Matouk pieces cleaned and hand-finished by Alex's Dry Cleaning Valet.
Heritage & Expertise
Matouk, Cared For by Alex's Team
Matouk has been America's pre-eminent luxury linen house since 1929, when John Matouk — born in Damascus and trained in the great linen and embroidery workshops of Italy — began bringing the finest woven goods to the United States. Now a third-generation family company stitching and finishing its sheets and tablecloths in Fall River, Massachusetts, Matouk is celebrated for long-staple cotton percale and sateen, fine hemstitching, scalloped and appliqué borders, and made-to-order monogramming.
That refinement is exactly what careless laundering destroys. Harsh commercial detergent and chlorine bleach grey-out white cotton and weaken the fibers; over-hot drying shrinks the weave, puckers a hemstitched edge, and crushes the hand of fine percale; and a hot press will scorch an embroidered or appliqué border permanently. Caring for linen this fine is its own discipline — and it is precisely the work Alex's has done by hand since 1984.
Specialist Care
How Alex's Cares for Matouk
We launder, dry, and hand-press each Matouk piece to protect its weave, its borders, and its hand — finishing sheets and table linens the way fine American linen is meant to be cared for.
Long-staple percale & sateen
Matouk's crisp percale and lustrous sateen are woven from long-staple cotton whose strength and feel a hot, harsh wash destroys. We launder cool with pH-balanced, bleach-free detergent so the weave keeps its smooth hand and the white stays white rather than greying.
Hemstitched borders
The drawn-thread hemstitching on Matouk's sheets and tablecloths is delicate and easily snagged or puckered by aggressive machine handling. We wash these edges gently and press them flat by hand so the openwork stays crisp and square.
Appliqué & embroidered detailing
Matouk's scalloped, appliqué, and embroidered borders can scorch, pull, or distort under a hot commercial press. We press around and over them at controlled heat, by hand, so the relief and color stay true.
Made-to-order monograms
A custom Matouk monogram is the heart of the piece. We launder and finish so the embroidery thread holds its color and sheen and never bleeds into the surrounding cotton.
Cashmere & cotton throws
Matouk's throws are finished, never tossed in with the wash — cleaned and blocked to protect the fiber and fringe, and pressed only as the cloth allows so the drape and softness are preserved.
Pickup & Delivery
Door-to-Door Across the Bay Area
The same white-glove standard travels everywhere we serve. Pickup from your front door, doorman, or garage — returned cleaned, pressed, and ready to wear.
San Francisco
Monday – Saturday
Next-business-day return; Saturday pickups return Tuesday morning.
Peninsula & South Bay
Monday · Wednesday · Friday
Returned on the next scheduled service day.
Marin County
Every Day
Same-day return is the standard — morning pickups come back the same afternoon.
East Bay
Thursday & Saturday
Returned on the next service day.
Wine Country
Monday & Thursday
Sonoma & the Napa Valley — $300 service minimum, or a $75 delivery charge each way.
$75 minimum per pickup with free pickup and delivery across San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin, and the East Bay. Wine Country (Napa, Sonoma & St. Helena): $300 service minimum, or a $75 delivery charge each way. Same-day service available in most areas for an additional fee.
Common Questions
Matouk Garment Care FAQ
Can you launder Matouk sheets and tablecloths and pick them up from my home in San Francisco?
Yes. Alex's Dry Cleaning Valet has cared for fine household linens across San Francisco and the Bay Area since 1984, entirely door-to-door — We collect your Matouk bed and table linens from your door, hand-launder and press them, and return them to you. Text 415-338-9318 to schedule a pickup.
How do you keep white Matouk percale from greying or yellowing?
We never use chlorine bleach or harsh commercial detergent, which is what dulls and weakens long-staple cotton over time. Matouk's white percale and sateen are washed cool with a gentle, pH-balanced, bleach-free detergent and thoroughly rinsed, then dried and pressed at controlled heat so the white stays bright and the fiber stays strong.
Will laundering damage the hemstitching, appliqué, or monogram on my Matouk linens?
No — protecting exactly those details is the point of how we work. Drawn-thread hemstitching is washed gently and hand-pressed flat so it doesn't pucker or snag; appliqué and embroidered borders are pressed at controlled heat to avoid scorching or distortion; and monograms are finished so the thread keeps its color and sheen without bleeding into the cotton.