Shit shit shit! I’ve just turned a beloved jumper into a felt lump!

[Nearly50TotallyKnackered]

It was a lovely Seasalt knit - 80% wool to 20% nylon. Soft and snuggly and perfect. Washed overnight at 30 degrees as usual. I’ve just retrieved it and it’s now a doll-sized square. Sob.
Is there anything I can do to rescue it? Tugging at it is having no effect.

I think it's gone, I'm sorry 😞

Cold water and lots of fabric conditioner can loosen the fibres! Worth a try

We had similar with a brand new £140 cardigan ! I gave it to a 3 year old who it fits and know your disappointment!

I’ve heard of trying conditioner but i don’t think one can ever fully restore it really

I read somewhere about soaking shrunken clothes in cold water with fabric conditioner then stretching it gently into shape. I've never tried it myself but friends have been successful with that method

I did that with a beautiful wool tweed pencil skirt. Turned it into a beautiful pair of mittens instead and found a replacement skirt on ebay.

Sob! Thank you for the fabric conditioner tip.
Worth a try, though I’ll have to buy some. I don’t think even my 7-year-old would fit into it.

Do you have hair conditioner? Worth trying that too.

If it’s felts then the fibres are welded together and it’s usually not salvageable. Never trust a washer - I do 10 degrees lower with wool

I use them for making hats - I advertise locally for any woollen that has been shrink.

I have often tried fabric conditioner and cold water on pieces that look very expensive. It doesn't work if the jumper is well felted and has minimal effect on lesser feltings. The jumper never feels right afterwards.

Sorry.

It’s totally felted. I can’t even see the pattern in most places. Still, lesson learned.

Flannel
Coffee mug sleeve
Fingerless mittens - though it may now be too small for that
Wrist warmer/cuffs
Base of kids crafted brooches, decorative wreathes etc

These can all be made from a single felted jumper with very little sewing/craftiness

I'd hit eBay OP, Seasalt items come up fairly regularly, & there is a Seasalt selling group on FB, you might get another 🤞🏻

Flashbacks to my mother turning my beautiful dress into Barbie sized 😭
I feel your pain.

Nooooo! I did this with my fave vintage Howies jumper. I have never gotten over it.

Try the fabric conditioner and warm not hot water, ( thought i'd ruined my hubby's fav jumper) once the fibres have relaxed alittle gently stretch worth a go! rinse thoroughly and dry flat over a couple of trays and gently ease it out, good luck! it won't be the same but worth a go!

So sorry for your loss. RIP jumper.

Sorry OP. I think it's a combination of vigorous agitation and heat that wool doesn't like. Most wool will survive a gentle woollens programme in the machine.
If handwashing wool I recommend Eucalan no-rinse wool wash. It tops up the lanolin and adds a slight natural eucalyptus scent that moths dislike.
I've used the conditioner stretching method successfully only with a very fine cashmere that had shrunk but not felted.

It sounds like it's way too far gone for the fabric conditioner thing.

I have turned shrunken cashmere jumpers into hats, scarves and mittens for friends before. And have made bags from charity shop jumpers that I've deliberately shrunk for that purpose.

Yep, try Ebay -- i think Seasalt itself has a shop on there too, selling previous season items, overstocks etc, as well as all the other sellers.

Fabric conditioner thing can help if you’ve shrunk a jumper by maybe one dress size. And it probably won’t ever feel quite the same. Adult size jumper shrunk to 5yr old size. No chance. It’s dead. You can use the felt for something though.

Tragically, I’ve already looked on eBay - not there, but I’ll keep an eye out.

Huge sympathies, OP - it’s sickening.

I had this, with a big slouchy jumper I’d actually knitted in pure new wool that cost about £80. I hand washed it, as per the yarn label, first time, and went to spin in the machine. But unlike my old one, the bastard bloody new Bosch machine had no ‘just spin’ cycle, only rinse and spin, and even the instruction book didn’t tell you how to just spin.

You have to faff with the ‘rinse and spin’ - and I mis-faffed so it also rinsed, and came out a third of the size, in felt.
I could have cried.
I have it sussed now, but will never again buy a WM without a ‘just spin’ cycle.

No way back. I did the same with my own favourite Seasalt jumper.

I still mourn it...

You could set up a saved search for the item on ebay?