To enhance both the performance and ultraviolet-protection properties of cotton-containing fabrics, attempts have been made to use poly(carboxylic acid)s as non-formaldehyde durable-press finishing agents alone or in combination with certain additives followed by post-treatment with metal salt solutions. Furthermore, simultaneous dyeing and resin finishing in the presence of triethanolamine hydrochloride (TEA (.) HCI) or citric acid (CA) as a reactive additive along with different anionic or cationic dyestuffs have been examined. The results reveal that the ester crosslinking of cotton-containing fabrics in the absence or presence of chitosan (5 g/L), beta-cyclodextrin (20 g/L), or choline chloride (20 g/L) as an additive results in an improvement in the fabric resiliency as well as the ultraviolet-protection properties. The extent of the improvement is determined by the type of poly(carboxylic acid), type of addi-live, type of substrate (i.e., cotton or cotton/ polyester blend), and pretreatment history (i.e., grey, bleached, or bleached and mercerized). The posttreatment of easy-care finished fabric samples with a copper acetate solution (5g/L) results in a dramatic improvement in the ultraviolet-protection factor, especially with bleached cotton, grey cotton/polyester blend, and bleached cotton/polyester fabric samples, regardless of the additive. Simultaneous dyeing and resin finishing with Reactive Black 5 and Direct Violet 31, in the presence of TEA (.) HCL as a reactive additive, or with Basilene Red PB, in the presence of CA as a reactive additive, result in a sharp increase in both the depth of shade and the ultraviolet-protection values, regardless of the substrate. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.