How to Keep Your Interview Suit Wrinkle-Free...

[m250]

When traveling to interviews, how have you been able to keep your suit wrinkle-free during transit? What type of bag do you use? Any special tips or techniques that you have found to help keep your suit looking its best?

As many of us are hitting the interview trail, I think it would be good to compile a list of what people have found helpful in keeping their interview clothes looking fresh. I think this becomes even more important when you have 2+ interviews in a row and don't have time to hit up the dry cleaners between interviews. Anyone have any suggestions?

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[obgynandtonic]

I'm bringing a handheld steamer to freshen things up. That and a bottle of Febreeze. Used to work well when I traveled for work...

Good luck!

 

[tarlovcyst]

I always lay out my suit whenever I can. When you sit down, make sure you bring your hand to push down your suit coat back. Otherwise, the back of your suit will have more wrinkles than Rumplestiltskin's face.

In terms of what suit bag to use, swing back Walmart. They sell a very good heavy duty suit bag for about $6. It's $8 on some Walmarts. My suit actually came with a heavy duty suit bag. Stay away from the suit bags that you can find for $1 at the local dollar store; they are very tempting and actually last awhile, but they don't offer any wind protection.

I don't recommend the steamer. This is how fungus forms. If there is a lot of humidity in the air and you use the steamer, under the right conditions, you will get this fungus-type smell in your suit. It's the type of smell that happens in carpets after it is freshly carpet cleaned with a wet vac. Febreze only masks what is invisibly growing on your suit. 3 of my classmates actually had this problem, while interviewing at schools in the South (i.e. Texas, Louisiana)-- where it is notoriously more humid.

 

[tkim]

1) If you bought the suit from a Men's Wearhouse, and happen to have one in the area you are interviewing at, they will press they suit for free.

2) If you don't have a hand-held steamer, run the shower in the your hotel room with hot water, and hang your suit in the bathroom - not in the shower. The steam will release most wrinkles in 3-5 mins.

 

[Frugal Traveler]

Place the suit in a plastic bag during transport.

When you arrive at the hotel, place the suit near the bathroom when you take a hot steamy shower (but not very close to the shower).

Try to fold the pants and suit on the crease lines as well.

Really, you are never going to be completely wrinkle free... and honestly if you walked around to your interviews without pants on, people might not notice. The most important thing is to just relax and feel confident despite what wrinkles may be there from travel.

For suit shirts, light starching is also advantageous.

Best wishes in your travels

 

[GmailQueen]

I have heard that if you are putting the suit in a suitcase, you should put the suit inside a plastic bag (you can use a garbage bag if you don't have a suit bag), and then fold the bag over, instead of folding the suit first and then putting it in the bag. This should help with wrinkles (I haven't tried this yet but several people told me to do it this way). Also, if the shower doesn't get your wrinkles out, try to iron them the best that you can. A girl showed up to one of my interviews in a really obviously wrinkled suit and it didn't look particularly nice.

And ladies, make sure to check your suit jacket and skirts on the back to see if the pleating/panels are sewed into place, and remove those stitches. They're not supposed to be there, they're just to keep the shape of the suit until it's purchased.

 

[lanzarlaluna]

Woah there. Don't iron a suit directly. This can be very bad for the material and reduce the suit's ability to hold a press in the future. Always have some sort of barrier like a t-shirt between the iron and the suit, and use a medium to low heat.

 

[Peds2ER]

http://www.skyroll.com/works.htm

$100 bucks very well spent...

 

[Man In White]

Wow, that skyroll looks awesome - wish I hadn't already gone on 2/3 of my interviews.

 

[Knight_MD]

Just wear it on the plane, and use the hotel room iron to "de-wrinkle" it.

 

[Eta Carinae]

Just wear it on the plane, and use the hotel room iron to "de-wrinkle" it.

double as PJ too?

 

[Knight_MD]

double as PJ too?

No. Pack that with you.

Of course if you have the suit roller thing with u sure... but I don't, and wearing the suit on a plane won't butcher the suit.

 

[VPDcurt]

Downy Wrinkle Releaser Spray - works amazingly well and can be used on "dry clean only" fabrics. It'll change your life - I promise.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Downy Wrinkle Releaser Spray - works amazingly well and can be used on "dry clean only" fabrics. It'll change your life - I promise.

All the sprays concern me because I would guess they don't come in bottles less than 3 oz., meaning you can't carry it on a plane. I brought a small steamer with me that worked decently.

 

[howelljolly]

1) If you bought the suit from a Men's Wearhouse, and happen to have one in the area you are interviewing at, they will press they suit for free.

2) If you don't have a hand-held steamer, run the shower in the your hotel room with hot water, and hang your suit in the bathroom - not in the shower. The steam will release most wrinkles in 3-5 mins.

yup

 

[SouthernSurgeon]

and wearing the suit on a plane won't butcher the suit.

Until the person in the seat next to you spills their venti mocha frapuccino all over you. Wearing the suit while travelling leads to high odds of something bad happening to it - at least in your garment bag or suitcase you know it will be clean (albeit slightly wrinkled).

 

[Knight_MD]

Until the person in the seat next to you spills their venti mocha frapuccino all over you. Wearing the suit while travelling leads to high odds of something bad happening to it - at least in your garment bag or suitcase you know it will be clean (albeit slightly wrinkled).

Following that analogy, you should also avoid going to coffee shops before the interview.

If something so rare happens (like the scenario you described), just google for a dry cleaner, leave it there and pay extra for the expedited service.

I'm not saying wearing it is better than a garment bag. But if you don't have one, then wearing it isn't a bad solution either. And like the previous post mentioned, a 5-minute steam in the bathroom will release all wrinkles.

 

[TexasPhysician]

This isn't at an interview but a guy spilled his entire coffee on a girl right before Step 2 cs. Ruined her suit. Stay away from coffee.

 

[howelljolly]

This isn't at an interview but a guy spilled his entire coffee on a girl right before Step 2 cs. Ruined her suit. Stay away from coffee.

mmmmmm coffee

 

[Doctor Bagel]

And like the previous post mentioned, a 5-minute steam in the bathroom will release all wrinkles.

This has not been my experience. I've been doing the shower trick for ages, but it certainly doesn't remove "all" wrinkles. Maybe, maybe it removes "most" wrinkles, but that depends on how wrinkled your suit is. I still needed the steamer to get the deeper wrinkles out.

 

[tkim]

This has not been my experience. I've been doing the shower trick for ages, but it certainly doesn't remove "all" wrinkles. Maybe, maybe it removes "most" wrinkles, but that depends on how wrinkled your suit is. I still needed the steamer to get the deeper wrinkles out.

I've used the shower steam trick during med school, residency, and now job interviews. Part of it being effective is to make sure you pack your dress clothes loosely, in an appropriate garment bag, and minimize wrinkles by keeping the clothes covered in their dry cleaner plastic sheet, as to allow each article of clothing to 'slide' over each other during travel.

I used to have a tiny portable iron with steam function. But I quickly stopped lugging it along after becoming more comfortable with the shower steam method. Plus, I stopped giving a **** about the minor wrinkles.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I've used the shower steam trick during med school, residency, and now job interviews. Part of it being effective is to make sure you pack your dress clothes loosely, in an appropriate garment bag, and minimize wrinkles by keeping the clothes covered in their dry cleaner plastic sheet, as to allow each article of clothing to 'slide' over each other during travel.

I used to have a tiny portable iron with steam function. But I quickly stopped lugging it along after becoming more comfortable with the shower steam method. Plus, I stopped giving a **** about the minor wrinkles.

Admittedly my garment bag is not the best, but I did usually keep stuff in the dry cleaner bag. However, I had back to back interviews, so a lot of the wrinkles came from wearing the suit and not just travel. Those are the ones that seem to be hardest to get out.

I definitely agree with not obsessing about the small wrinkles because those will reappear 30 minutes after you put your suit on anyway.

 

[Hassler]

This isn't at an interview but a guy spilled his entire coffee on a girl right before Step 2 cs. Ruined her suit. Stay away from coffee.

Why did she wear a suit to CS?

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Why did she wear a suit to CS?

Good question. Maybe she opted to wear the pants or skirt for her suit and that got ruined.

 

[Eta Carinae]

I'm bringing a handheld steamer to freshen things up. That and a bottle of Febreeze. Used to work well when I traveled for work...

Good luck!

buying, thanks.

 

[Rogue Synapse]

I have to second the plug for the Skyroll. I bought it about halfway through the interview season and it might be the most useful thing I own. Rolling the garment bag instead of folding it makes such a huge difference as far as wrinkles in your suit. Works great for dress shirts, too. And the "core" suitcase is well-designed, too.

 

[Iwy Em Hotep]

I have to second the plug for the Skyroll. I bought it about halfway through the interview season and it might be the most useful thing I own. Rolling the garment bag instead of folding it makes such a huge difference as far as wrinkles in your suit. Works great for dress shirts, too. And the "core" suitcase is well-designed, too.

I have to disagree with the Skyroll. I bought one of these once, and the major problem with it is that you cannot put it into a regional jet overhead compartment perpendicular to the opening (i.e. wheels or handle out). It's slightly too big, and cannot be compressed. Since it has to be placed horizontally, there is a great chance that it may need to be gate-checked.

On the other hand, a great way to keep a suit wrinkle-free is to bundle wrap it. The shower technique is pretty good, but you will most likely find that it won't work for large creases, and most people won't notice small wrinkles.

 

[Rogue Synapse]

I've found that I always have to gate-check my rollaboard carry-on on those smallest regional jets no matter which bag I bring. For the majority of my flights though, my skyroll has fit in the overhead. They're usually pretty good about efficiently gate-checking everybody's carry-on with the teeny planes, so the net result with the skyroll has been a huge increase in efficiency and a neat suit when I get to the hotel. I can't that imagine unwrapping and rewrapping a giant bundle every time I need something is less of an inconvenience than occasionally gate-checking a bag.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I've found that I always have to gate-check my rollaboard carry-on on those smallest regional jets no matter which bag I bring. For the majority of my flights though, my skyroll has fit in the overhead. They're usually pretty good about efficiently gate-checking everybody's carry-on with the teeny planes, so the net result with the skyroll has been a huge increase in efficiency and a neat suit when I get to the hotel. I can't that imagine unwrapping and rewrapping a giant bundle every time I need something is less of an inconvenience than occasionally gate-checking a bag.

Honestly, I don't find gate-checking to be an inconvenience at all. I've never heard of anybody losing a bag after gate-checking it -- I guess it could happen, but it seems much less likely than with regular checking. And yeah, most bags need to be gate-checked on those small planes, so I don't see that as a big issue.

 

[lanzarlaluna]

Honestly, I don't find gate-checking to be an inconvenience at all. I've never heard of anybody losing a bag after gate-checking it -- I guess it could happen, but it seems much less likely than with regular checking. And yeah, most bags need to be gate-checked on those small planes, so I don't see that as a big issue.

If you are trying to haul ass off of a flight to make a connection, it is a BIG inconvenience. I also met a guy on the trail who had a flight leave all the gate-checked bags on jetway instead of loading them.

 

[ChiDO]

I LOVE gate-checking my bag. No hassle in trying to find room in the overhead. It takes a few extra minutes to get your bag, but I would say 75% of the time, they wouldn't let people off the plane yet until the gate-checked bags were on the jetway or were nearly ready to be placed on the jetway.

 

[medsRus]

I LOVE gate-checking my bag. No hassle in trying to find room in the overhead. It takes a few extra minutes to get your bag, but I would say 75% of the time, they wouldn't let people off the plane yet until the gate-checked bags were on the jetway or were nearly ready to be placed on the jetway.

For me, I have to wait on average 15-20 more minutes for the luggage...

 

[DoctaJay]

This is the one i got: http://www.target.com/Embark-25-Rol...n=1038600&searchPage=1&field_keywords=garment

It fits fine on the plane and it has a lot of room even for my gimongous suits. I just could spend the doe for the SkyRool

 

[VPDcurt]

http://www.skyroll.com/works.htm

$100 bucks very well spent...

That is the ugliest thing I've seen in a long, long time.

 

[mirandajacobs]

There is a very handy flip and fold system that can keep clothing wrinkle free. Do have a look here:
http://www.caraselledirect.com/_/fl..._of_5.473-1.php?Referrer=SLI&View_Type=Search

especially for interviews, its always important to keep those items wrinkle free..i hope this helps

 

[MCYan]

the item described above is pretty expensive.. next time you get your dry cleaning done you can ask for your shirts to be folded instead of hanging them at no extra charge at most dry cleaners.

 

[Keg]

the item described above is pretty expensive.. next time you get your dry cleaning done you can ask for your shirts to be folded instead of hanging them at no extra charge at most dry cleaners.

Answer: buy your suits at Men's Wearhouse. Even if the quality sucks, they'll press the suit for you free for life. That, plus wrinkle releaser spray for your shirts (or at least the part of the front that's exposed plus collar and cuffs) and you'll never need an iron again!

 

[MCYan]

Men's warehouse suit are of very poor quality. Their suits will last 2 years max with moderate wear, not to mention they're ill-fitting. There is only so much a tailor can do. With free pressing for my suits and spraying for my shirts, I still wouldn't buy suits/shirts from them.

But if you are just getting a suit for interview purposes and not planning to keep it for long, men's warehouse is dirt cheap and constantly have discounts going on.

 

[RussianJoo]

I got the forcast 44in garment bag from sears for $27 and it was awesome!
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_01457120000P

my suit never got wrinkled and i could fit everything I needed for 3 days worth of travel without a problem. it even fit into those extra small overhead sotrage bins (if you bend it a little). the longest i kept my suit in it for was was 19 hours straight and my suit still had no wrinkles, damn snow delay thought I wouldn't make the interview.

the one thing i did do was save that plastic bag that the shirts and suits come in from dry cleaners and used it when I packed my suit, I heard they keep the static away from the cloths and that's what causes the wrinkles. i don't know if I believe that but my suit was wrinkle free even after 19 hours of sitting in that folded position. Also my pants were too long for the bag so i had to fold them a second time to fit but once again wrinkle free. I do have a fairly nice suit though so maybe the quality of the fabric has something to do with it?

 

[MCYan]

I got the forcast 44in garment bag from sears for $27 and it was awesome!
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_01457120000P

my suit never got wrinkled and i could fit everything I needed for 3 days worth of travel without a problem. it even fit into those extra small overhead sotrage bins (if you bend it a little). the longest i kept my suit in it for was was 19 hours straight and my suit still had no wrinkles, damn snow delay thought I wouldn't make the interview.

the one thing i did do was save that plastic bag that the shirts and suits come in from dry cleaners and used it when I packed my suit, I heard they keep the static away from the cloths and that's what causes the wrinkles. i don't know if I believe that but my suit was wrinkle free even after 19 hours of sitting in that folded position. Also my pants were too long for the bag so i had to fold them a second time to fit but once again wrinkle free. I do have a fairly nice suit though so maybe the quality of the fabric has something to do with it?

What I did was just carrying a hanger with a suit cover and have the FA hang it for me when I board. I sometimes also hang my shirts in the suit cover as well. I will of course have a carry on item for my laptop and other things too. I think the worst thing to do (in terms of wrinkling your suit) is to wear it on the plane.

I would say what type of fabric rather than the quality of fabric certainly affects how easy a suit wrinkles. Some suits are made of "traveler's fabric" or "no-iron fabric" which is essentially polyester or microfiber. Other suits in general are made with wool/cotton/flannel/tweed/blends of cashmere (depends on season and weather), which tend to wrinkle more but not really of worse quality.