I have a handful of wool garments- mostly Ibex. I've been noticing some of them are starting to get more itchy. I don't wash them often, and when I do I use Ivory Snow on the gentle (wool) cycle on my front load washer and lay them all flat on the dining room table, on some bath towels, overnight to dry.

I read an article a while back purporting the use of hair conditioner to soften wool garments. I tried it on a pair of socks (not biggie if they were ruined) and they felt softer but I'm still gun-shy to try it on an expensive top.

What do you do to keep your wool clothes soft against the skin? I am a realist and I don't expect them to be cotton or synthetic microfiber soft, but as longs as it's not driving me nuts and anxious to change out of it, I'll be ok.

Thanks,
BM

After several washings soak them in a solution of warm water and liquid lanolin. You'll be amazed.

Ivory Snow (liquid and powder) is a detergent and will strip the goodness out of wool.
It USED to be soap, but alas, no longer is.
And, Woolite is also a detergent.

So do your homework and find some wool specific soap.

Edited by greg23 on 04/10/2012 15:13:34 MDT.

You want to know the idiocy of that non-sense? The care tag ON MY IBEX CLOTHING SPECIFICALLY SAYS TO USE IVORY SNOW!!! Geez... that's irritating.

How about some specific wool wash for use in HE front loaders? Does such a thing exist?

I'm googling this mystical stuff of which you speak, liquid lanolin right now. It seems that a lot of it is marketed as hand moisturizer and lip balm, which might be good in and of itself (my hands get really miserable and cracked) but that's another subject of discussion. I'm assuming it's the same stuff inside the bottle whether it's marketed as a skin product or for wool care- but then there's some wool wash with lanolin in it. For the strait lanolin, I'm guessing it's an oil that's not so water soluble so there would need to be some sort of surfactant in the water to get it to dissolve in the water?

http://hyenacart.com/EweNeedIt/mt/275/39987/1-Ounce-Pure-Liquid-Lanolin-Oil
http://www.planetbambini.com/babee-greens-liquid-lanolin-oil/
http://www.amazon.com/CJs-All-Natural-Liquid-Lanolin/dp/B0066Y0AMC
http://www.thehealthier.com/products/Liquid-Lanolin-Pure--4-oz,-Now-Foods.html

some seem a lot spendier than others- it's not a lot of money we are talking about here, but I don't want to get ripped off either...

Thanks,
BM

Warm water works best. Of course oil and water don't mix completely, but don't worry about that. Using warm water will help.

To Use: Add a teaspoon or less to warm water and swirl to distribute. Add your wool to the lanolin rich water.
Soak your wool a minimum of 15 minutes or over night.
Remove extra water from your wool by rolling it in a towel and then lay flat to air dry.