Wash a hand-knit the way its yarn's ball band says, because a hand-knit has no sewn-in care label. If the band says hand wash, use the stated water temperature and handle the piece gently, then press the water out without wringing. If it says to dry flat, ease the piece back to its measurements on a towel. Woolmark explains that hanging wet knitwear can let the water's weight stretch it out of shape.

Start with the yarn's own care instructions

A shop-bought sweater carries a sewn-in label. Your hand-knit only has the ball band from the yarn you used, so keep one band from every project. Care instructions differ from yarn to yarn, even within one weight category. Two examples from maker pages:

Yarn Maker's care instruction
Berroco Vintage Machine wash inside out in cold water, gentle cycle. Lay flat to dry.
Cascade 220 Fingering Hand wash cold. Lay flat to dry.

Both say to dry flat. Only one allows a washing machine. Read the band before anything else.

If you have lost the band but know the exact line, the maker's product page usually repeats the care instruction. The yarn label guide shows where it sits among the other label fields.

When a piece uses more than one yarn

Stripes, colourwork and trims can combine yarns with different instructions. Follow the gentler instruction for the whole piece, so that no yarn in it is washed outside its own instructions.

If the band allows a machine wash

Use exactly the conditions the band gives, no warmer and no rougher. Berroco's instruction for Vintage, for instance, specifies cold water, a gentle cycle and turning the garment inside out.

For wool garments whose label permits machine washing, The Woolmark Company advises using the wool cycle, or the cold or delicates cycle if your machine has no wool setting. A machine-washable yarn still needs to dry flat if its band says so.

How to hand wash

The Woolmark Company's hand-wash method for wool is a good default when the band says hand wash:

  1. Turn the piece inside out.
  2. Wash in clean, lukewarm water, approximately 30°C, using a mild, gentle detergent.
  3. Soak for about 10 minutes.
  4. Rinse, first in lukewarm water, then finally in cold water.

If the band says "hand wash cold", use cold water instead. The band governs the temperature; the general method only fills in the steps the band leaves out.

Handle the piece gently while it is wet. Lift it with both hands supporting the whole weight rather than pulling it out by one corner, then press the water out against the side of the basin rather than wringing it. You can also roll it in a dry towel and press.

How to dry it so it keeps its shape

Woolmark recommends drying knitwear such as sweaters flat, unless the care instruction says it can be tumble dried. Its reasoning is simple: line drying or hanging lets the weight of the water stretch the knit, so the garment grows in length and loses its shape.

Woolmark's flat-drying method:

  1. Lay the piece on a pale or white, lint-free towel.
  2. Ease it into shape and size by hand, smoothing out creases and folds.
  3. If you use pins to hold the shape, make sure they are fully rustproof.
  4. Keep it out of direct sunlight, sunlight magnified through a window, and direct heat.

Woolmark warns that the part of a garment folded over a radiator dries fastest and can change colour or be damaged.

Ease it back to its measurements

Before the first wash, measure the finished piece: width across the chest, length from shoulder to hem, sleeve length. While it lies damp on the towel, ease it back to those measurements. This is the same principle as washing a gauge swatch: the swatch guide explains why a knit's measurements can change in water, and Lion Brand's worked example shows a swatch going from 20 to 16 stitches over 4 inches after washing and blocking.

If the first wash changes the measurements in a way you cannot ease back, note it on the ball band you kept. The next project in that yarn can allow for it at the swatch stage.

Quick reference

  • Read the band first. It decides machine or hand, temperature and drying.
  • Machine wash only if allowed, on exactly the stated settings.
  • Hand wash: lukewarm (or cold if stated), mild detergent, about 10 minutes, rinse, no wringing.
  • Dry flat on a pale towel, eased to the measured size, away from sun and heat.
  • Keep one ball band from every project for next time.