I ruined a wool sweater and this is what I learned from it

There should be a word for it. The sadness you can feel when you've washed your favorite piece of clothing incorrectly. And although I really am a reasonable person who understands that the famine in Africa is a bigger problem, it can really feel a bit like heartbreak. My heart still shrinks when I think of my perfect mustard yellow wool sweater from Knit-ted that my husband happily washed at 40 degrees and which came out the size of a gnome. That sweater looked so good on me. I wore it almost every day, that sweater was my home. I also remember a white sweater from Donna Karan. It was made of cotton and had those chunky knitted cables. It was chic and tough at the same time and had cost a lot of money. One day I accidentally washed a red shirt with it and it turned the sweater into an indeterminate pink. No matter what I did, it was beyond saving. We're talking about eleven years ago, but I still feel it.

To prevent my other sweet pieces of clothing from ending up in the trash like my mustard yellow favorite, I talked to Petra Stapper about washing. She is the owner of my favorite sweater brand Knit-ted, so if anyone knows how to handle your clothes, it's her.

More and more care labels state that you should take the garment to the dry cleaner. Why is that?

“Producers are very quick to say ‘dry clean only’ to cover themselves. It does happen that customers wash their clothes too hot and then come to complain. This way you avoid any discussion. But it’s also laziness, you know. If you have a collection with different materials, it’s a lot of work to think about how to wash each piece and then make a label for it. Then you have to make sure that each garment gets the right care label, and that creates a lot of hassle.”

What things should you really never wash yourself?

“You can really wash most things carefully yourself at 20 or 30 degrees on the wool wash program, except for jackets and thicker viscose types. You might know what I mean, that crinkly material. If you wash that, it shrinks, even if you do it by hand. Even if something is your absolute favorite item, I wouldn’t take the risk and would take it to the dry cleaner. By the way, I wash my nice items as little as possible. You can let your wool sweater air out nicely. What’s also handy: buy a mini steamer. Then you can easily get rid of the worst odors. I only take my nicest items to the dry cleaner when I think it’s really getting too bad, haha.”

Okay, so I can wash my wool sweaters myself. How do I do that best?

“When washing wool sweaters, you really need to take your time. Most wool wash programs on washing machines indicate that you can wash at 40 degrees, but that’s not true at all. Many people think it’s better to wash wool by hand, but that’s not necessarily the case either. Wool reacts very strongly to temperature differences. People then leave their laundry soaking in lukewarm water but rinse it out with cold. Or the water has become cold and they rinse it out with warm. A wool wash program is a safer choice. Also important: you must let wool dry flat, otherwise it stretches out or distorts. I then lay towels all over my house, turn up the heating, and let it dry. That’s quite a hassle, yes.”

What about detergents?

“I always recommend using a special detergent for wool. They are specially made so that the wool fibers react the least. But again: wash wool as little as possible, then it stays the most beautiful.”