Marching bands differ in several ways from other bands-different style of music, physical movements etc. But no difference between marching bands and concert bands is more obvious than the emphasis on visuals in marching bands. Whether the marching band has a flashy color guard or perfect formations and sets, it will be closely watched by judges, musicians and spectators of all types. Because of the strict scrutiny that many marching bands face, it is especially important that all members of the marching band take good care of their marching band uniforms and clean them often. This keeps all members of the marching band looking neat and clean. Marching bands that don’t look neat and put together are rarely taken seriously, and this hampers their effectiveness at rousing school spirit or putting on an entertaining performance. By following these steps for cleaning and taking care of your marching band uniform, you can do your part to make sure that the marching band looks presentable.
1. Don’t put the marching band uniform in a washing machine unless you know its okay with the director. Your band director will most likely encourage you to wash the marching band uniform, but there are some marching band uniforms that can’t be machine washed. So get the okay on washing the marching band uniform before doing anything else.
2. Once you know it’s safe to wash the band uniform, turn the marching band uniform inside out and place it in the washing machine in a position that will keep it from getting caught on anything. Marching band uniforms should be washed separately and never combined with other clothes.
3. Don’t use bleach on your marching band uniform-this is the best way to damage it and have to pay a ton of money for a replacement! Instead, use a mild fabric softener.
4. The settings on the washing machine should be on delicate when you wash the marching band uniform.
5. After you finish washing your marching band uniform, hang it on a hanger or lie it flat on a table and let it air dry. Marching Band Uniforms should never be put in the clothes dryer!!
6. Now it’s time to take care of the shoes you wear with the marching band uniform. Use a damp cloth to wipe any dirt off the marching band uniform.
7. Many marching bands do a wonderful job with their marching band uniforms but neglect to shine their shoes! But having nice, shiny shoes can do wonders for the appearance of the marching band and can even improve the appearance of shabby looking marching band uniforms!
8. To shine the marching band shoes, dab a few spots of polish on the shoe’s exterior and use a polish sponge to rub it in all across the shoe.
9. Let the marching band shoes dry. If extra shine is still needed, Vaseline works surprisingly well.
If all this cleaning of marching band uniforms sounds like too much work, you can always take the marching band uniform to a dry cleaners in a pinch. But if you perform a lot, this will strain your budget, so my advice is to such it up and clean your marching band uniform. If everyone in the marching band manages to do this, it can make a huge difference in crowd appeal and in scores and ranking at the marching band competitions.
