Inside: Accidently shrunk your favorite clothes? Check out these simple tips on how to unshrink clothes. You can easily get your clothes back to their normal size with these tricks.
Recently one of my sweaters was starting to bother me. It kept shrinking and getting shorter and shorter. I had made the mistake a couple of times of throwing it in with a regular load of laundry.
Since I didn’t want to get rid of it I decided to try to fix it. I have heard before about unshrinking clothes so the other day I cleaned out my sink and gave it a try.
It worked great! I ended up gaining about 2 inches of length. Now I don’t have to worry about the sweater riding up above my jeans. It only took a few minutes of my time too. If you have some clothes that are shrinking check out these tips on how to unshrink clothes.
To start fill a sink or small bucket up with lukewarm water. Mix in about 6 tablespoons of fabric softener. I used Downy, just because that is what we had in the house.
Once the fabric softener is mixed in with the water add the clothing that you want to unshrink to the water. Swish the water around so the clothes are completely submerged and set a timer for about 30 minutes. The fabric softener will soak into the clothes and relax the fabric.
After 30 minutes remove the clothes from the water and gently wring the water from them.
Place the clothes on a dry, clean towel so you can stretch the clothes. Placing your hand on one side of the clothes to hold it in place gently stretch in the direction it needs to be stretched. For my sweater, I was trying to add some length but not width so I only stretched up and down.
Spend a few minutes going through and gently stretching the fabric, not pulling too hard. You should be able to easily add a few inches to the clothes. If you start having problems stretching the fabric you can always place it back in the water to let it soak some more.
Once you have the fabric stretched to the length or width that you want to lay it on the towel to air dry. Once the clothes are dry you finished.
To keep them from shrinking in the future there are a few things you can do. Don’t wash them on warm or hot water. That was my big mistake, tossing the sweater in on a hot load. You can wash them by hand or on the gentle cycle.
Another good way to keep them from shrinking is to use a special detergent that is for delicates. I like to use Woolite or The Laundress for delicates. They both help to prevent the fabric from shrinking.
With these simple tips on how to unshrink clothes you never have to throw out a shrunken sweater again. Want some more laundry tips? Check out how to hand wash clothes easily.
P.S. For more cleaning tricks and frugal tips delivered to your inbox subscribe here!
Meagan says
January 26 at 10:49 amWhat a good idea to keep. I have done this in the past. I now just was my colors in cold water, and my whites in hot water. If it’s a type of clothing I am unsure how it will take with my washer, I use the delicate cycle. I have a top load commercial Maytag with out that big drum in the middle. So it’s open like a front load washer that loads on the top.