Before throwing your skirt into the washing machine, check that the care tag explicitly says it’s machine-washable. Some skirts absolutely cannot be laundered, so you will need to bear that in mind when purchasing or wearing them.

If it is stated that the skirt can be laundered, then go ahead and wash it on a cold cycle to avoid shrinkage.

After washing, hang it out to dry. Most pleated skirts should retain their pleats, without losing its shape.

Ironing is not recommended for most pleated skirts, as wrong ironing techniques could ruin the pleats very easily. If you have to iron it, do it on the lowest heat setting to minimise damaging the pleats. If possible, try using a low-setting steam to go over the pleats instead.

When ironing, it is important to identify the type of pleats used, and the direction that it is folded. Try your utmost best to follow the original pleat as diligently as possible to maintain its appearance.

Certain pleats, such as knife pleats, overlap over each other. To help your ironing process, use paperclips to hold the fabric in place. Arrange your clips along the hem to hold the pleats in place, and once you’re done ironing, quickly remove them and hang your skirt up.

Pleats such as accordion pleats — think of these pleats as overturned V-shapes that jut upwards — cannot be ironed, as it will damage the shape and fold of the pleats.