Why Wool? and how to care for it

AUTUMN 23

why wool? and how to care for it.

OCTOBER 2023 IS WOOL MONTH

October is not only the start of Autumn, but also when we come together as an industry to celebrate the Campaign For Wool endeavour with the annual Wool Month. The Campaign for Wool, who’s patron is the former Prince of Wales, was launched in 2010 to educate consumers about the many benefits of wool and to help grow the wool industry here in the UK and around the world. The organisation is run by a coalition of industry groups, brought together by His Majesty King Charles III, when he was Prince of Wales. The aim is to engage consumers through fashion, interiors, artisan and design lead activities centering around Wool Month each October. As a brand we love to use pure, natural fibres of the highest quality to create authentic garments which feel amazing to wear, look great and are made to last a lifetime. As strong advocates of the Campaign For Wool and recognising our commitment to our own wide-ranging use of wool within our collections, we are shining a spotlight on the natural benefits of wool and how to care for your knitwear to maximise its long life.

Our knitwear range takes precedence during the Autumn and Winter months and is integral to our brand’s ethos of Better is Greater Than More. We celebrate wool, with its unique inherent natural, renewable and biodegradable attributes in the hope of raising awareness amongst our customers. In line with this we pay particular attention to heritage British knit patterns, stitches and yarns. We have introduced fair isle and paisley patterns to sit alongside the fisherman rib, the Shetland wool crew and the classic shawl collar cardigan. We’ve also added a refined cashmere and ultra-fine merino blend collection to further extend the versatility of our knitwear range. We make our limited-edition knitwear with William Lockie in Scotland, where they have been knitting garments since 1874. The quality of these pieces is so superior you can feel it with every wear. All of our knitted accessories are produced in the UK by makers with decades of experience. Educating ourselves in how to care for our knitwear once we have it at home becomes all the more important when it’s pieces that are so special.

CARING FOR YOUR KNITWEAR

As a brand with our ethos of making timeless, high-quality clothing that won’t date or deteriorate, we are particularly passionate about prolonging the life of our clothing after it’s been bought by you. Many of us will be bringing our cherished knitwear pieces out of storage to enjoy wearing them for another season around about now and might need some help or advice on how to breathe life back into them. So, we have partnered with Clothes Doctor to offer you the ultimate wool care guide, with expert tips on how to wash and dry your Aubin knits.

Clothes Doctor are experts when it comes to caring for your clothes. Their aim is to encourage people to change their consumption habits and extend the life of their clothes by caring for them well and repairing when needed. They use natural ingredients for all their clothing care products, taking a stand against artificial fragrance, instead using natural oils. Their products and repair services will extend the life of your clothing, which is something we are passionate to promote.

The natural yarns we use such as Shetland, Merino and British Lambswool have many key benefits. The first to note is that you don’t have to wash natural fibres as regularly as synthetic. Natural fibres don’t make us sweat as much, they adapt to keep us at a comfortable body temperature- much like the fibres would have done for the animal itself. Wool fibres don’t tend to retain odour and are naturally stain resistant, so the key message is don’t wash your knitwear unless you absolutely must.

If you do need to wash a piece of knitwear, then hand wash with cold water only and we advise you to use a specialist wool detergent such as Clothes Doctor’s PH neutral formular Wool detergent. Fill a basin with cool water and add 2-3 caps of Clothes Doctor’s Wool detergent, the pH-neutral formula protects the natural fibres and the essential-oil-based fragrance helps defend your Aubin knitwear from moths. Turn your garment inside out and gently submerge it, agitating the water with your hands to distribute the soap. Be careful not to pull and stretch the fabric at this stage, as this may misshape your garment. Leave it to soak for up to 30 minutes. Rinse with cool, fresh water and then gently press between your hands to remove water. 

WASHING YOUR WOOL

Always avoid using a tumble drier, the heat will cause the wool fibres to shrink, and no one likes a shrunken jumper!We advise you air dry your wool pieces. Remover excess water with a towel first then leave your garment to dry flat in an airy space out of direct sunlight. Hanging can cause the fibres to stretch, especially in weighty, thick knit jumpers.

DRYING YOUR WOOL

Pilling occurs when wool fibres stretch and break because of friction, either from wear and tear or washing. Garments rub against each other when you’re wearing them. Pilling can also occur during the washing process which is why we always advise to wash your woollens only when necessary. The areas worst-hit by pilling are the parts of clothing that receive the most abrasion in day-to-day wear. It’s an unfortunate myth that pilling is a sign of a poor-quality garment, in fact it’s the exact opposite as it means more natural yarns have been used in the making process. It’s also worth remembering that pilling will happen less and less over time, once the looser fibres make their way to the surface. Buy a wool comb or Velcro brush and use this to gently remove bobbles that may build up over time.