Wash ‘n GoBy Abby Gardner
October 15, 2008
Beauty Junkie recognizes that this is indeed the time of year when one must ask the question, “How ever do I wash my cashmere?” The dry cleaner is the typical route, bien sûr. But actually, ’tis better to wash those soft treasures–you just have to do it right. Enter The Laundress New York (known for their high-end, eco-friendly clothing care products) and J.Crew who have created the new J.Crew Cashmere Wash to meet your needs. It’s pH balanced with coconut-based surfactants and works for hand-washing and the machine. Plus, it includes lavender extracts which naturally repel moths for those switch-the-closet-over months. Even better? It’s only $18. Get your own at select stores, the J.Crew Collection Store at 347 Madison Avenue and 79th St., or www.jcrew.com.
I have to admit that although I am surprised to see this new product line extension from J.Crew, it does make sense. After all, one of their staple offerings is their cashmere sweaters.
P.S. The cashmere wash is not yet available online. However, J.Crew's Ulitmate Cashmere Care Kit (Item 83762, $15.00 ) is available.
What are your thoughts about the J.Crew Cashmere Wash? Do you think this is a strategic product offering? Will you purchase it? How do you care for your J.Crew cashmere now?
hey! what is up with the collection store offering things that you can get no other place? i would LOVE to buy this stuff. i just purchased the audrey dress and need something like this... but just like the silk flowers only being offered at the collection store, it bet this will only be offered there as well. come on JCrew not everyone lives in driving distance of new york! and that doesn't make us lesser people! or with less money for that matter, as it seems that is all you care about these days!
ReplyDeleteI usually dryclean my sweaters, but I am going to try using Woolite in cold water.
ReplyDeleteI have the cashmere kit, it is not worth the $15.00, you get a small comb and a cedar ball to store with the sweater.
What is interesting there is a card in the bag saying this is a complementary gift, like this was used as a freebie gift a long time ago when a customer purchased a cashmere sweater.
I would not buy that. I always handwash my cashmere in either Eucalan (when I am in the US) and here in Italy wool washes are very easy to find. I try to dry clean items as infrequently as possible b/c it is so harsh on the fibers and the environment.
ReplyDeleteThe Laundress actually sells the same cashmere wash under their own name for the same price. I believe it is called Wool & Cashmere Shampoo. If you don't care about having a J Crew label I would order the wash from The Laundress.
ReplyDeleteAlso, my mom owns a dry cleaners and always sugests hand washing cahsmere rather than bring it in to the cleaners. I personally wash my cashmere with Nordstrom's delicates wash and lay it flat to air dry.
Here is a great website that talks about cashmere care:
http://www.cashmereclub.com/cashmerecare.html
I let my drycleaner's do all the washing!
ReplyDeletehand wash in lukewarm water w/baby shampoo... squeeze/roll in a towel and lay flat to dry. that's how i handwash my cashmere+wool from jcrew (and other places). i think 15dollars is very overpriced.. you can buy your own brush and lavender/moth balls for about 5 dollars..or less shampoo included.
ReplyDeleteI might try this--I hate using the drycleaners. The price for the Laundress brand is the same, so I might try and catch this product in stores sometime.
ReplyDeleteI use woolite colors for all my colors and noticed that nothing fades anymore. Anyone successfully use woolite on cashmere?
I've used woolite on only one cashmere hoodie that's not jcrew and it came out fine. All my jcrew cashmere, I've taken to the cleaner but HATE that. Half the time it gets ruined so LOVE the idea of the Shampoo so I can safely do it myself, stress-free!
ReplyDeleteAlong the same topic, I have the cashmere comb but wondered if anyone knows about a "cashmere brush"? Is it the same as a regular clothing brush we use to brush away lint? I've looked online and haven't found any clothing brushes specifically for cashmere...does such a thing exist? TIA! :)
I have always hand washed my cashmere. I use Woolite and rinse well, drop in wash machine to spin the water out and dry flat on a mesh dryer rack. My sister always dry cleans her cashmere. We have some of same cashmere sweaters from a few seasons ago; mine look like new and hers, well, not so much! Honestly don't think you need special cashmere wash; any gentle soap will do.
ReplyDeleteI have also used Woolite on a few of my cashmere pieces (not form J Crew) and they have come out fine.
ReplyDeleteAs Hello stated in the previous post, baby shampoo also works well and is a very economicial solution.
Excuse my horrible spelling!
ReplyDeleteI wash all my cashmere sweaters in cold water in the kitcehn sink with Woolite. Then the old laying them out on an open towel, rool them up; repeat a few times then on to a fresh towel on a drying rack. It works great and it's cheap too. Granted the coconut smell of the J.Crew product would be nice, but then again it might clash with my colonge.
ReplyDeleteI handwash my cashmere in Cold Water with Baby Shampoo, roll in a towel to squeeze out excess water, and lay flat to dry...works great everytime...I won't be buying $18 Cashmere wash from J.Crew.
ReplyDeleteyes yes and yes :)
ReplyDeleteI went to my local b & m today and was so so happy to see that the rollout has occurred! All the new merchandise is on the floor : )
ReplyDeleteAll sale stuff was take an extra 30% off too
I have never washed a sweater! Ever! Is that gross? I'm so afraid of ruining the beautiful shape and color of the garment, or the fabric getting pilly. How often do you guys do this? Once a year? Every few wears? Is there anyone out there like me?
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of J Crew cashmere, and the methos I'm using now is:
ReplyDelete-Place sweater in delicates bag
-Up to 6 sweaters at a time
-place sweater in delicates bag in washing machine
-set on delicates/cold
-run normal wash with woolite
-lay flat to dry-reshape carefully
Reshaping carefully is critical, because it will dry the way you lay it. I've learned this the hard way, especially with sleeves. There can be a little shrinkage, which is fine with me as I'm between a sm and med, and my mediums shrink just a bit, making the sweater perfect.
I can't see the oz size on that J Crew product, but I would probably try it. I love the smell of lavender, and not so much the smell of Woolite.
this is completely OT (but FYI - and not sure if anyone had already posted this): i was at the tysons corner store today and they had already begun ot put out a few new pieces, soooo pretty (didn't get a chance to try anything on, so i'm no help there). but the SA told me they are packing up the majority (at least 90% she said) of the final sale tonight to ship back to the warehouse! so if there is anything you want i would go grab it now!
ReplyDeleteI wash mine myself with White and Warren's cashmere wash. It also has a bit of a lavender scent. Not sure how much it cost me though. Anyhow, So far so good....
ReplyDeleteEven though in theory washing your cashmere sweater might sound like a fine idea, but where in the world do you guys find time to do this? I went so far as outsourced my laundry and dont even remember when I did laundry myself last time. So handwashing, then rolling in a towel to me sounds like a procedure not worth undertaking. I get all my cashmere drycleaned. Not once did i have a problem. Nothing fades, nothing loses shape. Why invent the wheel if you can drop it off and then pick it up in 2 days, smelling all fresh and looking all nice? I just dont see the point.
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of people washing their piper tanks to save couple buck, then spending hours trying to iron them. I just really dont see the point. If the tag says "dryclean", I take it to drycleaners. Easy as that.
I've been using the Dryel home dry cleaning kit for a couple of years now -- I don't know how well it actually cleans anything, but it makes my sweaters smell fresh! The bag holds up to 4 or 5 items at once, and you just toss it in the dryer on low heat for 20-30 minutes. I only take items to the real dry cleaner once a year or so (unless I spill wine all over myself or something).
ReplyDeleteThat said, I may try the new wash if they ever get it in my B&M.
I think its a great idea although I think the price tag is steep for "soap". In any case, I'm afraid to hand wash because of shrinking and when I bring them to the cleaners, even still, they ultimately steam them to death. I think my cashmere would last longer if I could hand wash with the "correct" soap.
ReplyDeleteI have this from last season (I bought it from the Laundress, not J.Crew, obviously). Woolite works really well for handwashing sweaters, but this stuff smells soooo good! However, if I hadn't gotten it as a gift, I wouldn't spend the $18 for it as apart from the scent isn't much different from Woolite.
ReplyDeleteI find doing laundry and handwashing very relaxing. People are always shocked when I tell them I like to do laundry...But I guess it is learned behaviour b/c my mom likes to too:)We both I really do...I guess it's b/c I really like clohtes and I can see my "work" is done when raising children requires lots of picking up during the day at least one thing is done! (That said I do lots of volunteer work for any discenters that think I only like clothes...ha ha:) ;)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I handwash just like JCrew Guy in Canada...I have also found lots of special soaps for washing wool here in the UK. Many made just for cashmere and very inexpensive...I will have to stock up before I move back to the US in a year:)
Happy Handwashing:)
FFM, thanks for the baby shampoo idea. I was just getting ready to bring my short sleeve cashmere tees to the dry cleaner. You saved me a bundle! Now I can buy more at J Crack : )
ReplyDeleteI wonder if washing the sweaters using a natural detergent would work? Like something from 7th generation? That's what I use on all of my laundry but there are no chemicals, only naturally derived "surfectants" (???) Anyone else tried this?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous @ 3:24 - You should definitely be washing your sweaters. Even if you don't sweat, there are still body oils getting on the garment. The dirt and body oil breaks down the fabric. I think dirt also attracts some bugs. I'd say I wash my sweaters every 3rd time I wear them, depending on how 'active' I was in them. More activity = more washing.
ReplyDeleteI also like Dryel. The issue w/dry cleaners is that many of them use awful chemicals. I never really thought of it before but now I think of how odd the smell is on my dry cleaned clothes. And to whoever said laundry is relaxing. I agree. I love doing the dishes. I get to think while I do it so it's a bit meditative.
Good tips, aficionadas/os
October 15, 2008 3:24 PM
http://www.cashmereclub.com/cashmerecare.html
anon at 3:55,
ReplyDeleteSome of us handwash because it is so much kinder to the environment than the damage done by dry cleaning. The chemicals used by dry cleaners are bad environmentally, and they aren't good for any fibers in whatever you're having dry cleaned either. Contrary to its name, dry cleaning is, as a matter of fact, not remotely dry.
off topic: but did anyone else note (or did I miss in the blogs) how the green email at the top says "last days of final sale..."
ReplyDeleteAnon at 7:38 PM: Good catch!!! Maybe this is yet another sign that the Final Sale will be "final" (or at least for the holiday season. ;)
ReplyDeleteI am a hand knitter and I too use Eucalan on the sweaters I make myself, when making felted bags and when washing store bought wool and cashmere.
ReplyDeleteIt's much less labor intensive than handwashing - you can soak in the machine WITHOUT AGITATION for about 30 minutes and then go directly to the spin cycle. No need to rinse, which in addition to saving time and water, also helps the garment dry faster. It is better for the garment if you handle wet wool as little as possible so that is another advantage over handwashing.
Eucalan is made in Canada and comes in a regular or lavendar scent. Check out the website to buy, locate a store or request a free sample. It is highly concentrated so you don't need much and one bottle lasts me a long time. I highly recommend it.
I have also seen clear Ivory Liquid recommended for handwashing delicates.
I wear J. Crew's tissue tees under my sweaters so I can go longer between washings. If you are interested in trying any Laundress products, they are currently running a promotion: 20% off your order until Oct. 24th with code NYFALL. I've tried their Delicates wash and their Stain Solution, and I love them. I especially love that they are environmentally friendly.
ReplyDeleteThanks Iheartjcrew! Nice to hear even a drycleaner suggestest hand washing cashmere. I always take mine to the dry cleaner but now I plan on using this!
ReplyDeleteI come from a long line of knitters (and hand washers) who always use ivory liquid, roll in a towel a couple of times then use the drying rack. After the sweater has dried, if it is wrinkled, put it in the dryer on low for 3 minutes to bring it back into shape.
ReplyDeleteFrom Racked.com:
ReplyDeletehttp://racked.com/uploads/2008_10_universalnews.jpg
"This is some mind-blowing late-in-the-day news right here: J.Crew will be opening another men's shop (a la their Liquor Store location) in Soho. The store will take the space that currently houses Universal News at 484 Broadway, which is right next door to the giant Topshop store set to open in March. From DNR: "The size and opening date have not been determined, but it is expected to debut in early 2009." Will it beat Topshop? Probably."
Since I get free dry cleaning . . . I'll stick with that.
ReplyDeleteDavid: Ah, booooo. I love Universal News. They have everything . . . JC is pulling a Starbucks.
ReplyDeleteEven though we complain about shipping at J.Crew, I notice that the Laundress' website has even steeper shipping prices than J.Crew. So, I probably wouldn't order this online, but I might pick it up if I saw it in a store. :)
ReplyDeleteWow - great suggestions! I really appreciate the recommendations on the various wool washes, as I am also one who washes my cashmere. My sister has a degree in Textile marketing and Management (gosh, I wish she worked for J.Crew!!), and she clarified the whole "dry clean" vs. "dry clean only" care labels. (I know this has been mentioned here before, but since Anon @3:55 raised the point of following the care instructions, I thought I'd note it again.) "Cry Clean" means dry cleaning is recommended, but not necessary, and the manufacturer would accept a garment returned as defective if it failed to stand up to proper handwashing methods. "Dry clean only" means this is the only cleaning method approved by the manufacturer and, if anything goes wrong with the garment because of cleaning it some other way, you're out of luck in claiming the garment is defective.
ReplyDeleteSo, feel free to handwash as you wish if it says "dry clean", and the ideas here are terrific. I am particularly glad to hear from our knitters! If they trust handwashing to care for the items they have lovingly spent hours and hours making, it's good enough for me! I am anxious to try the Laundress and/or Euclan products.
Oh, and, "No" - I would probably not purchase the J.Crew branded cashmere wash - unless using it afforded me the ability to return my J.Crew cashmere if it pills, fades or otherwise fails.
Oh, I forgot to add my own suggestion: if you own one of the newer front-load washing machines that has a hand-wash setting, it does a fantastic job on cashmere, ad you don't even need to use a bag. (There is no agitator in the front-load - the entire drum rotates back and forth to simulate hand-washing technique, and as long as you wash only cashmere in the load, the technique is as gentle as actual hand-washing. Use whichever wool wash or shampoo you wish, place it directly in the soap dispenser - and be sure not to use too much! You need very little soap/cleaner in the front-load machine, and much less of the hand-wash cleaners. (If you use too much and can feel/hear soap in the sweaters after the cycle finishes, just run it through the rinse-only cycle, or if you don't have a rinse-only, just run the wash cycle without using any more cleaner.) The hand-wash cycle only does not spin after rinsing (at least mine doesn't), so I use the towel technique to squeeze out excess water, then I reshape and lay flat either on a sweater dryer or on a towel laid out on top of my drying rack. My cashmere usually dries overnight except during very humid spells in the summer.
ReplyDeleteGREAT topic! I have not yet tried to handwash cashmere but feel more confident about giving it a try now. The thing that I like about JC cashmere is their selection of shapes and styles. I was lucky enough to get last year's bateau from FS last week and it is very cute. I love the collar and buttons down the back. I wouldn't purchase the wash but may look for something comparable locally.
ReplyDeleteEven tree-huggers know that there are "green" drycleaners. It is more expensive, but if you care about mother earth why wouldnt you pay premium? Too cheap to do that? If someone wants to roll their cashmere sweaters in a towel, fine by me. But I definitely wont. Once again, I have a bunch of sweaters that I dryclean all the time. My drycleaners DOES NOT DAMAGE them in any sense. I dont uderstand why you are still trying to persuade me that they do. THEY DONT. I know my clothes better. I know how long they last and what they look like.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFashionista Social Worker - thanks for the suggestion! My condo came with a fancy new frontloading washer/dryer combo that I still haven't completely figured out, but I just checked it, and it has a hand wash option I'm going to try with my cashmere. (It also has a steam clean option -- interesting.)
ReplyDeleteI think there is an irony that dry cleaning is so often recommended and yet uses harsh chemicals on delicate material. This is especially true of knits like cashmere. Cashmere is hair so washing it with shampoo and similar products keeps it softer and gets it cleaner (IMHO). I have done both dry cleaning and handwashing and the quality difference is obvious. Also, I am no longer interested in dry cleaning chemicals so close to me.
ReplyDeleteAppgal, I also use the 7th generation laundry detergent (which my family and I love - we use the "free" because of allergies.) If you find out if it is a good choice for sweater care, please do share - I'd love to know!
ReplyDeleteSilver_lining, I purchased one of those bateau neck sweaters last year (in Navy), and I absolutely love it! It is very ladylike and looks great with a pencil skirt, or a pair of wide-leg trousers. Enjoy!
BTW, I bought a small bottle of Eucalan from my local lingerie boutique, but I hadn't used it on my sweaters because my bottle wasn't labels as Wool Wash, but now that I have looked into it, it seems they are one in the same? I picked up a large bottle of Eucalan today at a great online shop I have used before fro difficult-to-find laundry items (Manhattan Wardrobe Supply). I also picked up some other laundry accessories - a clothing brush for suiting and trousers and some special stain-removers, including one for ink, which finds its way into my work clothes no matter how hard I try to avoid it.
FSW
FYI: My front loader does spin on handwash cycle but at a much slower speed...
ReplyDeleteI also have another cycle for wool only...it says it is Woolmark Approved. I haven't tried it yet as I just use the handwash cycle or actually handwash my cashmere...will probably try it this winter though...
J.
Anon@4:59 - my front loader (a GE) does "technically" spin, but I wouldn't call it that for fear of it sounding intense. It does rotate during the rinse cycle, bu does so verrry slowly such that the clothing falls to the bottom of the drum when it reaches the top (versus a full-blown centrifugal force kind of spin where everything ends up plastered to the inside of the drum.) I think the whole "splat" of falling to the bottom kind of whacks the water out of the clothing on this cycle. My sweaters come out quite soggy, as they would come out of a bucket after handwashing and before towel-rolling out the excess water.
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing the model with the Wool setting - does your model also have the Steam Cabinet? Mmmm, my dream washing machine! (However, my dryer does come with a groovy drying rack to attach in the center to set sneakers and the like on to dry without tumbling. It is nice to not keep hearnig that ka-chunk, ka-thunk noise while drying my son's soggy sneaks!)
FSW
Oh, and I did find special Cashmere brushes. Kent (an English Brush-maker) makes some lovely, albeit expensive, versions. I have a sweater brush I bought a few years ago (maybe Bed Bath & Beyond), and I do have J.Crew's sweater comb. The comb works, but you have to be verrrry careful, or it catches the knit and creates pulls. I prefer a stone or the brush.
ReplyDeleteFSW
Anon 3:55
ReplyDeletePeople hand wash because NOTHING beats it for taking care of your cashmere. Drycleaning is horrible for clothing (and do not let me get on a tangent for how bad it is for so many other things). I have cashmere sweaters from when I worked at Ralph Lauren in the 80's--super thick cable sweaters ($575 retail) that still look new! They are soft and just as nice as the day I bought them. HAND WASH with gentle soap...it's a must. Drycleaning may keep them looking pressed and blocked but it will make the "hand" very dry eventually. I have heard woolite is NOT GOOD for your clothing--maybe google that to see what the thoughts are. I am so glad to hear that most do not drylean their cashmere--google that too and you find it is not recommended.
FSW,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments. Yes, you are right about the garment moving to the top and then "thumping" down...I know what you mean...but I think, and I will have to watch more carefully, that is does do a full circle spin at a really low spin on the final spin on my handwash:) It does come out soggy but not as soggy as yours sounds...mine does not feel like it came straight out of the sink's water!
I am going to try the wool cycle on my husband's sweater first...make his the "test sweater!"
I wish mine had the steam cabinet but since I live in the UK and only for another year I will get that feature on my return to the US when I get a different model! Wanted a nice machine while I was here but not too nice! :)
FSW and others,
ReplyDeleteI just looked at my front loading machine at it says Platinum Woolmark Approved...as the cycle name and it recommends DREFT "soap". I used to use this on my daughter's clothes when she was a baby! It has to be gentle. I am going to try it this weekend. Happy Washing:)