From alpaca scarves to baby alpaca throws to your cosiest pair of knitted socks, our winter woollies have done a great job keeping us comfortable, cosy, and stylish during the autumn and winter months.
While the warming weather means the time has come to hang up our winter warmers, making sure they are safely stowed away will ensure that they’re ready to be worn again when the cooler weather returns.
The Global Wardrobe Study revealed that wool items are kept for the longest. But they can be kept even longer by storing garments correctly when not in use during the summer. If you’re yet to pack up your woollies, check out the following storage tips and make sure your treasured wool items are kept in the best possible shape.
Keep it clean
You don’t want to store away dirty clothing so for a fuss-free transition into autumn and winter make sure that the items that need a good wash get one.
Taking care of wool is easier than you think. We teamed up with Steamery to make sure you have the cleaning products you need to keep your wool items in tip-top condition. Their Delicate Wash is a great choice for taking care of delicate wool items. This product rehydrates wool fibres to leave them softer and more nourished than ever.
Avoid using your usual, enzyme-based detergent to clean wool items before they go into storage. These enzymes break down the proteins that form a vital part of wool fibres and can leave woollies shapeless and dull.
Invest in some wool storage bags
Wool items aren’t the most compact items to store but with some handy vacuum bags, you can protect your clothes and free up space in your wardrobe in one fell swoop.
Not all wool items can be vacuum-packed, however. Delicate wool items can trap moisture when stored in vacuum bags due to their airtight nature. But this problem is easily solved. Silica crystals can be added to the vacuum bags with your delicate wool garments to absorb excess moisture and lock away odours.
Alternatively, cloth or wool storage bags provide breathable storage. It is however recommended that you wrap garments in tissue paper to prevent discolouration and snagging.
Go natural with your mothballs
Mothballs have provided a way to keep the moths, silverfish and beetles that love munching on wool at bay for as long as we can remember. But with their distinctive, difficult to remove and unpleasant odour, mothballs aren’t the best solution.
As Woodlure explains going au naturel will repel troublesome critters and leave garments smelling great when in storage:
“Cedar shoe trees, hangers, blocks, balls and sachets play a vital role in protecting fine shoes and clothing. Aromatic cedar helps to repel moths and other insects and, because we don’t coat our cedar with varnishes or lacquers, our all-natural shoe trees absorb moisture from footwear. Aromatic cedar also deodorizes with its naturally fresh scent!”
As well as unlocking the wonders of cedar in storage, cedar hangers, blocks and balls can be used in your wardrobe to absorb moisture produced by daily wear. They should, however, be avoided when storing leather items as they dry these fibres out.
Fold, don’t hang
Whether you’re wearing your woollies this season or next, it’s a cardinal sin to hang wool garments. To make sure your woollies keep their shape, always fold them.
Don’t have a lot of room to play with in your wardrobe? Try decluttering guru Marie Kondo’s folding and rolling technique to save space and keep your woollies in great nick.
Renew your wool
If the worst has come to the worst and you have to replace your wool, don’t worry – So Cosy offer the highest-quality, longest-lasting wool products around! From charming woolly socks to luxury pure wool blankets and throws, we offer everything you need to keep warm, cosy and comfortable not just for this winter, but for many more to come!