For the last couple of weeks life has been even more chaotic than usual. Which is the only reason I can think of that I thought it would be a reasonable and sensible thing to put my Boxy sweater on a 400 spin in the washing machine before laying it out to dry.
I know!
I heard that sharp intake of breath!
It was an insane thing to do and this is how it looks today. It is wearable…I wore it out and about today to check out the fit and nobody pointed and laughed! But it just feels a bit off. So I think the best option will be to cut the bottom off, lose a couple of inches, pick up the stitches and reknit the hem rib.
The only upside is that it’s possibly less likely to droop going forwards.That’s not a good enough upside in my book.
Take it from me…DO NOT put your hand-wash only hand-knits in the washing machine.
That’s strange, I finally got round to doing some hand washing at the weekend – all the hand wash only items languish at the bottom of the laundry basket until I’m ‘in the mood’ – and I gently(ish) squeezed the excess water out then put them on short spin – only 4 minutes – before laying them flat to dry and they are all fine. Did you do a rinse and long spin?
I didn’t rinse and just did a short and low rev spin. I think it’s because its a very soft, loose yarn knitting with a loose tension. I’m just glad I did the version knit flat. I think the side seams stopped it from being much, much worse! Phew!
Thankfully it’s not a big fix. A bit fiddly but doable. I’m just glad I don’t have to frog the whole thing and start again!
Ps…I’m the same with the handknit sock wash! They’re having a party at the bottom of the laundry basket at the moment.
Oh dear! I’m so glad it didn’t end up being so much worse.
Haha! It could have been catastrophic. I’ve pinned it up to where I think it should be but am not entirely sure, on reflection, that I won’t keep it at the “erroneous” length as a super cosy park walking and sofa curling sweater.
I’m letting it work in my head before taking the scissors to it!
I think it looks great as it is! I’m on the home stretch now with mine. Just did the collar tonight then will start on the sleeves tomorrow. Hopefully finished by the weekend ? If you do cut it and pick up the stitches, you’ll have to do a “how to”…I’ve never done that but can see it would be useful.
I was with my knitterly friends today and they were of the same opinion! I suspect I shall leave it as is.
Can’t wait to see yours!
I’m racking my brains to think of where I’ve recently seen a tutorial from someone who does is the ‘proper’ way. If it comes to mind I’ll post a link. It’s awfully clever and means you can add or remove length where you need it without unravelling the whole thing.
Happy knitting.
What a pity, seeing your beautiful handwork damaged. Nowadays I don’t buy wool that’s not machine-washable, as I can’t be bothered with hand-washing. Having said that, I crocheted a large blanket from remnants, some 30+ years old, and know for sure that a lot of that wool will be hand-wash only, so if or how that blanket will survive its first wash is anybody’s guess. I love reading your blog, thank you for posting.
Thank you for reading!
I have to say I’m done with this soft drapey yarns too. They drop so quickly and pill twice as fast.
That said this is my go to weekend sweater when I’m bimbling around at home or walking in the park. So cosy!