If you've been following us for a while, you know that we just love merino wool. Its capabilities and qualities on our products literally excel, and all of our merino wool products are some of the most popular pieces for many of you.
However, all those great feelings about merino wool fall away as soon as it comes to washing and maintenance. After all, merino wool is still wool, albeit from a different breed of sheep. And wool, as you know, has a reputation for being a material that requires very special treatment. So how do you treat merino wool when it gets to the point where it needs washing?
Minor spoiler: It's not as complicated as it might seem at first glance.
Why is merino wool so popular?
Merino wool is a beautiful natural material that is very similar to "original" wool, but at the same time has characteristics that set it apart from traditional wool and elevate it to a higher level.
Merino wool is beautifully soft, has great thermoregulatory properties, which in practice means that it can warm the wearer in winter and cool him down in summer. Thanks to its natural antibacterial properties, merino wool products don't smell even after several wears, they don't itch as much as is typical for wool, they don't retain as much moisture and wick it away from the body efficiently, they hold their shape very well, they are easier to maintain, and the merino wool fibre is lighter than that of regular wool.
Sound too good? Because it really is that good!
Merino wool does, however, have a dark side. Merino sheep are often subjected to a very cruel and painful method known as mulesing in the interest of production efficiency.
We prefer not to describe this practice, as the details really do not make for pleasant reading and the sheep do suffer a great deal.
Fortunately, a number of brands, naturally including ourselves, strongly reject this practice and we would not under any circ*mstances work with producers that use mulesing. That is why we import our merino wool from as far away as Australia, from certified and thoroughly verified producers who raise their sheep in an environment where this practice is not necessary.
So how do you care for merino wool?
Merino wool is a natural material, which in itself is a prerequisite that the maintenance will be very demanding. After all, if you have wool clothing or a down-filled product at home, you know what we're talking about.
Paradoxically, caring for merino wool is actually not that complicated. Of course, maintenance requirements can vary from product to product, so the labels on the product are always the primary guide, but in general it really is relatively simple.
- When washing merino wool clothing, we can usually use a completely normal cycle, with standard temperatures between 30 and 40 degrees Celsius.
- We don't need to use any special wool product, a standard product will do just fine. In fact, these special wool preparations can actually ironically damage or weaken merino wool products.
- However, with merino wool, we do not use softeners, bleaches or tumble dry!
As we mentioned when calculating the benefits, merino wool holds its shape very well, so you can toss it on a regular drying rack with no problem at all. However, it's still a delicate material that's worth looking after, so if you have the option, leave it to dry somewhere flat.
What about the odour?
Merino wool is often highlighted for its ability not to retain odour. In practice, this means that you can wear it for several days in a row, just let it air out in the evening, and use it again the next day. If you don't overdo it with activity, merino can last for weeks without washing and without smell.
Merino wool does not smell due to two factors - its ability to absorb sweat very efficiently, which then evaporates, thus not creating a suitable environment for bacteria to breed, and its antibacterial properties, which do not allow bacteria to gather in the material even if they find a suitable environment in it.
Is it a good idea not to wash one shirt for several weeks? That's up to the individual. After all, as you've already discovered, merino wool isn't harmed by the washing machine.
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