Did you know that a wool sweater can't go into a clothes drier?

[catmandu57]

Apparantly the marshmallow woman didn't, so when she said I'm going to wash your sweater I didn't think anything of it.
It was only when I went through the spare bedroom where the clothes drier is and found it running that the words "Oh shit" escaped my lips.
Sure enough, when I opened the door, there was my sweater. Only now, it will fit my six year old nephew. I don't want to give this one away does anyone know of a way of restoring it?

[curse10]

1. soak it in cold water and hair conditioner

it might help. Then slowly stretch it into place.

[latebloomer]

2. Pray tell

Who is the marshmallow woman?

[catmandu57]

5. Marshmallow is my loving wife

she has shared much of her life with me, and is the only woman I care to be with. Hopefully, after I soak this sweater it'll come back.

[neebob]

3. Yes, I knew this

having once removed a tiny wool sweater from the dryer. I thought about getting it wet again and stretching it back out, but it was so tightly shrunk I didn't think it would work.

[RebelOne]

4. Usually, nothing will restore it to its original shape.

I'd suggest giving it to your nephew. Though, maybe you could take it to a dry cleaner and they could restore it.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

6. hair conditioner....may work...it restored my winter woolen thong

[A HERETIC I AM]

15. Hmmmmmmmmm....why do i find the idea of a....

"Winter Woolen Thong" so intriguing?

The entire concept just has so many ........well....."Avenues" or "Slots for thought" so to speak

not to metion the "Scratchiness Factor"

as well as the "Over Usage of Quotes and Caps"

[seventhson]

7. My significant other who worked in a costume shop says:

Cold water - wet it

Stretch it and pin it to a board (this is called "blocking it") so it will dry to the size you want it. The same wool is there. It just tightened up and needs to be stretched back out.

She says this may work.

Let us know

[Robb]

8. Note on this method:

Use a LOT of pins. Otherwise the sweater has these interesting pointy things on the sleeves. ;)

[A HERETIC I AM]

16. Hmmmmmmmm... Why do i find the idea of .....

"Pointy things on sleeves" so interesting?

SHUT UP! WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT UP!

why?
BECAUSE YOU ARE A MORON
no i am not
YES YOU ARE! THESE PEOPLE ARENT INTERESTED IN YOUR INSIPID SILLINESS
are you sure?
YES!
damn

[catmandu57]

12. I'm going to try the soaking

being cheap and not wanting to spend money on it, but, I think it's probablly going to the cleaners. Oddly enough, the arms look okay, it's the body that shrank.

[jpgray]

24. seventhson speaks the truth (nt)

[AlienGirl]

26. According to my grandma's Depression cookbook/household hints book...

Boil it in water with a cup of white vinegar, then stretch it as it dries.

During the Depression they probably had to figure stuff like this out a lot!

Tucker

[populistmom]

9. My husband

He has shrank more clothes of mine than you could think possible in the past 13 years. If it's wool or silk or rayon, he's put it in the dryer. The thing is that I do about 90% of the laundry, but he still manages to "forget" everytime something like that is in there if I don't give specific instructions. And when I give the instructions, I'm being a controlling because he "already knows". :grr:

[catmandu57]

21. So what did you do with the offended clothing?

Is there first aid or is was it all a lost cause?

[populistmom]

29. I used to give it to my daughter

Now, since she's only a couple sizes smaller and almost as tall, I donate tem or get rid of them. Until I saw some of these, I never knew there was a cure.

[LynneSin]

10. Actually it's the washer that's the problem with wool

I put my wool sweaters in the dryer all the time. But I'm usually using those Dryel sheets that you can use to clean 'dry clean' only stuff like wool sweaters.

[philosophie_en_rose]

11. Yup, unfortunately.

My roommate accidentally laundered my favorite sweater - twice. The first time, it shrank, but not so much that it couldn't be soaked and stretched.

The second time it was in for so long that it became "crunchy." The wool was very brittle sounding when stretched and wouldn't go back to its original shape.

[Deb]

13. What worked for me this year

Take the dry sweater and spray a whole bottle of Ez-Care Wrinkle Reducer on it. The stuff comes in a clear spray bottle in the fabric softener section of the store.

Take care not to stretch it too much, it really relaxes the fibers. Lay it flat on a towel to dry.

After it is dry, wash it again and use wrinkle reducer Downy fabric softener in the rinse. Shape and dry the sweater like nothing ever happened.

My sweater is an Irish cable knit, not sure how it will work on a sweater that started very close knit. Good luck!

[Cleita]

14. Maybe you need to get a new sweater and

this time wash it yourself.

[catmandu57]

20. Well I had in the past

I was on DU and didn't think anything about her washing it,I mean she thought she was doing something good for me, and I couldn't say no, I just thought she knew not to throw it in the drier.

[A HERETIC I AM]

17. one thing to remember about wet wool...

you never saw a sheep shrink in the rain, did you?

Of course, you never saw a sheep lay on the ground and have it's fellow sheep stretch it out and use lots of pins on it, either.

Just a thought

from the nether regions

[catmandu57]

19. Yeah that's what I wondered about

I've never seen a shrunken sheep.

[jmowreader]

22. You never saw a sheep get put in the dryer either

It's not the wetting. It's the high heat.

[A HERETIC I AM]

23. What about a desert dwelling sheep after a rainstorm?

hmmmmmmmmm?


didnt think of that, didja?

[Logansquare]

28. that's w;hy they all moved to Scotland

no shrinking

[ScreamingMeemie]

30. No...but that would be Cool!

:)

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

18. A Tardis?

[gator_in_Ontario]

25. Now at least

your hamster has a sweater! Gotta look at the bright side, yanno!

[Lostmessage]

27. You can magically change an adult sweater into a kids sweater

It can go into the dyer but when it comes out it's a quarter of the size that it was when it went in.