The complete care guide: how to keep your cashmere beautiful for years

Cashmere doesn’t want to be washed often. Airing it out is usually enough — wash only when it is really necessary. And when you do, do it so the piece comes out softer than before, not smaller.

How often to wash?

Less often than you think. Cashmere hardly takes on odors and lets them go overnight. A day of airing between two days of wear — over a chair, not on a hanger — replaces most washes. A sweater worn under a blazer needs one wash a season; a scarf often none at all.

A stain is no reason for a full wash: dab at once with cold water, don’t rub.

Washing — by hand

Hand wash in cold water with a wool detergent. Let the piece soak briefly, press gently, never rub or wring. Then rinse until the water runs clear. The whole thing takes five minutes; the soak no more than ten — longer doesn’t make the fiber cleaner, only softer, and then it loses its shape.

Or in the machine?

That works, with four rules. Wool cycle at 30 °C at most. Wool detergent, not regular detergent. Drum only half full, the piece in a laundry bag or inside out, and nothing with a zip or Velcro alongside. Spin low or off — 400 revolutions are enough to release the water without pulling the stitches.

A word on detergent: regular detergents contain enzymes that break down protein. Cashmere is a protein fiber. Wool detergent does without them. And fabric softener lays a film over the fiber and takes away exactly the handle you bought it for.

Drying

Press the water out carefully, roll the piece in a towel and dry it flat — on a dry towel, pulled into shape, sleeves straight. Never on a hanger, never on the radiator, never in the dryer. On a hanger the wet weight stretches the shoulders; on the radiator the fiber turns brittle. That way it keeps its shape. After a day it is dry.

Ironing?

Mostly unnecessary; creases fall out overnight. If you must: steam from above, without setting the iron down. That lifts the fine hairs back up and the piece looks like day one. Never hot and never with pressure — the surface goes shiny and flat.

Storing

Folded in the wardrobe, not hanging. Over weeks a hanger pulls shoulder bumps into any knit, however good.

For the summer break: store it clean — moths go for worn pieces, not washed ones. In a cotton bag with cedar wood or lavender. Airtight plastic bags make the fiber brittle; mothballs smell until October.

Creases and bobbles

Creases fall out overnight. Little bobbles are normal with pure cashmere and come off gently with a cashmere comb — flat on the table, in one direction, without pressure. Why pilling forms and fades again.

If something does happen

A pulled thread: don’t cut it and don’t pull it. Work it through to the inside with a blunt needle and gently ease the knit around it back into shape. A hole: darning is almost invisible on cashmere — with matching yarn it’s ten minutes of work that carries the piece for years.

In short

• Air instead of wash — a day’s rest between two days of wear
• Washing: cold by hand or wool cycle at 30 °C, wool detergent, no softener
• Drying: roll in a towel, flat, pulled into shape
• Ironing: steam from above only
• Storing: folded; in summer, clean, in a cotton bag with cedar
• Bobbles: cashmere comb, no razors

The same goes for the brushed merino-cashmere line — plus the option of professional cleaning on a gentle program. The care instructions are on every product page.