The things that come to mind when you think of cashmere are the soft, luxurious outlook and material maintenance. Cashmere wool is not only soft but also lightweight and insulating. Therefore, your cashmere sweater or scarf will keep you warm and comfortable.
The natural fibers used to make cashmere are durable and can outlast clothes made from other materials. However, you must learn how to care for it properly. Due to its sensitivity to agitation, water, and temperature, you must understand the dos and don'ts of washing, ironing, and storing it for ultimate durability. For this reason, you must cautiously choose your dry cleaning service provider.
Hand Washing Cashmere
Cashmere may only need cleaning once or twice a season, unlike other winter clothes. Excessive washing of items made of this fabric could result in pilling, shrinkage, and other forms of damage.
The following are steps you must follow when hand washing cashmere:
Pretreat to Remove Stains
You can apply cashmere-safe detergent to stains under the armpits, such as food or sweat stains. Instead of scrubbing, which can damage the delicate fiber, you should work the stains with your fingers.
Immerse in Cool Water
After removing stains from your cashmere, fill the base or sink with cool water. As the water fills the basin, mix it with cashmere-safe detergent before gently immersing the cashmere fabric.
Agitate with your Hands
When cleaning your cashmere, you should keep your fingers loose. This helps to avoid excessive agitation of the fabric. After the detergents have penetrated the fibers, leave them to soak for up to thirty minutes to ensure effective results.
Rinse and Drain
If you have a faucet or sprayer, you can gently and carefully rinse the cashmere while draining the water. Alternatively, drain the sink and refill it for an ultimate rinse.
Machine Washing Cashmere
If the care label for your cashmere says you can clean it using a washing machine, it is safe for the specific item. The following tips can help to prevent dampness when machine washing your cashmere:
- Use the delicate settings. Before throwing your cashmere into the washing machine, you must change the settings to a delicate wash. This ensures you clean the cashmere with the lowest water temperature and spin.
- Wash in a laundry bag. Before putting your cashmere sweater blanket or scarf into the washing machine, throw it into a laundry bag. This helps limit the agitation. If you do not have a laundry bag, you can use a white pillowcase and tie it to the open end.
- Use a gentle detergent. Cashmere is sensitive to water temperature and also chemicals. Therefore, you must choose a gentle detergent to wash your cashmere pieces.
Drying your Cashmere
Whether you hand wash or machine wash your cashmere, you should not put it into the dryer or wring it. This is because these acts would end up disfiguring and ruining the precious material. Instead, you should:
- Squeeze out the excess water. You can dry your cashmere by squeezing it into a ball. When the material is no longer wet, you can dry it on a towel.
- Towel drying. Another tip to dry your cashmere is to use a towel. This involves folding the cashmere sweater or scarf into a towel and rolling it until the water dries out. You could continue to add a fresh towel until the cashmere dries as desired.
Ironing your Cashmere
Before ironing your cashmere item, you must read the label on the cloth. This ensures that you are familiar with the instructions. After reading the instructions, you should set your iron on wool before laying your cashmere and spraying water on the garment.
When ironing cashmere, you should use small amounts of pressure. Excessive pressure can scorch the garment and cause it to lose its softness. If you do not feel comfortable in your cashmere, you can use a steamer to remove the wrinkles.
Care Tips for Cashmere
Knowing how to clean your cashmere accessories ensures their durability. However, these tips will help ensure that the fabric remains in good condition:
- Allow your cashmere to rest. You may want to be wrapped up in your favorite cashmere sweater for the entire winter. While this is comfortable, the overuse of cashmere can damage it. You should give the cashmere time to rest for several days before wearing it.
- Avoid hanging cashmere pieces. Instead of hanging your cashmere, you can store it by folding it into a ball and putting it in a drawer. This helps maintain its shape.
- Avoid regular washing. You should wash your favorite cashmere sweater when necessary. Frequent washing of this material can result in wear and tear.
Pilling
Pilling is the formation of small balls on the surface of your cashmere. This is caused by rubbing when you wear it. Pilling can ruin the outlook and softness of your cashmere. Therefore, you can take the following measures to prevent the issue from occurring or to remove it:
- When washing your cashmere, you can turn it inside out. This helps to strengthen the fibers and prevent pulling.
- A sharp razor can remove excessive pilling. However, you must be extremely careful to avoid damaging the fibers.
- Using an electric Youver, you can remove pilling from your favorite cashmere using a fabric shaver sweater.
Find Expert Dry Cleaner Services Near Me
Cashmere is a fine and delicate material. However, many people fear having cashmere pieces in their closets due to the high maintenance required. You can keep your cashmere items in good shape when you clean, dry, and store them correctly.
Depending on your preference, you can hand wash or dry clean your cashmere. Whichever method you choose to clean the high-maintenance fabric, you must pretreat the clothing item and avoid excessive agitation.
Choosing the right dry cleaners ensures your cashmere is cleaned and handled correctly. This helps the material keep its softness and insulating properties. At Boca Best Cleaners, we offer efficient dry cleaning services for our clients in Boca Raton, Deerfield, and Lauderdale, Florida. Contact us at 561-613-0352 for all your dry cleaning needs.
