Aftercare for your Wool, looking after your fibre. : eBay Guides

In raw fibre, yarn or finished garment form Wool is a very delicate product to look after. Here are some of my top tips for looking after your wool;

Fibre/rovings/tops/felt form
- Store away from direct sunlight, as colours will bleach.
- Store in paper bagging if you intend to hold your fibre for some time. The paper will allow the fibre to breathe. It is also a good idea if you do intend to store for a length of time to leave some of the natural lanoline on the fibre. Otherwise when you return your fibre maybe too dry and brittle to use. It is importnat to mention that you can hold fibre in plastic bags, but do make sure to pop a few hols in it or to fold over the top without sealing as air tight.
- Separate your fibres. It is always worth keeping different fibres in different containers, for example don't keep angora next to your Merino. When you come back to the bag you will find that the fine Angora has shedded itself alover your neat balls of Merino fibre, making them inpossible to use defluff.
- Think about the form you bought your fibre in when storing. Fibre in batt form is very delicate so should be stored carfully, flat or lightly folded. rovings and tops can be easily rolled into light ball shapes and fabric felt should be stored flat to avoid creasing which may effect your work.
- Store away from Moths and in a cool temperature.
- wash gently by hand in luke warm water, but do not agitate the fibres to avoid felting.
- Avoid washing fibres with acidic based soaps and detergents, these will strip colours to varying degrees and are particularly noticeable on stronger, darker colours. Always use the mildest of detergents and soaps.
- Dry flat and ideally on a drying rack, to allow air to circulate and dry the fibres.

These tips should keep your fibre looking and feeling good for a longer period of time, before and after you come to spin or felt with it.

Yarn
Most of the above will able to 100% Wool in yarn form too, so do think about your final projects and how they maybe effected, especially if you intend to sell them. I would also suggest;
-  skeining or winding your yarn into balls. This will avoid tangling and breaking the most delicate spun yarn gauges while you start to knit/crochet or weave.
- If you do intend to skien your yarn, don't over pul it and be careful to loosely tie the yarn in four places. This will avoid tangling.

Cared for wool yarn is a joy to work with and can be kept for a number of years in yarn form if stored correctly.

Garments
Again most of the above principles apply here too, washing on cool washes (ideally hand wash) to avoid felting or shrinking, wash with mild detergents and no conditioners, dry flat so as to avoid stretching and store away from sunlight, moths and in cooler temperatures. However, my main tips here are;
- Follow washing instructions to the letter. In some cases Wool garments can be dry cleaned, so it is always worth checking. It is also true that most wool garments should not be tumbled dry, so check if your garment is 100% wool before you throw it in the machine. Heat and moisture will felt and shrink the wool.
- Don't store your garments in direct contact with moth balls, or perfumed sachets, as these may destroy the wool fibre over time. However, they can of course be close by.
- I recommend most wool knitted garments be stored folded flat in a draw. Hangers can stretch necklines and shoulders.
These steps should give your favourite wool garment a much longer life.

I hope this helps?
Sara.
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Saras-Texture-Crafts