Question about washing JCrew linen garment-died sweaters

Makrame

I know that several fabbers have these sweaters, and was wondering about your experience with washing them. I bought the pink (amethyst) sweater about a month and a half ago and just re-purchased it on sale for $30 since I like it so much, and it looked like it was wearing out a bit. I was looking at the new sweater's care label and noticed that it is dry clean only. I am not planning on dry cleaning a summer sweater, just does not make sense. But I did see that my "old" sweater, worn and washed about 6-7 times, maybe more, is much lighter in color. Apparently, the dye is not very resistant to washing. What has your experience been? Any tips (I wash mine on gentle and air-dry but I think I should switch to cold water washes)? Thanks!

J.Crew

Linen high-low hem sweater in garment dye

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10 years ago

General

6 replies

Latest reply was from K. Period.

merwoman

Veteran

Smart of you to stock up on such a beautiful sweater!

I have the 3/4 tee in navy and the sweater in white. I've been washing both in cold water on the gentle cycle and air drying. No colour loss that I can see on the navy linen tee.

10 years ago

Staysfit

Veteran

I have washed my garment dyed linen sweaters from J Crew in cold water (hand wash cycle) and they definitely bleed and will fade slightly. I still wash them but I don't mind that they fade, I like the look of them. My sweaters are grey and a taupe-y brown.

10 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Yes...my pink one faded a bit -- washed in cold in the machine and air dried. I wondered if I had been imagining it. I don't mind the fade on me -- it's actually a bit better than the bright neon. But it surprised me.

Smart of you to stock up!!

10 years ago

Makrame

Veteran

Thanks, all! Very helpful!

I don't mind the slightly faded color either but I figured I can use the fresh pink next spring.

10 years ago

chadya

Veteran

I have one of those sweaters,
I don't dry clean at all other than stuff like a man's suit that one would not put in the machine.
I washed the linen sweater in gentle in a bag on cold, I haven't noticed much fading but mine is a darker russet color.
You may want to buy some Eucalan to wash them with, meant for wool but I like to use it for other things as it doesn't need to be rinsed out.

10 years ago

K. Period.

Veteran

I have the light blue one and I've washed it a lot without fading; however, I think that's because of the color rather than any special care. With yours, you could try washing it with vinegar in the wash to help set the dye. Whether it really will is uncertain. For me, it would wash because the faded color would still look right and look nice, the convenience of washing versus dry cleaning means a lot to me (I have little kids) and the cost savings of washing versus dry cleaning is a nice plus.

10 years ago

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