If you need to wash your cushion covers then simply unbutton, remove the inner, and follow these steps:
Washing
Fill a bowl with warm water (no hotter than 30’c or the wool will felt).
Add a wool/silk detergent, it’s a good idea to do this after you’ve run the tap, this will prevent big bubbles from forming and will be easier to rinse out afterwards 😉
Take your cushion covers and gently place in the soapy solution.
Leave to soak for a while and come back and check (after an hour or so).
Drain the soapy water and replace with lukewarm water and a splosh of distilled vinegar. The vinegar will remove any soap and also restore the wool back to its preferred pH (slightly acidic). Repeat the vinegary rinse two or three times until there are no more soap suds.
Alternatively, if you have a delicate wool cycle on your washing machine then you can machine wash your cushion covers quite happily, (at no more than 30’c, using a wool detergent and vinegar as a rinse.)
Drying
Remove the cushion covers, gently roll to squeeze out excess water and lay flat to dry.
Once dry, gently run your fingers through the locks to fluff up, if you like you can gently brush out using a small carder or just leave for a natural look. To see how I brush out click here
Ironing
To iron the cotton/linen backs, take a towel and fold it up so that it fits inside the cushion cover making sure to go right into the corners. Now you can iron away happily.
Your cushion covers will be as good as new! 😊
Did you know?
Did you know that wool should never be washed in regular laundry detergent? This is because it is too alkaline for wool and over time will cause fibres to break. Wool likes to be washed in a detergent with a low pH (on the acid side) which is why there are special detergents for wool.
Did you know that fabric conditioners are really bad for wool? This is because fabric conditioners are designed to remove the static from synthetic fibres. Wool is a natural fibre and does not produce static, but more importantly, wool fibres will absorb fabric conditioner which will then make it hard for the fibres to “breathe”. For a simple wool rinse, pop a cup of vinegar in your final rinse water, (or in your machine detergent drawer), this will remove any soap residue and keep the wool fibres happy and bouncy.
Did you know that moths are repelled by lavender, tea tree and cedar wool oil? Pop a couple of drops of your preferred oil into your vinegar rinse and the moths will stay away.
