So maybe I’m jumping the gun on fall, but if you are allergic to dust like me, then now’s the time to pull out those sweaters you’ve stored all spring and summer and get them in tip top shape to wear as soon as the air turns crisp.

Wool and the wildly popular cashmere, plus any blends are the ones I’m going to address here, as it is essential to take care of them if you want them to keep looking like new (but the same rules apply for cotton as well.) These are my secrets to keeping my fine sweaters cozy and clean year after year:

1.  Fix pesky snags. Invariably, one of my dogs snags a few sweaters every year. First I lightly pull on the snag to get it stretched back into as much of the sweater I can. Then I simply just grab a needle and thread it through the front side, catch the snag and pull it through to the inside of the sweater. If I need to, I will darn it with the same shade of thread on the inside so there’s no chance of it catching and pulling again.

2.  Tackle any pilling. First use a lint brush to get off anything that will easily be removed. Then you can use either use a pumice stone to lightly rub them off or purchase a sweater/lint shaver. They usually range around $10.00 and you can get them online or at stores like Bed, Bath and Beyond. In a pinch, you can use a pair of scissors, making sure not to cut more than the pill off. 

3.  Check for moth holes and holes. Look especially around seams and on the elbows. If the sweaters is too far gone and not expensive, then I get rid of it. If it’s a tiny hole or moth hole, I darn the hole up with the same color thread or yarn and nobody is the wiser. I take care in working through the inside of the sweater, weaving through the sweater’s stitching, so it’s as invisible as possible on the front side.

NOTE that if it’s a really expensive sweater and the hole is larger than you can darn, there are places that do “reweave” sweaters. Check with a reputable dry cleaner for recommendations. You’ll be looking in the price range of $20-$30. Well worth if for cashmere sweaters that can cost ten times that.

5.  Dry cleaning vs. hand washing. Everyone thinks dry cleaning is the way to go, but know that excessive dry cleaning weakens the threads and can damage the item. Also know that dry cleaning does not take out odor. It can become very costly to dry clean your sweaters on top of those minuses. For me, I hand wash my sweaters. For those of you with a reliable hand wash cycle on you washing machine, you can use that. By all means, invest in a detergent such as Woolite to care for these delicate sweaters when laundering. I have also found that OxiClean is remarkable when I hand wash my sweaters, even cashmere in COLD WATER ONLY. Those pesky stains that always seem to appear on the underside of light colored sleaves at the wrist dissapear with OxiClean. I let my sweaters soak in it for about 15 minutes, then agitage the water through them, never rubbing and rinse well with cold water, making sure that all of the detergent is removed. 

To remove excess water, I roll up my sweaters in a clean towel and press. Then I lay the sweaters out on stackable sweater racks for drying. If you are going to dry your sweaters in the sun, make sure that you turn them inside out to preserve their color. 

6.  Fold sweaters on a shelf or in a drawer and never hang. Nobody wants those unsightly hanger bulges on the shoulders from mishapen sweaters that have been hung.  They can ruin a sweater. If you do have to hang for any reason, make sure you do it the same way they do at a dry cleaner, folded and placed over a cardboard tube on the crosswire.