How To Take Care Of Sweaters

Save Money on Sweaters, avoid buying new ones each season

Sweaters should last you a long time since you probably spent quite a bit of money buying them. To do that you need to give sweaters special care. Most fibers, whether natural or man-made, need special attention when in the shape of a sweater to guarantee that they keep on looking super for several seasons to come. Save money and avoide buying new sweaters each season.

Follow these steps to keep your sweaters looking new year after year

Fold your sweaters. Don't ever hang them because hanging sweaters will result in a larger sweater than the last time you put it on, or a misshapen profile.

Remove pills from your sweaters regularly to keep them looking presentable. Pilling is caused by rubbing during wear and is more apparent around the elbows, under the armpits and on sleeves but can occur anywhere on the sweater. Purchase a hand-held depiller or a small electric shaver made for depilling. Or pick them off by hand in front of the TV.

Remove dandruff, hair & lint regularly. Purchase a baby's or child's soft hairbrush from a supermarket or drugstore. The softness of this brush will enable you to quickly brush off these sorts of unattractive sweater companions.

Repair the sweater quickly. If a button falls off or a small hole appears, repair the sweater the moment that you discover it. If not, the hole may get bigger or you might just shove the sweater to the back of the wardrobe, dismissing it as unwearable for its minor fault.

Give your favorite sweater a break. Wearing it everyday even though you love it will cause it to lose shape or build up hard-to-remove perspiration stains. Alternate it with other sweaters or jackets.

Wash most sweaters by hand. Unless the instructions tell you to machine wash a sweater, never do so. Woolen sweaters should always be washed by hand in a gentle soap solution. You can either run lukewarm water and turn a favorite scented soap around and around in your hand under the water to make the water soapy, or you can add soap flakes. If possible, turn sweater inside out to wash and try not to wring a sweater; let it drip dry or roll excess water off in a towel. Wringing can cause it to lose its shape. Be extra careful of sweaters with attachments such as beads, embroidery work etc.; use cool water to prevent the colors from embroidered labels running.

Treat cashmere & other delicates very carefully. Cashmere is lovely but its appealing softness makes it prone to pilling and touchy to care for. Other delicate fibers include mohair, angora and lambswool. Wash is in a very gentle solution such as Woolite or Lux Flakes etc. Do not wring - instead roll in a large, moisture-loving towel to remove excess moisture and then leave out flat to dry on a towel. If you have access to a flat sweater drying device, use it.

Store sweaters carefully during summer months. Do not use moth balls - they smell very bad and are very unhealthy for human beings. Use cedar balls, cedar sawdust in little calico bags, mixed herbal sachets or dry bay leaves between clothing layers or ask at your health food store for a safe alternative to moth balls. Keep wardrobe clean - dust out and vacuum at the end of each season.

Wash before storing any sweater. This is very important to avoid providing a free meal for moths. They will accept the invitation!

Store sweaters dry. Whether you are storing your sweaters for a season or for a few days, never put the sweater away damp. This will encourage the growth of mildew or mold and this cannot be removed. It may also spread to surrounding clothing and will smell bad.