Do you have natural linen products in your wardrobe? It’s not difficult to guess that you have at least once wondered how to wash linen in a washing machine, because despite all the advantages, such fabric can fade and shrink if it is not washed in the machine correctly, but with proper care such troubles will not happen.
Delicate machine wash
It is necessary to wash linen products at a temperature of no more than 60 degrees, if we are talking about undyed natural linen. For colored flax, the preferred temperature is 30 - 40 degrees. The number of revolutions should not exceed 400 - 500 times; at higher speeds, the item may be damaged, creases or folds that are difficult to smooth out may appear on it.
Before you start washing, look carefully at the tag, it contains a lot of useful information, such a label is on any clothing. Sometimes the clothing material contains synthetic components, therefore the product is not 100% natural. The highest temperature at which linen can be washed is also always indicated on the tag. If you are in doubt about what mode to wash linen on, you can choose the delicate fabrics mode.When washing, you can use laundry soap or powder for baby clothes, which will not have an aggressive effect on the fabric. You should not use chlorine-containing bleaches; this can easily cause fabric fibers to lose their strength, and this will most likely lead to the loss of attractiveness of the outfit itself.
It will also not be superfluous to use such a function in the washing machine as an additional rinse. The better you rinse your linen item, the better it will look.
Washing colored laundry is a little different. What should you remember?
Always wash colored items separately to avoid staining other linen items. The powders and stain removers you use should be intended exclusively for colored clothing. You should also not use the spin and dry mode; do this yourself after removing the clothes from the washing machine.
Hand washing linen products
For delicate fabrics like linen, hand washing is preferred. If you follow the correct sequence of actions, you can wash your clothes easily and carefully without damaging them:
- Prepare clothes for washing: check the pockets, fasten the zipper, if there are stains on the product, you must first remove them;
- Prepare warm water, add the detergent of your choice;
- If you wash white things, first soak them for half an hour, only after that start washing; colored linen does not require pre-soaking;
- Carefully wash the product, remember that it requires careful handling;
- Rinse the item thoroughly until all detergent is completely removed from the fabrics;
- Try not to wring out the item, do not twist it, in order to remove moisture from the glass, it is better to hang it and place a basin;
- Do not overload the machine drum so that things can rotate freely inside and be rinsed well. If you wash, for example, bed linen, you do not need to load several sets into the machine at once. Overloading the washing machine can damage both household appliances and the clothes themselves. The machine drum should be approximately 2/3 full. To maintain the proper appearance of your linen items when washing in a machine, use special covers.
How to remove dirt from clothes before washing
It’s a shame if your favorite linen dress gets dirty; in this case, you should act carefully and carefully. The following preliminary manipulations will help save your expensive outfit:
- Apply a few drops of stain remover to the reverse side of the product;
- Wait approximately 5 minutes;
- Rinse the item well under running water;
- Inspect the product and make sure that the fabric has not faded.
If paint remains on the surface, this product will not damage your item, you can safely use it to remove stains. Remember that you should use stain removers or bleaches that do not contain chlorine, which can negatively affect the fabric. A stain placed on clothing is removed much faster if the stain is fresh; the more time passes, the more difficult it is to clean a linen item.
Recommendations for caring for items:
In order for your linen items to please you with their good appearance for a long time, do not forget to follow some simple recommendations:
- When drying flax, avoid exposing it to direct sunlight.The room in which things are dried must be ventilated;
- It is best to iron linen with an iron equipped with a special humidifier; if you don’t have one, you can use a regular spray bottle with water, and it’s even better not to wait until the linen is completely dry or completely dry; you can iron the clothes when they are still a little damp;
- There is no need to pour stain removing detergent directly into the drum; it is better to distribute the solution on the fabric and then place it in the machine;
- If there is no special powder for colored clothes, instead of rinse aid, you can add a couple of tablespoons of citric acid or table vinegar to the machine tray;
- Remember that linen with embroidery cannot be boiled before washing; you can add salt to the compartment instead of rinse aid;
- It is best to hang bed linen, tablecloths or linen curtains on a drying rack, and try to dry jackets or blouses by hanging them on hangers.
As you can see, linen is a very interesting and attractive fabric, but at the same time it requires proper care. To ensure that your items always look like new, do not forget about the basic rules of caring for linen. Remember that linen loves hand washing, but if everything is done correctly, washing can also be done by machine, most importantly, do not forget at what temperature it is better to wash the products, remember about choosing a mode, proper spinning and drying of things. If you remember the simple tips for properly washing linen, products made from this fabric will remain in your home forever and will delight you for many years.
