
How to Wash Wool in 4 Simple Steps - No More Shrinkage!
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“ Help! My beautiful wool baby cardigan has shrunk … ” Sound familiar? If you’ve ever accidentally washed a wool sweater or your little one’s adorable merino romper too hot, you know how frustrating it is. Luckily, you can easily prevent this drama! After reading this blog, you’ll know exactly how to wash wool – by hand or in the washing machine – so that your wool clothing and those sweet baby clothes are clean without shrinking . Are you with me? 😉
First of all, what not to do:
Don'ts when washing wool (mistakes you want to avoid):
- Washing woolen clothes with very cold or scorching hot water
- Vary the temperature of the water in between (temperature fluctuations)
- Rubbing, wringing and scrubbing the fabric
- Centrifuge at a very high speed
- Treat with aggressive cleaning agents (chlorine, regular stain removers)
- Soak wool in water for hours
- Putting woolen clothes in the dryer 🚫
Sounds like a whole laundry list of “forbidden” things – but what is allowed ? 🤔 Don’t worry, here are the four simple steps for a successful wool wash!
Washing wool is simple if you do it right – often just airing it out is enough to freshen up your wool favourites.
Step 1: Ask yourself if airing is enough
Does a wool garment smell a bit musty, but is not really dirty? Then you may not need to wash it at all! Wool is naturally self-cleaning . This means that you need to wash wool much less often than, for example, cotton. Sometimes you can get by for weeks with just airing it out instead of washing it.
Hang musty woollens outside overnight in the fresh air, or in a humid bathroom (for example during/after showering). The humid outside air – morning dew or mist – works wonders: it cleans the wool fibres, as it were, and odours disappear by themselves. A quick breath of fresh air can be enough to completely freshen up your woollen cardigan or your baby's woollen sleeping bag. Saves another wash and is better for the lifespan of your clothing.
Of course, if there is a stain or accident – for example a milk stain on the romper – then you should wash. See step 2.
Step 2: Stains? Treat them first
Are there stains on the wool, especially from milk, poop or other stubborn things? Pre-treating is the advice. Grab a block or bottle of ox gall soap – a real miracle cure for stains on wool (and other delicate fabrics).
Here's how: gently massage the ox gall soap into the stain(s) on the damp fabric. Don't rub hard, just massage lightly. Let this soak in for a few minutes and then carefully rinse the soap out with lukewarm water. You will often see the stain fade or disappear completely. Important: it's best to treat stains as soon as possible after they occur. The fresher the stain, the easier it is to remove. Three-day-old carrot pulp stains are simply more difficult than a fresh spill. 😉
Don’t have any ox gall soap? Try a mild wool detergent directly on the stain, or a natural stain remover. But ox gall (liquid or solid) is a must-have for parents with woollies – put that on your shopping list!
Step 3: Washing itself – by hand or in the washing machine
Always check the washing label on your clothes before you start washing. Although wool generally follows the same principles, specific wool types or brands can react slightly differently. The manufacturer knows best how their product wants to be washed – follow those instructions if they differ significantly. In practice, you will see that 90% of wool clothing says: hand wash or wool wash program, do not wring, do not tumble dry . But anyway, check to be sure. Especially important: some wool items cannot be machine washed despite a wool program, for example due to special finishing.
Do you like to have extra certainty? You can also check the brand's website to see if they have any specific washing instructions for their wool.
Do you prefer hand washing (our recommendation for valuable wool items) or machine washing? Both methods are explained below:
Hand wash wool
The safest way to wash wool is by hand, because then you have all the factors under control. Here's how:
- Fill a bucket or tub: Fill a bucket, tub or sink with lukewarm water . Ideally, it should be around 20–30°C (just feels pleasantly warm on your wrist, not hot). Tip: use a bath thermometer or kitchen thermometer if you want to know exactly how warm it is.
- Add wool detergent: Add a dash of organic wool detergent to the water and mix briefly. Preferably do not use regular (synthetic) detergent; this can affect the fine qualities of wool. A special wool shampoo (such as Disana or Joha ) is gentle on wool and often natural.
- Soaking wool: Place the wool garment in the water and gently push it down so that it is completely soaked. Do not scrub or scrub – just lower it and let the soap do its work. You can gently move the garment around in the water with your hands a few times, squeezing gently to ensure that the detergent is distributed throughout. This soaking can be done for a few minutes, but no longer than about 5 minutes. Wool does not need to be soaked for hours; this can actually be counterproductive (fibers can become felted).
- Rinsing: Pour away the soapy water and rinse the wool thoroughly with water of approximately the same temperature as the washing water. This is important: wool shrinks especially at large temperature differences. So also rinse lukewarm/warm, do not immediately rinse ice cold. Keep rinsing until no more soap residue comes out. Possibly several rinsing rounds.
- Do not spin or wring: Wool and spin dryers = not a good match. Preferably do not spin (or very briefly on low speed, see below for machine washing). Also do not wring the garment out like a mop – this will stretch and felt it. What then? -> Continue to step 4 (shaping & drying).
Wash wool in the washing machine
Can wool be machine washed? Yes, some woollens can be machine washed on a special wool programme . Modern machines often have a good wool wash programme that is very gentle (low temperature, little movement). BUT: always follow the washing label of the clothing! If it says hand wash only , take that seriously. Nevertheless, many parents sometimes choose to machine wash a woollen item – under very precise conditions. We advise the following if you want to use the machine for wool:
Always use the wool program (or delicate wash as an alternative) and set the temperature as indicated (30°C or cold).
- Keep the temperature constant: The most important thing is that the water has the same temperature during washing and rinsing. Most machines do this automatically in a wool program, but if you have doubts about your machine: set it to cold to avoid fluctuations. (Better too cold than alternating warm/cold.)
- Little movement: The wool program already ensures little drum movement. Do not overload the machine; only wash a few wools at a time so that they have space and do not rub against each other too much.
- Spin low: Set the spin speed to a maximum of 600 rpm if possible. Some wool programs default to 800 – if you can adjust it, set it lower. Or skip the spin altogether and squeeze out water by hand (see step 4).
- Use wool detergent : As with hand washing, add liquid wool detergent to the detergent compartment (or a washing ball) – not regular washing powder.
Do you wash wool regularly (for example your baby's wool)? Then it is also smart to occasionally replenish the lanolin in the fibres. Because washing rinses out some of the natural wool fat. Lanolisation is the key word: it makes wool soft again, water-repellent and keeps the material in top condition. About once every few months is sufficient. See our blog " Lanolinisation - this is how you do it" for a step-by-step explanation and how to easily make a lanolin bath for your wool. (Especially useful for woolly diaper pants that have to remain waterproof.)
Step 4: Shaping and drying
After washing it is time to dry the wool, but in the right way:
- Remove water: Remove the garment from the water (or from the machine after a gentle spin). Gently squeeze to remove excess water, without wringing ! You can also place it on a clean, dry cloth and roll up the cloth with the sweater in it to squeeze out the moisture.
- Shape: Wool is now wet and heavy, so handle it gently (don’t wring it out at one end, as this will stretch it). Place the item on a dry towel on a flat surface. Gently shape/shape it – the sweater or cardigan will be nice and flat again with the correct proportions. Wool can be a bit “malleable” when wet, so make sure everything is laid out correctly. Don’t pull or push too hard, just lay it out nicely.
- Dry flat: Let the wool garment dry flat , preferably on that towel (you can replace the towel with a dry one after a few hours). Indoors or outdoors are both possible, but avoid bright sunlight and certainly no dryer! Direct sunlight can cause wool to turn yellow or dry out, and the dryer… well, it shrinks it to doll size. So be patient, let nature dry.
Additional tips for wool maintenance:
- Separate laundry basket for wool: Keep a separate laundry basket or bag for dirty wool laundry. This will prevent a wool sock from accidentally ending up in the machine with the regular laundry (and promptly shrinking).
- Air your wool regularly: As mentioned in step 1: you don't have to wash after every wearing. You can often keep wool fresh by airing it. Give your wool cardigan or baby's wool suit a day of fresh air every now and then between wearings.
- Repair small holes immediately: If you discover a small hole or loose seam in your wool clothing, sew it up immediately. Wool can start to move if a hole gets bigger, and you don’t want to give moths a chance (moths are attracted to food scraps and sweat odors – another reason to air and store something if it’s been sitting for a long time).
- Store wool properly for long-term storage: Are winter clothes or sizes that are too small going into the closet for a long time? Store them clean and washed in an airtight container or bag, possibly with an anti-moth cedar block. That way they will come out fresh again for a possible next child or season.
- Stain still visible after drying? Hang the wool garment in the sun for an hour (not too long). The sun bleaches organic stains such as milk or fruit on wool in a mild way. This sometimes works better than scrubbing!
Conclusion
Washing wool requires a slightly different routine than regular laundry, but as you can see, it’s really easy once you know how. Follow these steps and your woolens – from your own cosy woolen sweater to your baby’s sweet rompers – will stay beautiful and soft, wash after wash.
After reading this article, do you also feel confident that you can quickly and easily get started with your wool wash? Great! 🤗 If you don't have a special wool care product at home (such as wool detergent or lanolin ), you can of course find it in our webshop. We will send it to you very quickly, so that you can immediately start caring for your wool. Because well-maintained wool lasts a long time - perhaps even a lifetime, from a baby sweater to a blanket for the grandchildren later on.
Have fun washing and enjoy your wonderfully fresh, soft wool!
PS: Did you accidentally shrink something? Don’t throw it away! Sometimes you can save a shrunken piece of wool by stretching it while it’s wet or – in the case of 100% wool – by blocking it very carefully. But prevention is better than cure, so hopefully these tips will make that a thing of the past.