How to Starch Your Jeans (According to Experts)

Starch can make your jeans look as crisp and free of wrinkles as the day you bought them from the store! It's also not hard to achieve this effect at home, but starching does add a few extra steps to your laundering process. Come along with us as we take you step-by-step through three ways to starch jeans: soaking them in starch, adding starch to the washer, and ironing them with spray starch, with starching tips from laundry and dry cleaning experts Ayad Mirjan and Jeimy Flournoy. We'll also cover the pros and cons of stretching your jeans and answer frequently asked questions. Let's get starching!

How do you starch jeans?

Dry cleaner and laundry specialist Ayad Mirjan says to mix 1 c (120 g) of cornstarch with 1 US pt (470 mL) of cold water in a bucket. Add 6 US qt (5.7 L) of boiling water to the mixture for a light starch. Submerge your jeans in the bucket until they're soaked, then hang them on a clothesline or drying rack to air dry.

Section 1 of 5:

Soaking Jeans in Starch

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Run your jeans through the washing machine or hand-wash them. Apply stain remover to any stains on your jeans before washing them, especially if you plan on ironing them when you're done. The heat from the iron will set the stain and make it tougher to get out.^{[1]
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Meet the wikiHow Experts

Ayad Mirjan is a dry cleaner and laundry specialist with over 4 years of experience in the industry. He specializes in providing easy laundry and dry-cleaning solutions.

Jeimy Flournoy is a laundry and dry cleaning expert and the founder of Salon 809 and 809 Laundromat. She's passionate about maintaining cleanliness and providing exceptional customer service.
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Mix 1 c (120 g) of cornstarch with 1 US pt (470 mL) of cold water in a bucket. When the cornstarch is completely stirred in, the mixture should form a milky-looking paste. This is Mirjan's simple DIY recipe for fabric starch for soaking.^{[2]
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Expert Source

Ayad Mirjan
Dry Cleaner & Laundry Specialist

Expert Interview}
- Use a sink or a bathtub if you don't have a bucket. Any container will do, so long as you can fill it with enough water to completely submerge your jeans while they’re being starched.
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Boil 6 US qt (5.7 L) of water and mix it into the cornstarch mixture. Pour the boiling water into the bucket. After it's combined with the cornstarch mixture, the water should look slightly white and cloudy. According to Mirjan, 6 US qt (5.7 L) of water will produce a light starch on your jeans. If you've never starched jeans before, it's a good idea to start light. If it's not stiff enough for your taste, repeat the process with less water, as we explain below.^{[3]
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Expert Source

Ayad Mirjan
Dry Cleaner & Laundry Specialist

Expert Interview}
- Medium starch: 4 US qt (3.8 L) of boiling water.
- Heavy starch: 2 US qt (1.9 L) of boiling water
No need to let them soak! Just submerge them and make sure they're completely saturated with the liquid, then pull them out.^{[4]
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To avoid making a mess of your floor, wrap up the jeans in a towel first. Then carry them to your clothesline outside or a drying rack and hang them up to dry until they're damp.^{[5]
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Iron the jeans while they're still damp. Align the two seams on either side of one of the legs of your jeans. Spread the leg flat on top of your ironing board, then pass the hot iron over it, starting at the ankle hem and working your way upward. Flatten any wrinkles and creases you find. When you're done, repeat the same process with the other leg.^{[6]
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- If you prefer, skip ironing and just let your jeans air-dry completely. However, ironing your jeans after soaking them makes them look straighter.

Section 2 of 5:

Adding Starch to the Washer

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Prepare liquid starch. Flournoy recommends either buying liquid starch or making your own from cornstarch and water.^{[7]
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Jeimy Flournoy
Laundry & Dry Cleaning Expert

Expert Interview} Here's how to make liquid starch for the washing machine at home:^{[8]
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- Mix 1 tbsp (8 g) of cornstarch with 1 US pt (470 mL) of cold water in a bowl. Then pour it into an empty plastic spray bottle. Shake the mixture up before each use.
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Wash your jeans with warm or hot water. Load your jeans into the washer and set the water temperature to either warm or hot. Add detergent as you normally would.^{[9]
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- Make sure you’re not adding any other clothes to the load that you don’t intend on starching! You probably don’t want to starch your favorite hoodie or t-shirt.
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Add the starch during the last rinse cycle. Stop the washing machine when it’s on the last rinse cycle. Pour the liquid starch into the fabric softener compartment or directly into the drum.^{[10]
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- Avoid adding fabric softener. Fabric softener basically has the opposite intended effect as starch, so you should only be using one or the other.
- If you can’t manually select when you want your washer to pause, set a timer on your phone to make sure you can stop it when it’s entering the final rinse cycle.
- Ensure the water level is high enough to cover your jeans completely so that the starch will get distributed evenly.
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Air-dry the jeans. Leave the jeans out to air dry on a clothesline or drying rack. Technically, you can machine-dry your jeans, but be warned that they may not come out as stiff as you would like. They could also shrink.
- If you plan on ironing your jeans, take them off the clothesline or drying rack while they're still damp. Ironing them while they're still a little bit wet will make it easier to remove wrinkles and press the creases.

Section 3 of 5:

Ironing Jeans with Spray Starch

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Make sure your jeans are as stain-free as you can get them before you starch them, since the iron can actually set stains and make them harder to get out later.
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Make spray starch. To mix up your own spray starch, add 1.5 tbsp (12 g) of cornstarch to 2 c (473 mL) of water in a bowl and stir it with a spoon until the cornstarch is completely dissolved. The mixture should be cloudy even after the cornstarch is dissolved, so don’t worry if it’s not completely clear. Lastly, pour the mixture into a spray bottle.^{[11]
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- You can also buy spray starch if you don't want to make it.
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Heat up your iron. Carefully read the label on your jeans to figure out how high a heat setting to use when ironing them. Don’t use the steam setting when starching, since this won’t help in achieving the crispness you’re going for.
- If your jeans' care label has an X across the iron symbol, this means "No ironing." In that case, it's best to avoid ironing your jeans at all, so they won't get damaged.
Pre-pressing your jeans allows you to remove wrinkles, bubbles, and creases you don't want before adding the starch. Fold one of the jean legs so that the middle seams are aligned, then lay the leg flat on your ironing board. Run the iron across the fabric while pressing lightly. Then flip your jeans and repeat this process on the other leg.^{[12]
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Spray the starch evenly across one of the jean legs. When the jean leg is as pressed as you want it, it's time to add the starch. The amount of starch you apply will depend on how stiff you want your jeans. If you only want light starching, spray the jeans until they’re just damp. However, if you want heavily starched jeans that’ll stand up on their own, don’t be afraid to really let loose with the spray.^{[13]
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- Give the spray bottle a couple of good shakes before spraying the starch to make sure that the mixture hasn't settled.
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Iron the starched jean legs. Press the leg you sprayed with starch in the previous step, working from the hem of the ankle of the leg and back up toward the thigh. When you're finished, switch to the other leg, spray it with starch, and iron it, as well.^{[14]
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Dry your jeans completely on a clothesline or a drying rack. You don’t want wrinkles in your jeans after working so hard to get them out!

Section 4 of 5:

Pros & Cons of Starching Your Jeans

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Pros: Your jeans will look crisp and wrinkle-free. Starch can take your jeans from everyday to semi-formal wear. After starching, they'll look neat and straight enough to wear to special events, like a casual business meeting, a party, or even a wedding!
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Cons: Your jeans might smell and develop permanent wrinkles. Starching your jeans over and over can leave you smelling like cornstarch, which isn't pleasant. Over time, the starch can also set the wrinkles around the front pockets and the backs of the knees. This probably isn't the look you're going for when you're thinking about starching your jeans!^{[15]
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- Starching too often can also wear your jeans out faster, according to some sources. This leaves your jeans more vulnerable to fraying and seams popping.
- Tip: To make them last longer, starch your jeans for special occasions only and not for everyday wear.

Section 5 of 5:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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What is the purpose of starching your jeans? The purpose of starching your jeans is to make them stiff and straight, almost like they've never been worn. After starching, they'll look neat enough to wear to a semi-formal event, like a casual business meeting or a wedding.
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How long does it take to starch jeans? Starching your jeans in the washer can be the fastest and most effortless method, provided the jeans come out starched to your liking. If not, you'll have to wash them again with more starch, which can be time-consuming. The next fastest are the spray starch and soaking methods, since they require extra steps like ironing and preparing a soak. All three methods require anywhere from 2 to 24 hours of air-drying time.^{[16]
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Research source} The more humid it is where you live, the longer the process will take.
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Is starching your jeans necessary? No, starching your jeans isn't necessary. While starching them can make them look new and crisp, it can also make them feel stiff and crunchy, and develop permanent wrinkles in certain areas. It also adds an extra step to doing your laundry, and not everyone has the time for it.