How to wash a sheep wool blanket: is it possible in a washing machine, rules for hand washing, how to dry clean?

A sheepskin blanket has remained a popular bedding item for many years. It is light, warm and environmentally safe.

Once you buy it, you can use it for several decades. However, like any other thing, it tends to get dirty.

Read the article about whether and how to wash a sheep wool blanket, which detergent to choose and how not to spoil it during the drying process.

Can it be processed by machine or by hand?

Hand wash applies to quilted and full-woven sheep's wool items. This method of processing is the most gentle, so it will not harm the products.

However, hand-washing a massive blanket, which increases its weight 5 times after contact with water, is quite difficult. Therefore, a completely reasonable question arises about whether machine washing is permissible.

To answer this, you need to understand exactly what technology was used to make the blanket. Depending on this, the method of caring for the product will differ.

Quilted

With this sewing method, the wool base is placed in a fabric cover and stitched around the perimeter and in the center. This reliable method of fixation helps prevent the filler from clumping into a lump and prevents it from moving in one direction or another.

This sheepskin quilt is machine washable without worry. It will not deform and will not lose its original shape.

Whole woven

A full woven blanket can only be washed by hand. It is a homogeneous fabric made from sheep wool.

Before you start caring for the product, you need to read the information on the label .

The composition of the bedding is of fundamental importance. If it is pure wool, without the addition of synthetic fibers, then the product cannot be loaded into the washing machine.

Fur

When making fur products, pile is woven into a solid woven base. This gives the blanket a soft feel. It looks very attractive. However, such items cannot be washed either by hand or by machine.

They can only be cleaned dry . If you cannot cope with the task on your own, you can contact a dry cleaner.

Which blankets can be washed?

Before putting a natural blanket into the water, you should decide what type it is: closed, woven or fur. Each of these products has its own characteristics.

Closed or quilted are easy to care for, so they are most in demand. They consist of a woven cover and filler stitched together with it. This type of blanket can be refreshed in any way: machine washed, hand washed, or brushed.
The natural layer of a seamless product is not protected by anything, so it easily loses its appearance. This wool blanket is more demanding to care for than a quilted one. At home, gentle cleaning methods are suitable for it: hand wash or dry.
Open fur fabrics (especially double-sided ones) are the most demanding to care for. Natural wool pile does not tolerate water very well. It is best to take such blankets to the dry cleaner or use the dry cleaning method.

The best remedy

When choosing a detergent for machine or hand washing a sheep wool blanket, you need to pay attention to the following points:

Release form . The powder must be liquid. Such compositions “work well” in cool water, dissolve quickly and are thoroughly washed out of the fabric fibers. Their use helps prevent the formation of white streaks on the product.
Washing temperature . Choose those products that are activated in cool water (not higher than 30 degrees).
The presence of bleach in the composition . The gel should not contain aggressive components. It is better to give preference to classic care products for colored fabrics.

After the main wash, you can use fabric softener. It will add softness to the blanket and fluff up any clumped fibers.

Top 3 products for washing sheep wool blankets:

Gel Laska wool and silk.
This liquid powder is suitable for hand and machine wash. It contains no aggressive components. Surfactants, phosphonates and enzymes are responsible for cleansing. The cost of 1 liter of gel is about 250 rubles.
Balm Nordland for wool and silk. The product is used for hand and machine washing. It does not harm delicate natural fibers, giving them softness and a pleasant aroma. This biodegradable and hypoallergenic gel costs about 320 rubles per 0.75 liter bottle.
Fluff liquid for washing wool and delicate fabrics. There is a gel designed to care for colored and white items. The product is activated at a temperature of 30 degrees. The cost of a 0.75 liter bottle is 140 rubles.

Any of these detergents can be purchased at a retail store, in the household chemicals department.

Preparatory work

If you decide to wash your blanket yourself at home, you need to consider some rules and do a little preparation.

What not to do

These tips will help you save your product.

When washing in a machine, it is strictly undesirable to use balls that help clean things. In this case, they will only do harm.
It is also not recommended to wash items containing 100% wool. It would be better to use dry cleaning.
The product must not have holes. You need to sew up all the holes in advance, otherwise they will increase in the process.
The blanket should fill no more than 75% of the volume of the washing machine drum, taking into account the fact that it will become saturated with water and become heavier. Otherwise, you will ruin both the machine and the thing itself.
Small individual stains can be removed before washing. You can even do this with a sponge and dishwashing detergent. But usually the method of spot removal depends on the type of stain itself. If you skip this step, the dirt may become even stronger.

Which detergent to choose

The choice of washing substance should be treated with special attention. For wool products, you cannot use ordinary powders or gels.

Only specialized ones are suitable, which will have a gentle effect and will not destroy the fibers with numerous washes.

Almost all companies that produce detergents offer those intended for wool. Here are some of the best:

“Weasel.” It is made in the form of a gel, after washing it is completely washed off and leaves no traces. Can be used for both hand and machine washing;
Wool Care from Miele. Suitable for the most delicate woolen products, protects the material from pilling. The liquid product is effective even at low temperatures;
“Villus.” Helps maintain the shape of the blanket, does not stretch it and prevents the appearance of pilling;
AlmaWin. Organic product made from natural materials. Helps remove even the most stubborn stains that cannot be cleaned by hand. Does not damage fibers and is gentle on fabrics. Has many good reviews from customers.

Machine washable

Before you start washing a sheep's wool blanket, you need to correctly estimate its weight and size.

If it fits into the drum without any problems and does not take up more than 2/3 of the free space in it, and the maximum load of the machine is at least 6-7 kg, then you don’t have to worry about damage to the device.

Instructions for automatic washing of a sheep's wool blanket:

wash difficult stains by hand;
load the product into the drum of the washing machine;
pour liquid detergent into the compartment;
set the water temperature to 30 degrees, you can select the “Wool” or “Delicate Wash” mode;
turn off the spin and turn on the extra rinse function;
start the wash cycle;
after its completion, the blanket is allowed to drain in the bathroom and sent to dry.

You can machine wash a quilt, but before you put it in the drum, you need to make sure that the manufacturer allows this type of treatment.

To wash or not to wash?

As it is used, dust settles on this bedding and human sweat is absorbed into the blanket, so sooner or later the wool product will need to be washed. All such blankets look different, all because they are made using different technologies. And the ability of the blanket to withstand washing will depend on what processing and sewing method was used.

The following types of blankets are made from sheep wool:

quilted - in such blankets, a wool canvas is placed in a fabric cover, and then stitched with a special stitch over the entire surface of the blanket. This method of sewing prevents the wool from bunching up. Therefore, manufacturers allow washing not only by hand, but also in a machine;
whole-woven blankets are blankets that are a single piece of fabric that is quite durable, but not thick. It is recommended to clean whole-woven blankets and, in extreme cases, wash them by hand;
fur blankets are those in which sheep wool fibers are attached to one or both sides of the fabric, which makes it voluminous and attractively fluffy. It is prohibited to wash such blankets, but you can dry clean them.

Manual processing

Hand washing is the only possible way to care for a one-piece sheep's wool product. This process is carried out in the bathroom, since finding another container that would fit in size is quite problematic.

Step-by-step algorithm of actions:

fill the bath with water, it should be cool;
dissolve detergent in it;
soak the product for 30-90 minutes, it all depends on the degree of contamination;
difficult areas can be additionally washed by hand;
work through the entire blanket with your hands;
Change the water several times to rinse the powder thoroughly;
Additionally, you can pour it on the blanket from the shower;
leave the product in the bathroom until the water drains from it - to speed up this process, you need to turn it over several times.

Do not rub, twist or wring out the blanket too much, so as not to provoke its deformation.

Dry cleaning

Fur items cannot be washed. They do not tolerate contact with water, so to care for them you can resort to the dry cleaning method.

To do this, you need to purchase a special product with lanolin, for example, Luxus Professional Carpet Cleaner spray (cost - about 150 rubles per 0.5 liter).

Despite the fact that the composition is used for caring for carpets, it does an excellent job of removing stains on a sheep's wool blanket.

Mode of application:

Vacuum the product.
Distribute the composition evenly over it. If the blanket is very large, then it is more convenient to process it in square meters.
Rub the surface of the blanket with a damp sponge to create foam. Wait until it is completely absorbed.
Leave the product to dry for 3 hours. It must remain unfolded.
Vacuum the entire treated surface.
Hang bedding in fresh air.

This way you can quickly and safely clean your fur blanket without resorting to dry cleaning.

If you just need to refresh the blanket and remove the unpleasant odor from it, you can sprinkle it with starch and leave it for a day. Then the product must be vacuumed or thoroughly knocked out.

General approaches

Today on the bedding market you can find many blankets with a wide variety of fillings - wool, padding polyester, holofiber, down, cotton wool. They all have different properties and belong to different price categories. The buyer chooses what he needs according to the season, thickness, and other individual requirements that correspond to his budget and health status (presence of allergies). Before you start washing, you need to know the composition of the filler, which is usually indicated on the label.

Read about: how to wash tulle so that it is white.

There, the manufacturer must also indicate recommendations for care - washability, temperature conditions and other features. If dry cleaning is indicated as the only possible method of cleaning, you cannot wash it yourself, but must take it to a specialized institution.

On a note

If the blanket is not very dirty, but there are some stains on it, they can be washed. To do this, dilute a liquid detergent for washing woolen fabrics in warm water and whip up a rich foam. Apply it to the stains and leave for ten minutes, then wipe with a damp cloth.

Heavier stains can only be removed by washing.

How to remove difficult stains?

If stains appear on the product, but in general it does not need to be washed, you can remove them using safe means at hand, including:

Laundry soap solution . It is grated and diluted with water until a thick paste is obtained. To enhance the effect, you can add a small amount of shampoo. The resulting composition is applied to the stain and left for 30 minutes.
Salt, soda and liquid soap . All components are mixed in equal proportions and applied to the stain for 1 hour.
Ammonia . A cotton pad is moistened with it and the stain is treated until it disappears completely.
Turpentine. It is used by analogy with ammonia.
Lemon juice . Use it only to remove stains from white or light-colored items. The juice is applied to the stain and left to act for 30 minutes.

Regardless of which composition was chosen for washing, after exposure it must be washed off with clean water. Do not leave the substance on the fur.

How to properly wash a wool coat?

Wool coats should be washed separately from other items. The mode for woolen items is set (with a temperature of no more than 30-40°C and the lowest spin speed). The additionally washed woolen item is not wrung out, but is carefully removed from the machine and hung on hangers so as to allow the water to drain.

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How to dry it after?

After washing, you need to dry the blanket properly. This process requires certain knowledge:

The product should be dried only after all the water has completely drained;
it is laid out on a flat surface with a terry towel placed underneath; it needs to be changed as it gets wet;
during the drying process, the product is turned over several times;
when the bulk of the water has evaporated, the blanket can be hung on a rope to dry it;
Do not place it near heat sources, near a radiator or gas stove.

If after drying the bedding has lost its shape, you need to shake it several times and beat it with your hands.

How to dry a blanket correctly

Some effective tips for drying wool:

must be dried on a horizontal surface;
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turn the canvas over while the moisture is evaporating;
choose clear and dry days for washing so that you can quickly dry the fabric outside;
do not dry the bedspreads on a radiator, over gas, or in direct sunlight - this will ruin the wool;
hang a blanket on a rope only in a semi-dry state, when the risk of deformation is minimized.

Attention! Under no circumstances should wool blankets be ironed. But preventative steaming and airing are good ways to keep the bedspread fresh.

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Helpful information

Tips that may be useful to all owners of a sheep's wool blanket:

If you don’t have washing gel on hand, you can use hair shampoo, which needs to be thoroughly lathered. It can only be used for hand washing.
It is difficult to wash a double wool blanket alone. You need to involve someone from your household in this activity.
Difficult stains should not be attempted to be scrubbed off with a rough brush. To care for the product, use a soft foam sponge or your own hands.
Before you start cleaning your blanket with a new detergent, you should test it on an inconspicuous area of the fabric.

Types of sheep wool blankets

Today, the assortment of such products on store windows is quite large. In order to understand whether they can be washed, let's first understand the terminology. Depending on the method of making the blankets are called:

Closed - in them, specially treated sheep wool is sewn into a cover and quilted for better fixation. The finished product is essentially three-layer (fabric-wool-fabric). But based on the type of stitches, closed blankets, in turn, can also be called:

Sewn in the traditional way - that is, with stitching done in one direction.
Karosteps - with patterned quilting. It is believed that the wool in them is better fixed and “walks” less.
Cassette blankets are quilted in the form of separate sections (cassettes), which are squares with sides from 10 to 15 cm. Among quilted products, this type is considered the most wear-resistant and low-deformable.

Open type. There are also several types of these:

Solid woven, that is, without a cover. These include lightweight blankets and more substantial double-sided wool blankets.
Fur - they are made using natural sheepskin.