Reading the label

How to care for it

Natural fibers last longer than synthetics and need less washing, not more. Most of what shortens their life is cleaning they did not need, the heat, agitation and solvents that strip the oils the fiber came with. The habit that matters most is airing a piece overnight instead of washing it, which handles smell and most creasing on its own.

Below, the short version for every fiber we carry. The longer version lives on each fiber's own page.

Most pieces: Air, not wash
Knitwear: Hand wash cool, dry flat
Dry clean: As rarely as you can

Wool and cashmere

Air after wearing. Wool resists odour and recovers its shape on a hanger or folded overnight.
Hand wash cool in a wool detergent, press the water out in a towel, never wring, and dry flat in shape. Three or four washes a season is plenty for a sweater worn weekly.
Dry clean coats and tailoring two or three times a season at most. The solvents dry the fiber out.
Fold knitwear. A hanger stretches the shoulders. Store clean, with cedar, since moths go for the soiled spots first.
Pilling is short fibers working loose. A sweater comb or a careful razor removes it, and it settles after the first months.

Silk

Washed, sandwashed and crepe silks. Hand wash cool with a silk or gentle detergent, no soaking, roll in a towel, hang to dry out of the sun.
Satin, charmeuse and anything structured or lined. Dry clean, and price that in before you buy.
Iron on low, on the reverse, while still slightly damp. Steam is kinder than an iron.
Never spot clean with water; it leaves a ring on satin. Treat the whole piece or hand it over.

Cotton

Machine wash cool or warm, inside out. Cotton takes a wash well; it is heat in the dryer that shrinks and fades it.
Line dry or tumble low and take it out damp. Shirts iron best from damp.
Expect three to five percent shrinkage on the first wash of an unwashed cotton, less on a garment dyed and washed at the factory.
Whites can take a hot wash occasionally. Colours cannot.

Linen

Machine wash cool to warm. Linen gets softer with every wash and is stronger wet than dry, the opposite of viscose.
Hang or lie flat to dry; the dryer sets creases and weakens the fiber over time.
Iron hot while damp if you want it crisp. Or do not iron at all. Both are correct.
Store folded loosely. Linen creases along a sharp fold and can eventually crack there.

Leather, suede and shearling

Do not wash. Brush suede with a suede brush, wipe leather with a barely damp cloth, and let shearling air.
Dry wet pieces slowly at room temperature, away from heat, on a wide hanger. Heat hardens leather for good.
Condition smooth leather once a year. Protect suede with a spray before its first wear, and expect it to darken where you touch it.
A specialist cleaner, not a dry cleaner, when it really needs it.

Viscose, modal and lyocell

Wash cool and gently, in a bag. Viscose is weak and stretchy when wet. Modal and lyocell are tougher and take a normal machine wash.
Reshape damp and dry flat. Hanging wet viscose is how a dress grows a size.
Iron low on the reverse. It scorches.

If in doubt, air it. The wash you skip is the one that would have shortened its life.