Wool Care-Easier than you think!

One of the main downsides to wool is all of the care, right? The constant handwashing...what a pain!
I actually find my wool easier to care for than my PUL or vinyl covers as I only have to wash them once every 2 weeks. I wash my wool in rotations so that I never have all of it being washed at once. This would lead to all of it drying at once and then I would be out of covers! Not good.

I have used wool wash and have also made my own solution from lanolin and baby wash. Both work well, but of course I prefer the wool wash because it is easier. Lately I have been using Northern Essence wool wash in Pink Sugar scent, which is really yummy. I have also used Eucalan for the last couple of days and it is nice too.

For the wool wash, all you have to do is fill your kitchen sink with tepid water and then add a tablespoon or two of wool wash. Swish it around until the water looks cloudy. Then add your wool. Gently squeeze the wool to help it absorb the wash and then lay it out flat in the sink (not balled up). I usually wash 2-3 pieces at a time and I stick to washing the same shades together to avoid any dyes transferring or fluffy wool pieces getting stuck on another item that will really show and become a pain for me. Once the wool is in place, leave it for 30 minutes. Just walk away and do something else that you need to get done. Come back in about half an hour (don't worry if it's longer...I've forgot about wool overnight before!) with a thick towel. Lay the towel on the floor. Gently squeeze out your wool items and lay them on the towel. Roll the towel up, enclosing the wool in the roll. Gently squeeze the towel as you are rolling it. Unroll the towel and lay your wool out flat to dry. You can box, or shape, it at this point and smooth out any wrinkles. Leave to dry. Drying times depend on the wool. Thinner items like cashmere could dry in 24 hours. Heavier wools could take 48-72 hours. This is why I rotate my washing!

So, yes the drying process takes a while...but you really don't have to do much to launder your wool.

Edited June 16th....the past few times that I have washed wool I have actually skipped the towel step. I just take all of the soaking wet wool (in a bucket or large bowl) down to the washing machine. Then I put on the spin cycle until the water is out. This is so much more effective. I have been drying the wool outside on the deck and with summer heat, it has been drying in about 3 hours. (Longer for the aristocrats, but they are insanely thick!)


Making your own wool wash
You will need lanolin (lansinoh brand works just fine...yes the stuff for breastfeeding and nipple pain) and a mild cleanser like baby shampoo.
Put a small amount of lanolin in a baby food jar or small mason jar. (Small amount=about the size of 2 peas.) Add water into the jar. Stick in the microwave until hot. Be careful taking the jar out of the microwave as it will be very hot. Stir the water around to dissolve the lanolin fully. Add about a half teaspoon of baby shampoo and stir. Your water should look cloudy. Add to a sink of tepid water and swirl water around. You want the water to look cloudy and you don't want to see big clumps of lanolin or big oil patches in the water. If the water looks really oily you may need a little more shampoo to help break it up.
Now wash just as if you were using woolwash.


Eeek! The diaper leaked nasties onto the wool!
If your little one leaks out of the diaper and gets a mess on the wool, make sure to treat it as soon as the diaper change is over. Rinse the mess off with cool water as best you can. Then use a mild soap or wool wash bar (I've used liquid baby shampoo in a pinch) and wash that stain. Use enough pressure to get the soiled bits out, but remember that you do need to be gentle with wool. Wash as usual.
If you end up with a stain, don't fret too much...you can always sun it out later.