How to Clean Natural Fibers and Knits
If your item has a care label, always review it before proceeding.
- Fill your sink or a large bowl with lukewarm water
- Put in 3 drops of Unicorn Fibre Wash or Beyond Wash
- Swirl the soap around in the water
- Place the knit in the large bowl and let it soak
- Rinse thoroughly with warm water
- For softening, add two drops of Fibre Rinse or Beyond Soft to a rinse bath
- Gently press out water by laying knit in a towel and pressing until the towel is damp.
- Lay knit flat to dry
HOW TO CLEAN CASHMERE SWEATERS & KNITWEAR
We understand that owning a cashmere garment can seem like a big commitment, but with our top cashmere care tips we will teach you how to get the most from your garment, and also just how rewarding cashmere can be if cared for correctly. If you thought that cleaning cashmere should be left to the professionals, you are wrong! It’s time to save yourself some time and a lot of money with our cashmere care guide.
PREPARATION:
Begin by washing in a clean sink, it is imperative that the sink is completely clean of food or cleaning product residue as this would cause lasting damage to your garment. A good way to avoid this would be by going out and getting a brand new plastic wash basin specifically for hand washing your garments.
Fill the basin with lukewarm water (always check the label for specifics as this may vary) – heat and wool are not to be combined as this leads to shrinking and disfigurement of the fabric composition. It is also very important never to stretch or wring the wool whilst it is wet, wool has very elastic properties which means that it is easily pulled out of shape and unfortunately these effects cannot be reversed.
Once your basin is filled with lukewarm water add a few drops of UNICORN Fibre Wash or Beyond Wash.
SOAK THE GARMENT
Carefully submerge your cashmere garment into the basin and swish gently, taking care not to stretch (the added density of the absorbed water will make this very easy to do, so make sure you do not pull from one end of the garment and try to distribute force evenly when you swish the garment). You should soak the garment for 10 minutes.
RINSE OFF
Gently ball the sweater up, and squeeze the water out, being sure to do so without wringing or stretching your garment. Once you are satisfied that you have removed as much excess water as possible, (without wringing or stretching) empty the basin and refill with clean lukewarm water. Swish the garment in the clean water to rinse it until the detergent is gone. It is important that you continue to use the swish technique in a basin as running under a tap can stretch the garment.
ROLL
Now that the garment is rinsed, repeat the balling up method to remove any excess water ready to be rolled. You will now need a flat surface to lay the garment on a towel (ideally white as this will ensure that no dye is transferred on to your precious cashmere garment). Very gently roll the garment and towel together, squeezing and pressing as you progress to remove any moisture left from the rinsing process.
DRYING
When drying cashmere it is essential that you use a flat surface which is resistant to moisture and leave to air dry, the towel is great for soaking up excess moisture but to fully dry the garment I would recommend moving it on to a mesh surface. The mesh allows air to circulate which really speeds up the drying process. It is important that you put the garment back into shape when laid out to dry. Place sleeves parallel to the body and be sure to square the shoulders and hem.