How to Un-Shrink a Wool Sweater

How to unshrink a wool sweater. Your favorite sweater wound up in the dryer and is now only fit for a four-year-old? Fix it fast by doing the following.

You will need: Hair conditioner, a flat surface, and two towels.

Step one: Fill your bathroom sink with lukewarm water and 1/3 cup hair conditioner.

Step two: Add the sweater and let it soak for about 10 minutes to unlock the wool fibers.

Step three: Let the water drain, but don't rinse out the sweater. When the sink is empty, gently press the sweater against the basin to remove any excess water. Do not wring it.

Step four: Lay the sweater out flat on an absorbent towel. Put another towel on top of it and press down on it hard to blot out as much water as you can. You can roll the sweater in a towel to remove excess water, as long as you straighten it out again quickly.

Step five: Stretch the sweater back into its original dimensions, known as blocking. This process pulls the unlocked wool fibers away from each other and back into the desired shape.

Step six: Allow it to air dry. Next time you wash it, keep it out of the dryer.

Did you know? Wool is both fire-resistant and, fiber-for-fiber, stronger than steel.

[VladQuake]

I love how confused and mesmerized the man is during the whole process.

[chriskearney]

I've used this method on three sweaters now, worked in all cases but the extent of the stretch was largely dependent on the type of knit. But all in all, it's a winner.

[bricology]

A few things I might add:

1. When you add the hair conditioner to the water in the sink, try to disperse / dissolve it as much as possible; don't just leave it in one glop before adding the sweater. It probably won't completely dissolve, but do what you can. And if you can find a hair conditioner that has lanolin in it, that's ideal.

2. If you're going to pull the sleeves of the re-wetted sweater to bring them back to their former length, use one hand to grip tightly around the sleeve as close as you can get to the armpit, and the other hand doing the same at the cuff (with a grip like you'd use on a baseball bat), and *gently* but steadily pull. If you just yank on the sleeve with the other end gripped at the neck or shoulder, it will distort the entire sweater.

3. Unless you really want to have a wet bed, DON'T put the towel on the bed and then add a sopping-wet sweater! Put the towel (or better yet, a few of them, stacked) on a non-porous surface like a bathroom floor before trying to press out water. And it's often helpful to replace towels once they get saturated, with dry towels, and keep pressing to remove water.

4. DON'T leave your sweater in the sunlight to dry (as shown here), or on a heater, or anywhere else that's warm; it will just make it shrink again.

[stephenlacey]

This worked a treat on a favourite jumper. Not sure if its recommended but I did the stretching stage by putting it on while it was still wet. I could stretch it then in all the right places,

[GreenWyverex]

Thank you! This helped us fix a Christmas gift, didn't see it was wool until it was too late. Looks new again!

[natash]

Thank you SO much! I didn’t even know this was possible, so glad I found this before actually donating my lovely sweater to a 4 y.o - which I kind of ended up doing once years ago when this similarly happened with a dress 😂 Very grateful for the tip 🙌

[marilynwentling]

Thank you for keeping this "short & sweet" ans very informative!!

[asmrairhorn]

It worked! Worked less for the bulkier sweater I have that has an intricate pattern, but totally worked for this thinner all-one-color sweater I had found at goodwill. Thank you!

[imanigrace]

Omg I cant believe this actually work!! Thank you so much!! And to think I was about to throw away one of my favorite sweaters❤️

[fishes_fishes]

I wasn't actually expecting this to work but it did. Thank you so, so much

[tonym]

Thank you I'm just trying this after a nearly new lambs wool jumper came out shrunk from the machine washed at the specified temperature.

[alic]

this worked well with Loreal coconut conditioner about half a tube though. My beloved Boden Rosemary sweater is almost saved.

[skelhorne]

will this work with lamps wool? it specifically says do not soak. im a bit scared i dont want it to shrink any more than it is

[vardellsfolly]

A question, if i may. Shall i use the laundry machine to wash it, or i must wash it by hand? Also, is it possible to increase the length of the sleeves?

[belavarplaniie]

Drying it is the problem. Unless it's the middle of Summer, 67 degrees in the 'saving money on utilities' home won't work. It stays soggy damp for days on end.

[stormcastaway]

I'm trying out this method to see if it works I'll tell you if it works

[leoortega]

Followed these steps and it made holes in the armpit area of my wool sweater :(

[sukira]

Wait...if wool is fire resistant...why in minecraft...?
>~<

[maureendaly]

I’m sorry to say my sweater is still shrunk after following all the advice .

[MrUnknownName]

It's almost comedy actors and actresses. 😂