Please help! Is my skirt ruined?

[ConfusedParticle]

I have a new, lovely 100% 'washed' wool skirt. It was expensive and is very dear to me.

Went out wearing it today, wore long duvet coat over it but got stuck for 5 mins only in an insanely heavy downpour. It was vicious, and i knew the skirt edges had got a touch wet but thought it should be ok.

Once home i hung it up to dry and noticed the hem is wrinkled. It is pretty much almost dry now and the wrinkling hasn't gone! I am not a wool expert but am afraid the fibres might have altered irreparably and my lovely skirt is ruined :(

I am posting photos, best i could get in low light. Skirt is dark green and grey but lighting is making it look orange.

Does this mean the skirt is lower quality than i had imagined, or is it just horribly bad luck? Will the frilly wrinkled edges drop out? What can I do!!!??? Any advice appreciated.

Please continue to enjoy your skirt @ConfusedParticle. Is there any chance of returning your hat to Brora? Or Ebaying it as Rose has suggested? I think there is something quite dispiriting about wearing stuff that doesn't suit (apart from painting in).

I would do this;

Find someone who does alterations to hem it with bias tape. It’s still a beautiful skirt.

Have worn the hat so can't return. It is often difficult to truly appreciate colour online, and i really thought the shade of blue was right for me, but it makes me look really washed out and depressed in real life! Lovely hat though, so very warm and luxurious.

Skirt is still slightly crinkled (or bubbled) about 4inches in from side seams. Now that it is completely dry I will iron again and see if it improves.
Thank you again for your help.

Update: Pressed the hem again this afternoon. One side is still slightly damp, which is interesting as the garment is rather thin and it has been in a dry, warm, well aired spot.

About 20 inches of hem is still bubbling. I have done most of what has been suggested on the thread and I can't see this working out well for me - unless the dampish part dries flatter.

I'm seriously fed up and annoyed with myself for presuming this would be a good investment. Since so much has to be bought online now, and websites don't bother to show detailed images of hems, etc, I am honestly too anxious to every put that much money on anything ever again. There is no way I could have tried this and felt it prior to buying. I guess this is one area where online shopping is a bloody high risk.

All i can do at this point is either take it to a tailor or call the store I purchased it from. Right now though I just feel like slapping myself :(

Ha perhaps this is what they meant by 'a living fucking hem'!

Try soaking a cotton tea towel in fabric conditioner mixed with water, wring out so just damp. Place it on the back of your skirt and press. It relaxes the threads. Hope that works

You should be able to get a refund?

When you press the hem, try pressing the bubbles upwards towards the stitching, rather than flat.

Can you put a brooch on the hat something with colour

Make sure you steam it at the same time.

Wool is ‘mouldable’ with steam and heat. You should be able to mould it back into shape by pressing over a damp cloth and pressing upwards towards the stitches.

Or just hover over with steam iron and mound it with your fingers. As before push upwards.

@ConfusedParticle

Have worn the hat so can't return. It is often difficult to truly appreciate colour online, and i really thought the shade of blue was right for me, but it makes me look really washed out and depressed in real life! Lovely hat though, so very warm and luxurious.

Skirt is still slightly crinkled (or bubbled) about 4inches in from side seams. Now that it is completely dry I will iron again and see if it improves.
Thank you again for your help.

When I feel like a colour washes me out, I make sure I'm trying it on or wearing it with a bright lipstick. I often look tired but always wear a red lipstick and I look more alive. Try that xx

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

Make sure you steam it at the same time.

Wool is ‘mouldable’ with steam and heat. You should be able to mould it back into shape by pressing over a damp cloth and pressing upwards towards the stitches.

WIll try, thanks for all of your help in this thread, arse

Was having a mini crisis earlier, am a little more myself now!

As for the hat, pffft, i cant out a brooch on it as it is very light and slouchy. To be honest dyeing it would help but i do not trust myself doing that! shame as it is so light but warm, doesnt flatten my hair or make it greasy. t'is a pity.

Btw, tried skirt on, some more crinkles have fallen out, someone advised me to hang in a steamy room for a while - but not this evening we are having sea bass!
Am a touch more hopeful, and love it so much I will find a way to make it right. Sending it back would be a wound to my heart even though i am slightly miffed about the hem versus price.

The other thing is you can kind of beat it into shape with steam.

There’s special tools for doing this, that are sort of padded at the end. I can’t think of anything similar, but maybe you could make one out of an old hairbrush😁wrap padding round it and beat it into submission.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

The other thing is you can kind of beat it into shape with steam.

There’s special tools for doing this, that are sort of padded at the end. I can’t think of anything similar, but maybe you could make one out of an old hairbrush😁wrap padding round it and beat it into submission.

I can see me beating it at this rate! Living hem becomes....dying hem.....

Problem is the hem is so tiny, like half a cm. All the fabric above it is perfectly fine. Working into it will be difficult as i am not used to such things, but i could do with learning how to care for my clothes.

If the hat is washable and a natural fibre it will dye. Cotton or linen is best. To dye wash item then place in a bucket of water for at least 15min. Mix dylon dye with salt in a separate bucket and stir till salt has dissolved. Take hat out of water but do not wring, place in dye soaking wet and stir. Leave for recommended time stirring every five min, it will come out great I promise. If fibre is mixed email dylon ask if it will take the dye. Remember colours change depending on origin shade

I'd suggest take it to a dry cleaners, explain problem and they'll press it with their professional machine.
You have to steam/press a bias hem like that into shape, the wool will take it but getting wet will have made it "revert" to its original shape.

That's why tailored garments aren't generally washed.

This is the hat, so the pale part would be ok, the trim is charcoal which doesnt bother me. I imagine going darker might make the trim black? Oh bugger.
I got it in the black friday sale but still v expensive.
I dont usually take such wanton risks, it must be meno...

Thanks for the tip, i may look into that. Skirt is looking a lot better at the moment though, but since it is a living hem who knows what the fuck it will be doing tomorrow

Sadly the rain severely washed it, albeit very, very cold...

hat pic

Pink lipstick on and you'll look fine

I vote for dyeing the hat. Obs bearing in mind the original colour will affect the end result. I think it's this sort of thing which has meant I'm very reluctant to buy stuff that I haven't seen in a shop, and tried on. .

Cold water due on that hat or it will shrink.