors causes most damage to Rick Owens garments, and knowing them in advance saves a lot of heartache. The number one offender is tossing a heavyweight hoodie into a hot wash with everything else, which shrinks the cotton and bleeds the careful dye in a single cycle. Close behind is hanging knits and jersey on narrow hangers, stretching the shoulders into permanent bumps that no wash can fix. People are also fond of “freshening up” leather with household wipes or alcohol-based cleaners, which strip away the natural oils and leave the hide dry and cracked within months. Ironing drape fabrics on high heat is another classic disaster, flattening texture and sometimes scorching delicate viscose blends beyond repair. Stowing seemingly clean yet unwashed garments through a season hands moths a meal of invisible body oils. Finally, chasing every tiny scuff or fade defeats the point of a brand that celebrates a worn, lived-in patina. Steer clear of these six habits and you’ve already handled eighty percent of the work.
When to Call a Professional
Knowing your limits is part of caring for luxury garments well. Any structural fix, a ripped lining, a dying zipper, a burst seam on a leather jacket, calls for a specialist instead of a sewing kit and good intentions. Rick Owens stockists and the brand’s own service channels can often advise on repairs, and the official site at rickowens.eu is the right starting point for questions about a specific garment. When it comes to deep stains on leather or drape fabrics, skip the home remedies you find online and turn to a cleaner who specifically handles designer pieces. What a professional clean costs is nothing against replacing a four-figure garment you wrecked to save twenty dollars. Industry guides at outlets like Highsnobiety frequently cover designer garment care if you want to read further. By 2026, with the brand’s resale values remaining robust, well-maintained pieces are genuinely worth more too if you ever decide to sell. Regard the clothes as the long-term investments they truly are, and they’ll repay you for it.