Washing woolly jumpers... what's the trick?

[annieapple2]

How do you wash your woolly jumpers....?
I have tried the woollen cold and 30' wash on the machine, hand washing them, conditioner, no conditioner......
They come out not wet but not looking like there clean (smelling ok just look grubby)or if they look clean then they go all bobbly.

How do you all wash your woollen jumpers? Do you put them on a normal wash (I don't want to shrink my fav jumpers ) or is there some trick I'm missing?

Maybe it is the detergent you are using? I either handwash mine, or put them in the machine on the handwash cycle and I use Woolite liquid detergent which seems to do the trick.
Another tactic I use is hiding them on the floor behind the washing basket for weeks on end

You are bettling the natural lanolin on the wool. It is a waterproof oil that works great - hence sheep keep dry!

If I were you, I would just go with it. If your wool is coming out of the wash still repelling water, it is probably fairly new. You might therefore need to rething 'clean'

Unless the item is stained or utterly grubby, it could probably do without a water wash. Simplay air it on a line or on an airer and then press it. It shoudln't smell as it has the natural lanolin coating that repels stain, water and smells. Be like the fisherman, was less and air more.

If it does, then you need to persevere with a wool wash product. It will eventually loose the lanolin, and 'wash' in the traditiona,l sense like cotton does. At the same time it will start to seem thinner and less cuddly, so really lanolin is your friend

Also avoid softner for as long as the lanolin is stll around, it just sticks to it and your wool feels sticky and will get grubbier sooner.

Bobbles and general furryness are best treated with a cheap bic razor. Makes all the difference. Give them a good old shave.

treedelivery is right (and a bloody expert on the subject by the sound of it!). Shave with a razor - a cheap one or two blade will do it better than DH's 5-blade .

Wash with woolite or similar, on the wool cycle at 30 should be fine (I put all wool colours except red and black in together and they've never run). And as a guide to how often, I'd be annoyed if I had to wash a jumper before it had been worn at least ten times.

if you haven't got woollite, you can also wash woolens in shampoo (must be by hand as it is too foamy for a machine).