John Mayer Demos His Handwashing Technique With His Very Own Laundry Detergent
Still reminiscing about John Mayer’s “How to Handwash” Snapchat tutorial video from last spring? Wishing you could revisit his time-tested tips? Well, Mayer is here to make dreams come true with a little help from The Laundress, the lifestyle brand who helped him produce a laundry product duo that smells like Montana (proceeds go to charity, but we know you were already hooked). Above, discover “How to Handwash like a Rockstar,” in which Mayer shares the secrets behind his “meditative” handwashing methodology. “I’m authentically into this,” he says, and we’ve got the play-by-play.
Alongside The Laundress co-founders Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd, Mayer begins his process.
First, he fills a basin with water, though he admits that he often cleans his shirts in the bathroom sink. “You’ll quickly to learn whether your drain stopper is actually stopping the water. Most of them are not,” he says.
Then he adds an elegant soupçon of detergent to the water. “I don’t get scientific about capfuls,” he says. “‘Frost the strudel,’ I call it.”
After pressing the garment gently in the soapy water, he lets it soak. (Boyd says that it can soak for 30 minutes.)
Next, the rinsing. “I don’t like to rinse it that you get the smell of the detergent out, you can over-rinse it,” he says. “If you rinse it too much, you lose the fragrance.”
And — controversy! — much to Whiting’s chagrin, Mayer squeezes his T-shirt to start the drying process. “They say ‘Don’t wring it,’ but I wring it,” he confesses. “At some point, a man has to be a man. Guys, you can wring it.” Once excess water is removed, no matter the method, the shirt dries flat. Since it’s a tee, it can be hung without dramatic change to its shape.
Think this sounds like a lot to go through to clean a plain T-shirt? For Mayer, it’s actually relaxing. “After a long Friday, Saturday night, on a Sunday, you say, you know what? I’ll do laundry,” he says.
Who can blame him? After all, his laundry is a wonderland.
Tell us: Are you inspired by Mayer to take better care of your clothes? Will you try his method and his product? Tell us below!
