Winter clothes spend eight months in a cupboard and four months being worn. Most of the damage happens in those eight months, not in the four. A padded jacket that comes out flat, a sweater with the shoulders stretched out, a shawl with a crease that will not press out — all of it is avoidable, and none of it needs special products.
Washing
Fleece
Turn it inside out, wash cold or warm, and skip the fabric softener. Softener coats the fibres and flattens the brushed surface, which is the part that keeps you warm. Fleece dries fast, so line drying in the shade takes no time.
Wool and wool blends
Cold water only, and as little agitation as you can manage. Hot water and spinning are what shrink wool and make it felt. If you are washing by hand, press the water out rather than wringing.
Wool does not need washing as often as people think. Airing a wool coat overnight removes most of the day from it. Two or three washes across a season is usually plenty.
Padded and quilted jackets
Wash alone, on a gentle cycle, and give it plenty of room. A packed drum stops the filling moving and leaves it bunched. Dry it flat and shake it out every hour or two so the filling redistributes.
Shawls and stoles
Hand wash a fine shawl in cold water, or send a heavy woollen one to be dry cleaned. Never wring a shawl. Lay it flat on a towel, roll the towel up to absorb the water, then unroll and dry it flat.
Drying
Three rules cover almost everything:
- Dry knits flat. Hanging a wet sweater stretches the shoulders permanently, and no amount of washing brings them back.
- Dry in the shade. Direct sun fades dark dyes and makes elastic brittle. This matters most for tracksuits and anything with a printed surface.
- Dry it fully before it goes away. Anything put into a cupboard slightly damp will smell by February, and may mildew.
Storing for the summer
This is where most winter clothes are lost.
Wash everything first
Clothes that look clean still carry skin oils and traces of food. Those are what insects feed on. A jacket put away unwashed is the one you find holes in.
Fold knits, hang coats
Sweaters and knitted jackets go flat in a stack, not on a hanger. Structured coats and padded jackets keep their shape better hanging, with enough space either side that they are not pressed flat.
Let it breathe
Plastic bags trap moisture against the fabric. Use a cotton cover, an old pillowcase or a cardboard box. If you use a plastic storage box, leave it slightly open and keep it somewhere dry.
Keep insects away without the smell
Dried neem leaves, cloves or a sachet of dried lavender in the folds work well and do not leave the sharp chemical smell that takes weeks to air out. Replace them once in the season.
Bringing them out again
Take winter clothes out a week before you need them, not the morning you do. Hang them in the shade for a few hours to air. A wool coat that smells of the cupboard usually only needs air and an hour in a steamy bathroom, not a dry clean.
Check zips and buttons at this point too. A zip repaired in October costs very little; one that fails in January costs you the jacket for a week.
Questions about a particular piece
If you are unsure how to wash something you bought from us, send a photo on WhatsApp to 0345 6650894 and we will tell you what the fabric is and how to treat it.
Browse the winter collection, or read our guide to winter fabrics to understand what you are washing.