Advice needed - washing teddies/cuddly toys/stuffies!

[Catopia]

I'm posting this here at a loss. I have kept some special cuddlies to give to my children. I'm now a few weeks from giving birth. Some of these fluffy friends have been in storage for the best part of 20 years and need a proper wash: a "surface wash" is not going to cut it.

I am nervous about washing them as some of them are very special to me and they are 30+ years old, and would like some advice: I am assuming that most parents simply ignore the "surface wash only" on most of the labels because otherwise frankly the most loved teddies or they would be utterly gross!

But liquid or powder? Softener yay or nay? Temperature? Washing machine setting? Do you put them inside pillow cases or anything?

Thank you in advance from some slightly grubby veteran stuffies!

Wash them on a delicates setting (not a hot wash) with gentle washing powder and in a pillowcase and they will be totally fine.

However I would urge caution that if they are important to you I wouldn't be giving them to your child. Give them their own toys which can in turn become important to them like yours have to you and save your teddies for yourself.

I want DD to have them. They give excellent hugs and they deserve to receive them from someone of a more appropriate age to dish them out than me! 🐻

I think it's the drying that's tricky. Dry as quickly as possible.