Washing pure wool--a revelation

I don't mind hand washing, as after I've spent weeks knitting something and paid for expensive yarn (I do splash out, as it's my hobby as well as a jumper) spending 10 minutes with my hands in a sink isn't much of a sacrifice. Also, I have a lot of jumpers, as there is always one on the needles, so each one only gets washed once in a while. I tend to have a washathon in the Spring when the thick ones are ready to be retired for the Summer and again in the Autumn when the thin ones go away in their turn. On those days, I clear the decks, the heated airer is on all day (it holds three at a time) and every radiator has at least one jumper drying on it.

I once put my daughter's new hand knitted dress in the washing machine.
It was ruined and completely unwearable .

I lived for years without a washing machine - so I think that I'm just used to hand washing .

It's usually a dress and perhaps a jumper or cardigan a day -depends .

I've just put some tea stained linen in the washing machine for the third time and that really infuriates me !

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M0nica

As I read this I am looking at a beautiful wool sweater, bought this autumn, which I washed with great care - and which has shrunk. The body and arms have stretched back to size with some careful pulling, but the neck is a separate piece, sewn on very tightly with chain stitch. It was always tight, Now it is completely impossible to get over my head.

I intend to remove this piece and think of a way of fixing it back on with more 'give' in it. Grrrr.

Try sewing it back on with shirring elastic.

I have made cakes from my first washed skeins of pure cashmere, had to be very careful loading them onto my swift. Not enough for a jumper but have started a lovely shawl. I will give it a wool machine wash when it is finished, I think it will bloom even more

Monica I have made a jumper with an unfinished neck which rolled over on itself. I would be inclined to unpick some neck rows but beware of that if it has been knitted top down

'If a wooly won't wash in the washing machine it's no use to me' has been my mantra for years - always cool minimum wash and spin - usually emerging unscathed including matching Icelandic jerseys DH and I had for many years ala Howard and Hilda - £5 in a charity shop in the 70's! Now a felter even the occasional disaster meets a new life as fingerless mittens, hats or needle felting projects.

Starrynight49, karmalady I was out today looking for some compatible wool to pick up stitches on the sweater neck and knit a new neckline, but couldn't find any.

i will leave it a bit and just keep looking.

The idea of sewing on with shirring elastic is brilliant and will be remembered, but the problem is that the bit of knitting that forms the neck is completely unstretchable, so even if resewn with strtechable thread, the band itself won't stretch.

I am going to see if I can unravel it, but I am not hopeful as I think the way it was sewn on may mean I have severed the wool at the start or finish of many of the rows when detaching it from the rest of the sweater.