Cashmere Care

What's the best way to wash and care for my cashmere clothing?

Looking after your cashmere clothing is very easy, but it does need to be done! We recommend that you clean your cashmere a minimum of every 2-3 wearings especially when it is new. This will also help to prevent dirt from becoming ingrained and settling into cuff areas and so on. Do not worry that washing your cashmere will spoil it as quality cashmere like ours really does improve after each wash. Washing and steam ironing will help the cashmere yarn to "bloom".

We recommend that you hand wash our cashmere, as this saves any mistakes being made and we think that being such a special fabric it should be treated with loving care.

You should wash your cashmere garment with warm or cool water, using a good quality soap product like Woolite or even a mild organic shampoo. You can leave it to soak for a while rather than rubbing it. If there is a dirty patch gently apply extra detergent into the area and leave to soak for a few minutes before rinsing. Do not wring your cashmere garment; simply hand squeeze the excess water out. Lay the garment out on a large towel, then roll it up and twist. Remove your garment and leave to dry on a flat surface or on a fresh, dry towel until thoroughly dried. Once dry you can iron it – ensure the iron setting is not too hot – steam is best. If any pills or bobbles have formed this is a good time to remove them by hand. Do not be alarmed as pills are easy to remove. They will tend to form in areas that are rubbed or are tightly fitting.

Cashmere clothes can also be dry-cleaned.

You can machine wash an ILC top if you are careful to turn it inside out, put it on a low temperature wool wash, on its own with the appropriate detergent, and preferably no spin, although a light spin is acceptable. If your garment has a zip please ensure it is done up before starting. Do not tumble dry, just lay flat to dry.

How can I keep cashmere looking new?

By keeping it clean (dirty cashmere is very attractive to moths!) and removing any small pills immediately. Please do NOT use a pilling comb on one of our garments - any pilling can be easily removed by hand only. If you own a moulting pet then sticky tape or a sticky lint roller will help remove the hairs. Remember to wash often!

How should I store my cashmere garments?

Cashmere should be neatly folded or a lightweight garment can be hung with a protective bag covering it. Try to avoid hanging heavy garments as you do not want them to go out of shape, and never hang by the neck tag!

Anything else?

Common sense should prevail when deciding what accessories to wear with your cashmere garment. If you wear a jumper over a belt with studs or a large buckle you should consider whether this may cause the fabric to rub into a hole.

Jewellery may be best put on after you have put on your cashmere, and taken off before you remove it. Contact with anything that has sharp or rough edges should be avoided when wearing your cashmere. The main thing to remember is that although cashmere is durable it is not indestructible!

If you damage your garment we strongly advise that you get small holes repaired before they become bigger. Most of I Love Cashmere's items come with some spare yarn which you should keep safe just in case.