Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

With extreme attention to detail.

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

With extreme attention to detail.

Thanks for that insight. You do know it is not compulsory to respond to every thread? Sometimes, actually most times if you have nothing substantive to contribute you are better off saying nothing at all.

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

With extreme attention to detail.

Thanks for that insight. You do know it is not compulsory to respond to every thread? Sometimes, actually most times if you have nothing substantive to contribute you are better off saying nothing at all.

but it is true. that’s the point. You don’t know the variables between hot and cold if you think I’m talking shit.

If you want to destroy my sweater
Hold this thread as I walk away

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

With extreme attention to detail.

Thanks for that insight. You do know it is not compulsory to respond to every thread? Sometimes, actually most times if you have nothing substantive to contribute you are better off saying nothing at all.

but it is true. that’s the point. You don’t know the variables between hot and cold if you think I’m talking shit.

I am no better informed with your contribution. Serial, post less, think more and less guru gibberish.

dv said:

If you want to destroy my sweater
Hold this thread as I walk away

Yes. the best way to fix a sweater is to re-knit it.

dv said:

If you want to destroy my sweater
Hold this thread as I walk away

.

Hahahahahahahahaha!

Good one!

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

Thanks for that insight. You do know it is not compulsory to respond to every thread? Sometimes, actually most times if you have nothing substantive to contribute you are better off saying nothing at all.

but it is true. that’s the point. You don’t know the variables between hot and cold if you think I’m talking shit.

I am no better informed with your contribution. Serial, post less, think more and less guru gibberish.

OK.. seriously.. it shrinks because the water is hot.. it stretches when the water is cold. what else do you need to know?

You could try a wire frame your size and shape and shrink it onto that with variable applications of hot and cold.. or you could just unstitch the thing re-wash the wool and when dry, start knitting.

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

IME, wool shrinkage is temperature dependent. If you wash your jumper in cold water & dry it flat, you’ll get hardly any shrinkage. If you wash in hot water then you’re likely to get quite a bit of shrinkage. And a hot tumble dryer is almost guaranteed to shrink your jumper to doll proportions.

So try a warm water wash.

…

FWIW, I always add a bit of eucalyptus oil when I wash wool. Or if it’s got a particularly musty smell, I use a little clove oil instead, which is quite good at killing mould.

roughbarked said:

OK.. seriously.. it shrinks because the water is hot.. it stretches when the water is cold. what else do you need to know?

Revisit the OP, if you have no clue and unable to offer anything more than wool shrinks when hot, and unable to answer the question or offer insight, stand down and stop making a fool of yourself.

PM 2Ring said:

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

IME, wool shrinkage is temperature dependent. If you wash your jumper in cold water & dry it flat, you’ll get hardly any shrinkage. If you wash in hot water then you’re likely to get quite a bit of shrinkage. And a hot tumble dryer is almost guaranteed to shrink your jumper to doll proportions.

So try a warm water wash.

…

FWIW, I always add a bit of eucalyptus oil when I wash wool. Or if it’s got a particularly musty smell, I use a little clove oil instead, which is quite good at killing mould.

Wool should always be washed in tepid water.

Only need to wash in cool water if one wishes to retain natural oils in unwashed homespun.

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

OK.. seriously.. it shrinks because the water is hot.. it stretches when the water is cold. what else do you need to know?

Revisit the OP, if you have no clue and unable to offer anything more than wool shrinks when hot, and unable to answer the question or offer insight, stand down and stop making a fool of yourself.

I give up..
too many bongs?

roughbarked said:

Wool should always be washed in tepid water.

Only need to wash in cool water if one wishes to retain natural oils in unwashed homespun.

Or.. if you need to stretch it.

http://www.wisegeek.org/how-should-i-wash-a-sweater.htm

Before outlining the steps involved in washing a sweater, it can help to understand why wool is so difficult to wash. When wool is exposed to an alkaline environment, it opens up the scales of the fibers. If the wool is then agitated, the fibers will cling together, forming a dense mat. Sometimes, this mat is actually desired, and the processing is called fulling or felting. At other times, felting a perfectly good sweater will cause to to shrink dramatically in size. Therefore, when you wash a wool sweater, you want to avoid two things: alkaline detergent, and agitation. Wool also dislikes sudden temperature changes, so wash and rinse a sweater in water of a consistent temperature.

The temperature of the wash water is a subject of hot debate. Some people believe that you should not wash a sweater in hot water, since hot water will encourage felting. This is not actually the case, and hot water may even be better since it can lift embedded grime and grease. When you wash this garment in hot water, however, you must take care not to agitate it at all.

Skunkworks said:

Winter, I have a few warm and wooly jumpers who have over time stretched a bit. Some of them are hella expensive. How to tighten up or shrink a jumper without taking it to doll proportions.

I have answered.. How to tighten up.. Pull the knitting apart and re-knit it.

Otherwise you are going to be having to watch a pot that never boils.

PM 2Ring said:

http://www.wisegeek.org/how-should-i-wash-a-sweater.htm

Before outlining the steps involved in washing a sweater, it can help to understand why wool is so difficult to wash. When wool is exposed to an alkaline environment, it opens up the scales of the fibers. If the wool is then agitated, the fibers will cling together, forming a dense mat. Sometimes, this mat is actually desired, and the processing is called fulling or felting. At other times, felting a perfectly good sweater will cause to to shrink dramatically in size. Therefore, when you wash a wool sweater, you want to avoid two things: alkaline detergent, and agitation. Wool also dislikes sudden temperature changes, so wash and rinse a sweater in water of a consistent temperature.

The temperature of the wash water is a subject of hot debate. Some people believe that you should not wash a sweater in hot water, since hot water will encourage felting. This is not actually the case, and hot water may even be better since it can lift embedded grime and grease. When you wash this garment in hot water, however, you must take care not to agitate it at all.

This is correct and why I initially replied.. “with extreme attention to detail”

Jeez, Curve, obviously all you need is some CDF :)

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

OK.. seriously.. it shrinks because the water is hot.. it stretches when the water is cold. what else do you need to know?

Revisit the OP, if you have no clue and unable to offer anything more than wool shrinks when hot, and unable to answer the question or offer insight, stand down and stop making a fool of yourself.

I give up..
too many bongs?

Dude you were the idiot suggesting I unpick and reknit my jumpers! In your defence it may actually shrink the jumper but I reckon there may be simpler solutions and once again it seems you have waded into a field you know nothing about, contribute no useful information and confusing your usual bullshit platitudes with information.

As the link mentions (and is confirmed on various other sites), it’s not so much the temperature itself that causes the shrinkage, but that wool in hot water is more susceptible to felting when agitated, especially in the presence of alkaline detergents. (The eucalytpus oil helps to prevent that). And felting is pretty-much a one way process, i.e., it can’t be reversed by washing the felted wool in cold water.

Are the problem jumpers hand-knitted, or machine knitted?

If hand knitted, are they made from hand-spun yarn?

If hand-spun yarn, was it hot-water-detergent washed or cold water washed?

PM 2Ring said:

As the link mentions (and is confirmed on various other sites), it’s not so much the temperature itself that causes the shrinkage, but that wool in hot water is more susceptible to felting when agitated, especially in the presence of alkaline detergents. (The eucalytpus oil helps to prevent that). And felting is pretty-much a one way process, i.e., it can’t be reversed by washing the felted wool in cold water.

Cool, I like that information I feel am learning something.

Skunkworks said:

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

Revisit the OP, if you have no clue and unable to offer anything more than wool shrinks when hot, and unable to answer the question or offer insight, stand down and stop making a fool of yourself.

I give up..
too many bongs?

Dude you were the idiot suggesting I unpick and reknit my jumpers! In your defence it may actually shrink the jumper but I reckon there may be simpler solutions and once again it seems you have waded into a field you know nothing about, contribute no useful information and confusing your usual bullshit platitudes with information.

I’m a spinner weaver and knitter.. Once a knit is shrunk or stretched.. it is fucked.

Michael V said:

Are the problem jumpers hand-knitted, or machine knitted?

If hand knitted, are they made from hand-spun yarn?

If hand-spun yarn, was it hot-water-detergent washed or cold water washed?

I am about to go to bed, best I can offer is cable knit and probably machine and I don’t know what that means apart from making the jumpers expensive.

Cold washed but they are rarely washed.

Skunkworks said:

Michael V said:

Are the problem jumpers hand-knitted, or machine knitted?

If hand knitted, are they made from hand-spun yarn?

If hand-spun yarn, was it hot-water-detergent washed or cold water washed?

I am about to go to bed, best I can offer is cable knit and probably machine and I don’t know what that means apart from making the jumpers expensive.

Cold washed but they are rarely washed.

cable knit is simply another knit.. It is more about the tension on the knit. If the fibre tension changes.. so too does the knit.

Cold wash will always stretch unless you lay it on a towel to dry. Hang it and the knit will lose tension.

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

Michael V said:

Are the problem jumpers hand-knitted, or machine knitted?

If hand knitted, are they made from hand-spun yarn?

If hand-spun yarn, was it hot-water-detergent washed or cold water washed?

I am about to go to bed, best I can offer is cable knit and probably machine and I don’t know what that means apart from making the jumpers expensive.

Cold washed but they are rarely washed.

cable knit is simply another knit.. It is more about the tension on the knit. If the fibre tension changes.. so too does the knit.

Cold wash will always stretch unless you lay it on a towel to dry. Hang it and the knit will lose tension.

If the tension is tightened by matting of the fibres then the wool is too far gone to re-knit.

roughbarked said:

roughbarked said:

Skunkworks said:

I am about to go to bed, best I can offer is cable knit and probably machine and I don’t know what that means apart from making the jumpers expensive.

Cold washed but they are rarely washed.

cable knit is simply another knit.. It is more about the tension on the knit. If the fibre tension changes.. so too does the knit.

Cold wash will always stretch unless you lay it on a towel to dry. Hang it and the knit will lose tension.

If the tension is tightened by matting of the fibres then the wool is too far gone to re-knit.

Always hand wash knitted wool jumpers..(ie: do not put them in a washing machine) Best to at least lay them flat on a towel and turn them to reduce water weight, before hanging them to finish off if days are short.

what if you start washing in cold water

measure the temperature

then for each successive wash increase the water temp by very small amounts

I don’t think I’d attempt multiple washes. I like PM’s suggestion of a warm hand wash, I wouldn’t use a machine because you are experimenting. Then dry flat on a towel. I dry my jumpers on a towel draped across an old fashioned clothes airer/horse.

Alternatively, just wear them baggy and start a trend.

:)

I machine washed a woollen sweater in cold water, using wool wash… and it still shrunk ridiculously small.

I would only hand wash and lay out on a flat surface, if I ever got another wool jumper (which I won’t because they are too hard to clean)

I wonder if you could unpick stitching (just the stitching keeping the sections together and then re-sew? probably just add bulk…)

by the way… No disrespect to my grandpa ….. But this sweater incident has gone too far

Sweaters, eh

poikilotherm said:

Sweaters, eh

another hottest 100 classic

buffy said:

Alternatively, just wear them baggy and start a trend.

:)

I am not handwashing so that looks like the best solution.

PM 2Ring said:

As the link mentions (and is confirmed on various other sites), it’s not so much the temperature itself that causes the shrinkage, but that wool in hot water is more susceptible to felting when agitated, especially in the presence of alkaline detergents. (The eucalytpus oil helps to prevent that). And felting is pretty-much a one way process, i.e., it can’t be reversed by washing the felted wool in cold water.

In 1999 my mother washed a favourite woolen jacket which I had only had dry-cleaned. I stomped and sulked and wished that something … anything could be done with it. After about a year I asked SSSF and JF explained about the “matting”, which must be felting and that it was irreversible. After a few more months of keeping it in the cupboard, I was able to let it go :(

What would dry cleaners use on wool?

• What would dry cleaners use on wool?

Dry cleaning fluid?

Speedy said:

PM 2Ring said:

As the link mentions (and is confirmed on various other sites), it’s not so much the temperature itself that causes the shrinkage, but that wool in hot water is more susceptible to felting when agitated, especially in the presence of alkaline detergents. (The eucalytpus oil helps to prevent that). And felting is pretty-much a one way process, i.e., it can’t be reversed by washing the felted wool in cold water.

In 1999 my mother washed a favourite woolen jacket which I had only had dry-cleaned. I stomped and sulked and wished that something … anything could be done with it. After about a year I asked SSSF and JF explained about the “matting”, which must be felting and that it was irreversible. After a few more months of keeping it in the cupboard, I was able to let it go :(

What would dry cleaners use on wool?

make sure they actually use something. I took my trousers to a dry cleaner to find the cheeky buggers had done nothing more than sprayed them with smell and put a plastic bag on them – the spot of food I needed removed was still there in pristine condition – they hadn’t been bothered to actually inspect the trousers

I didn’t bother reading all the bullshit, but I get around the problem by not wearing wool at all…

However when I washing my woollen underlay, all I did was chuck it in a bath of warm water with some very mild detergent, let it get wet through, drain the bath, refill to let it rinse, then let it drain for a while in the bath. The most exertion was taking it out to the washing line. Perfect for lazy people :-)

It didn’t shrink at all, so I reckon using hand-hot water would probably suffice for that.

OCDC said:

I didn’t bother reading all the bullshit, but I get around the problem by not wearing wool at all…

However when I washing my woollen underlay, all I did was chuck it in a bath of warm water with some very mild detergent, let it get wet through, drain the bath, refill to let it rinse, then let it drain for a while in the bath. The most exertion was taking it out to the washing line. Perfect for lazy people :-)

It didn’t shrink at all, so I reckon using hand-hot water would probably suffice for that.

tepid water, yes. no need to worry about hand washing as a chore as such.. the the temp right and the wool and water do all the washing for you while retaining all desired properties.

is all.