Wednesday 18 November 2015

How to Un-shrink a Sweater

Cardigan back to normal size.
At the weekend I did a terrible thing.  I inadvertently put my favourite cardigan in the washer and dryer.  I normally put it in a wool wash and air dry it. Although it is viscose and elastane, it came out two sizes smaller. It was destined for the charity shop but a friend suggested I look online to see if it could be fixed.  I found the solution on this site:
www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/.
It worked! I plan to try it with something else now.


Here's what to do.
Put a small amount of fabric conditioner in a plastic bowl and fill it with cool water.
Immerse the cardigan and leave it in this solution for 30 minutes.  This allows the fibres to relax.
Do not rinse.
Roll it in a towel to take away excess moisture.
Spread it out and gently stretch it back to its original shape, if necessary. (I drew around another 
similar cardigan and used the template to check but mine had reverted to its original shape.)
Spread it out  on a clean, dry towel and allow to dry. This will take a day or so, but it's worth it.
Gently press it if necessary.
( If you are dealing with a wool sweater, you may have to stretch and pin it when it is still wet and
then press it with a damp cloth when it is dry.)

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