The short answer: aged-care facilities require every garment labelled with the resident’s name before admission, and the labels must survive commercial laundering — hotter, harsher and more frequent than home washing. Sew-on labels are what we recommend, and high-contrast printed text is what laundry staff can actually read.
Why home methods fail in care laundries
Commercial laundries use industrial machines with hot water and industrial detergents, often daily. Biro on the care tag is gone in a week; cheap printed tape peels in the dryer. When a label fails the garment goes to the facility’s lost-property room, and wardrobes shrink fast.
What works, in order
- Woven sew-on labels — the first choice. The name is woven in thread and every label is heat-cut with sealed edges, so it never frays or fades. Colourfast and machine washable at high temperature; they last a lifetime. They are made to order, so allow the lead time shown on the product page.
- Satin sew-on labels — the second option. Printed on quality satin ribbon, quicker to get, and they can be removed again later.
- Wrap & stick clothing stickers — the quick one. Peel, wrap around the garment’s existing care tag and stick to itself. Much faster than sewing.
- Iron-on labels — the last resort here. They are the fastest way to get through a whole wardrobe and many nursing homes do use them, but they are made for a cold-water wash, so in a commercial laundry they are a compromise rather than the recommendation.
Labelling a whole wardrobe quickly
Lay out every garment and work through them collar by collar. If you are ironing, use a dry iron set to wool or cotton with the steam off and press each label firmly for 10–20 seconds. Use large, high-contrast text — laundry staff sort hundreds of garments a shift, which is what the large size is for. Label linen, hats and glasses cases too: anything that leaves the room.