The trials and tribulations of cleaning a thrifted sweater: How to clean a secondhand wool sweater

Throughout my thrifty adventures over the years, there’s been one sweater material that I’ve actively avoided: wool. It’s scratchy, it’s hot, and it’s notoriously difficult to take care of. But I also hate how stretched out and odor-trapping acrylic sweaters get, so my go-to layers for sweater weather have always been cotton knits and crewnecks. 

HOWEVER…I came across a beautiful vermillion red cable knit sweater for $2.50 at the thrift store. It was homemade and had pretty Anne of Green Gables puff sleeves. Of course I had to pick it up. 

I thought it was made out of acrylic yarn and broke my don’t-buy-acrylic-sweaters rule. 

It was wool, folks. Or at least a wool blend with a high percentage of wool. I learned the hard way, because I haphazardly tossed it into the washer and tumble dried with the rest of my clothes. The texture completely changed and the sweater shrunk down five sizes. 

I watched about a billion TikTok videos on how to stretch out a shrunken wool sweater, using my expensive bond repair hair conditioner to quote-unquote “loosen the fibers.” The sweater stretched out ever so slightly, but it was felted beyond repair.

Long story short, it became a new (old) dog sweater for Luna. I could even cut through the yarn without unraveling the sweater because the texture became SO felted. 

Anyway, I found the exact same sweater at the thrift store a few days later, except this time it was in a dusty millennial pink color. 

This time around, I prudently pulled out my trusty bottle of Woolite from my wool hat cleaning experiment. 

How to wash and dry a wool sweater

Here’s how I hand washed and cleaned my thrifted wool sweater without destroying it. Basically, follow the instructions on the bottle, folks!

1. Mix a cap of Woolite with lukewarm water.
2. Soak the wool sweater in the solution for 10-20 minutes.
3. Run the sweater under cold water to remove any remaining suds.
4. Lay the wool sweater on a towel and roll it up to absorb excess water. You don’t want to wring your sweater because this can cause it to lose its shape!
5. Allow the wool sweater to air dry. This was a test of patience for me because it takes so long for a wet wool sweater to dry in the cold winter air! It took about 3 or 4 days before my sweater dried completely, although your dry time could be shorter if your home is warmer.

I’ve been wearing this sweater on repeat for a few days now, occasionally dousing it in my noxiously sweet Philosophy Fresh Cream perfume. I actually don’t think it’s terribly itchy and hot — in fact, the wool sweater by itself is keeping me nice and toasty on these nippy 40-to-50 degree days. I did get curry on it while cooking the other day, so I’ll probably wash it before I wear it again. 

One major part of being an avid thrifter is learning how to take care of your secondhand belongings. I’ve learned so much about cleaning leather purses, wicker baskets, and other high-maintenance materials this year — will likely do another how to clean your thrifted goods post in the near future!