On the first wash day, I dropped five of the six knits off at my local cleaners—and sent my Loro Piana sweater into the wash for the first time. I found it interesting that the priciest knit was also the one that could allegedly brave the washing machine. Still, the thought of throwing such an expensive knit into the wash gave me a bit of nerves. To keep it in mint condition, I used The Laundress’ Wool and Cashmere shampoo, which is a must for preserving machine-washable cashmere knits. You can also splurge on the brand’s own $178 cashmere soap, if you’re feel like treating yourself.
The wash process proved to be a bit of an ordeal—the bottle welcomed eight capfuls of soap for my type of washing machine, which quickly proved to be far too many. After a couple of extra rinses to eliminate the extra suds, I was able to move onto the next step and lay the knit out flat to dry. One issue: it wasn’t drying on its own. I had to enlist my Dyson fan to speed up the process and avoid it getting stale.
Then came the second wash. I entrusted these with the dry cleaning service at my hotel—a move that proved to be risky when I discovered the knits hanging in my closet afterward. Eek! (Note to reader: cashmere should be always folded, and never hung. Hanging degrades the shape and causes the shoulders to droop.)
Moral of the story: Albeit pricier, dry cleaning is definitely the swifter option for washing your cashmere, so you may want to take this into account if you’re looking for a no-fuss knit.
