WASHING INSTRUCTIONS

WASHING WOOL

Wool is much more sensitive to heat than cotton, for example, and must be treated with care. This is why, despite advances in machine technology, it’s best to wash wool garments such as woollen jumpers by hand.

• Use a liquid detergent for delicates.
• Wash wool in lukewarm water by squeezing the garments through the water so the detergent reaches the areas it needs to. Leave the wool garment to soak for a while, for around ten minutes.
• When the wool garment is clean, rinse it in fresh, cold water. Continue doing this until all the detergent is gone.
• Now comes the crucial part. Wool mustn’t be hung up to dry, as this can cause the garment to lose its shape. Instead, roll it in a clean, dry towel and let the towel soak up as much water as possible. Then lay the wool garment out flat to dry.

WASHING DOWN JACKETS
 

A down jacket is a warm and comfortable choice in winter and all down jackets sold at Afound contain certified down. A down jacket doesn’t need to be washed too often – this removes the natural oils in the down – but when it does become necessary, there are a few tips and tricks that will help you achieve a successful result:

• Close all zips on the down jacket.
• Turn the jacket inside out.
• Do not use fabric conditioner. This may damage the down.
• Be economical with detergent and preferably use a liquid detergent.
• Wash the down jacket at 30 degrees and choose a wash programme with extra rinse. It’s important to get all detergent out of the down.
• Tumble dry at a low temperature, about 60 degrees, for a long time until completely dry. Take the jacket out and give it a shake from time to time.
• Tumble dry the down jacket with tennis balls and rubber shoes to prevent the down from clumping, making it fluffy. Use at least three tennis balls, but the more the better!

WASHING JEANS
 

Jeans are made from a durable material that doesn’t need washing very often. This causes unnecessary wear. If you want to freshen up your jeans without losing their fit, you can put them in the freezer overnight to kill the bacteria. When the time eventually comes to wash your jeans, it’s a good idea to do the following:

• Turn your jeans inside out before putting them in the machine. This helps protect the colour.
• Use a liquid detergent for colours and skip fabric conditioner, especially with stretch jeans. Fabric conditioner destroys the stretch.
• Wash jeans at a low temperature and skip the tumble dryer. The dryer increases wear on the fabric and causes the colour to fade. Instead, hang your jeans up to dry, but avoid direct sunlight, as that can bleach the fabric.

WASHING BABY CLOTHES
 

It can be a good idea to wash or rinse new baby clothes before use to reduce any chemical residue left over from the production of the garment. The same goes for cuddly toys, blankets and bedding. When washing baby clothes, it’s a good idea to:

• Wash baby clothes in fragrance-free detergent and skip fabric conditioner.
• Add detergent sparingly and run an extra rinse cycle.
• If the garments and cuddly animals allow it, wash them at 60 degrees to kill bacteria.
• For difficult stains, soak the garment first and then rub it with citric acid before putting it in the washing machine.
• Preferably dry baby clothes outdoors so that they become soft.

Washtips - wash smart and more sustainably 

Did you know that an average household in Sweden runs the washing machine four times a week? Most people wash their clothes at the exact temperature specified on the label, but this is not usually necessary. Many garments can be washed at a lower temperature, which consumes less energy and is more gentle on the environment. What's even better for the environment is to not wash at all. It’s also better for your fashion favorites. It’s the production of clothes itself that has the greatest impact on the environment. By taking care of your clothes properly and avoiding the washing machine as far as possible, clothes last longer, which saves both fashion and the environment.

Air your laundry and spot-treat stains 

Many garments do not need to be washed after one, or even several, uses. It’s really only underwear and socks that need to be washed frequently. T-shirts, shirts and dresses can instead be weathered out and stains can be spot-treated in different ways. This is dependent on the stain. Wine stains, coffee stains and fat stains all need slightly different treatments for removal, but in general you can use ordinary detergent or stain remover to spot-treat stains. 

Don’t (always) follow the washing symbols 

If the symbol says 40° it means that the garment can withstand a maximum of 40°, not that it must be washed at 40°. If you have garments that can withstand different temperatures, you can save energy if you fill up the machine to the maximum and wash everything at once at 30° or even 20°. However, this does not always apply. If you have some very tough stains (like blueberry stains or blood stains) that you have already spot treated but are still there, it’s better to be safe than sorry and wash it all at a higher temperature. We don't want to risk having to wash twice.

Sustainable detergent

As you know, there are a variety of detergents filling up the store shelves and sometimes it’s hard to know what to choose. The best option is to choose an eco-labeled detergent that is free of phosphates, chlorine, and chlorine compounds. These chemicals get flushed out with the rinsing water, and this has a bad impact on our waterways. The second thing to think about is how to choose the right detergent for your clothes.  
  
White laundry: Choose powder detergent for white laundry. It contains bleach which removes yellow stains and allows the clothes to retain their white color. If you wash white clothes with colour detergents they will eventually turn grey, which in all likelihood, will make you want to buy new, white clothes. 

Colour laundry: Choose a colour detergent without bleach that retains the colour of your clothes.   

Delicate fabrics: Silk and wool should be washed with fine detergent. The enzymes in ordinary detergent destroy the fibers in sensitive materials over time.  
Swap brands from time to time: The content of detergent may differ between brands. This makes them work well on different types of stains. By changing the brand every now and then you can get a cleaner and finer result in the long run.

Learn how to dose detergent

Modern washing machines adjust the amount of water according to the weight of the clothes and sometimes the machine even shows the weight. When you know the weight, it’s easy to measure detergent according to the packaging instructions. Otherwise, you can weigh the clothes yourself. If you don’t have access to a scale, it’s better to lay low on the dosing to avoid detergent stains. Most of the time, clothes can be cleaned without that much detergent. It’s also important to measure according to the instructions for soft or hard water. Soft water requires less detergent than hard water.

Skip the softener

Softener smells good and makes clothes feel all cuddly, we know, but it's actually not necessary at all. In fact, softener tears the textiles, closes the pores on functional garments, reduces the absorbency of towels, and increases the hazardous emissions in the environment. In other words, skip the softener.

Choose dryer before drying cabinet

Allowing the laundry to air dry, indoors or outdoors, is definitely the best choice – both for your garments and the environment. During winter, indoor air drying also keeps humidity at a good level. Unfortunately, it’s not possible for everyone (for example if you live in a small apartment) to let laundry air dry. In this situation, it's better to use a dryer than a drying cabinet. Dryers consume less electricity and can also generate heat for the household. It’s worth knowing though, that it takes five times as much energy to tumble dry a load in the dryer than it does to wash a load in the washing machine. In addition, clothes get worn out much quicker, and the most important way to be sustainable is to give clothes a long life.