Have Your Clothes Shrunk in the Laundry? There Is a Method That May Help Them Get Back to the Right Size

It has happened to every one of us - you pull your favorite clothes out of a pile of freshly washed clothes and realize that they could fit a small child. Such a sight makes your heart freeze. How to save shrunken clothes?

Natural fibers are woven into the fabric from which most sweaters, jeans and shirts are made. During the manufacturing process, the fabric is stretched. During washing, when it is exposed to water and heat, the fibers shrink back to their normal state. Therefore, your clothes may suddenly shrink.

Knitted clothes, including cotton, wool and cashmere, respond better to methods of restoring their previous appearance (size) than other types of fabric. Fabrics with tight weaves, such as silk and polyester, will be more difficult to reshape.

The most important thing is the right water. Fill the sink with one 33 ounces of lukewarm water - there should be enough for you to submerge the clothes. Make sure the water is room temperature or slightly warmer to effectively loosen the fibers in the fabric.

Cold water will not help you loosen the garment. On the other hand, hot water shrinks and damages clothes, so avoid using it in this case.

Mix one tablespoon of baby shampoo or conditioner in the water prepared in the sink. Soft shampoos and conditioners loosen the fibers in clothes without damaging them. You can use any soft conditioner for hair, but baby shampoo is the gentlest for clothes.

Add about 1 tablespoon of shampoo for every wash ( 33 ounces) of water you use. Soak the shrunken clothes in the water for up to 30 minutes. Make sure it is completely covered before leaving them to soak.

The water needs to be somewhat warm at this point for the shampoo or conditioner to be effective, so empty and refill the sink if necessary. If you wish, you can begin to gently stretch the clothes under the water while soaking. However, the fabric will become easier to stretch over time, so you don't need to do this now.

Squeeze the garment to wring out excess water. Then roll the garment into a ball. Don't rinse off the shampoo yet. Start stretching your garment, shaping it accordingly. The shampoo must continue to loosen the fibers until you finish stretching the clothes.

Wait until you have fully stretched your favorite garment before washing off the shampoo. Then roll it inside a large towel as follows: lay out a clean, dry towel flat and place the garment on it. Then gradually roll the towel from one end.

Then squeeze the rest of the remaining water out of it. The clothes will be damp, but not dripping wet when you're done. You can leave the clothes inside the towel for up to 10 minutes. Don't leave it too long, or the fabric fibers will "cool down."

Unroll the towel, then transfer the garment to a second dry towel spread out on a flat surface. Use your hands to pull at the edges of the damp garment. Be gentle so as not to damage the fibers of the fabric.

It may not be exactly the same as it was before you shrunk it, but try to get the garment as close to its original shape as possible. If you have trouble stretching your clothes, use the steam setting on the iron. Steam softens stiff fabrics.

Press the clothes with books or other heavy objects. Keep the clothes on a towel. Work your way through parts of the garment one at a time still stretching it as much as possible, then immediately press again with something heavy. When you're done and you've "gone over" the entire garment, you can now leave it like this until it dries. You're done! That's it for now. Phew…

If the garment is not stretched enough, repeat the procedure. If the garment has shrunk a lot, you may have to repeat the whole process several times.