Can a sheepskin coat be washed in an automatic washing machine?

Choosing winter clothes is always a difficult process and quite often, in pursuit of the aesthetic component, lovers of beautiful things forget to think about how to wash the product. If everything is more or less clear with a fur coat and a down jacket, then washing a sheepskin coat raises a lot of questions.

In almost all respects, the sheepskin coat is superior to competitors in terms of winter clothing and its only drawback is only washing, but it is also quite solvable. Glossy stains, streaks, accidental drops and other contamination upset the owner of the clothes, but you should not despair, you just need to carefully study the methods of washing a sheepskin coat.

It should be understood that sheepskin coats are subdivided into several types depending on the quality of materials, texture, the presence of fur and color, so there is no single correct method and you need to look for the right approach to each variety. It should be noted right away that it is forbidden to wash a sheepskin coat in a washing machine, especially if it is made from natural materials. The skin requires a careful attitude, and only a responsible approach to business and numerous expert advice will help to get rid of its stains.

Suede is the most popular material for making shoes, accessories, hats, gloves, and sheepskin coats. It looks expensive, has a long service life and is especially soft and velvety, but very problematic to wear. Suede wears off quickly and begins to shine from dirt and stains.

There are two ways to clean such a product. The first assumes dry cleaning using special products:

• if the stains are fresh, then semolina will help to remove them, which is applied dry directly to the contaminated areas. Most often these are sleeves, cuffs, pockets and a collar. After application, you need to put on an ordinary textile glove and rub the necessary places a little in a circular motion. During work, you should monitor the color of the cereal, because, pulling out the dirt, it becomes dark and then it must be replaced with a new one. The process must be repeated until the problem disappears.
• in the absence of semolina, medium-sized salt can be used, but in this case the intensity of the movements should not be so strong, since the salt can damage the delicate material. However, you need to understand that salt, if improperly cleaned, leaves streaks and unpleasant marks;
• to cope with greasy spots in a state of bread crumb, which is rolled into a ball, and then thoroughly rubbed into the skin. The procedure takes a lot of time and is repeated several times until the suede is cleaned;
• the easiest method is to use a simple rubber or bamboo eraser or brush. The problem areas are simply rubbed over, after which the dirt must be shaken off.

Wet cleaning involves the use of water or liquid cleaners. It is used only as a last resort, when pollution cannot be removed by the above methods and heavy artillery is required in the form of serious chemical components. Before you start wet cleaning, you will have to steam the skin a little and carefully comb it with a brush. This can be done over boiling water, but you should not bring the thing close, you only need a little steam.

Stains that have had time to eat well and saturate the skin are extremely difficult to clean, because this will require gasoline or kerosene... You should work with such substances carefully, and they must be applied to a small burlap rag, after which, in a circular motion, wipe the stains, as it were. This method is suitable exclusively for skin with dark shades, and light ones will be spoiled already at the stage of cleansing.

For fair skin, you will need ammonia (ammonia) and plain water. The two products must be mixed in a ratio of 1 to 4 and applied to the stains with quick but careful movements, after which a solution of water and vinegar is applied, where 1 tablespoon of the second component accounts for half a liter of water.

Perfectly removes dirt, and quite old, powerful steam generator. After using it, you will have to go through another brush to remove excess dirt and give the product a pleasant appearance. At home, it will be quite difficult to remove the felt-tip pen from the sheepskin coat. At home, you can use a solution with alcohol for these purposes.

Leather goods of light shades get dirty much more often, and it is even more difficult to wipe off such dirt, but in such cases there is a way out. Yellow stains are removed with water and peroxide, mixed in a ratio of 1 tablespoon to 1 teaspoon.

Greasy marks are removed with starch or talcum powder, which is placed in unclean places and left for a certain period. The components must absorb fat, but they will have to be changed several times in the process.

It is much easier to work with artificial suede, and here the soap base enters the cleaning process. Regular shampoo, shower gel, cosmetic or laundry soap is diluted in lukewarm water and applied to the suede with an absorbent napkin. The main thing is in the washing process control the amount of solution on the napkin, and remove excess in time. It is advisable to wash off the soap base with a clean towel that absorbs liquid well. It will not be superfluous to blot the skin with an absolutely clean and dry cloth of good quality. When drying, it is necessary to exclude direct sunlight.

After such washing, difficult to remove stains often remain and several unusual products come to the rescue at once. Glycerin, borax, ammonia and slightly warm water are diluted in a cup, where a tissue swab is subsequently moistened. The suede is wiped with light and unobtrusive movements, which is then wiped with a towel and sent to dry. Paper napkins, which need to be regularly passed over the washed material during the drying process, will help to avoid stains.

In the production of sheepskin coats, the material at the factory is processed with tannins to increase wear resistance and softness, and washing can completely destroy this structure, and therefore destroy winter clothes without the possibility of restoring quality. However, this rule applies only to natural ingredients..

Care instructions are found on the inner label of the product and it is important to pay close attention to this issue:

• for hand washing, you will first have to clean the suede from foreign debris in the form of dust, threads and fluff using a vacuum cleaner or a special brush. Next, a soap solution based on a cleaning agent is diluted in a medium container, the item is laid out on a flat hard surface and a sponge begins to wipe it with smooth and consistent movements from top to bottom. It is important to control the movements so as not to leave scuffs, because it is impossible to get rid of them and it is good to remove the solution from the surface in order to avoid streaks and soap residues;
• drying takes place naturally at room temperature without special heating devices (fan, air conditioner, battery, heater) or bright sunlight. The product must be placed on a wide plastic hanger, where the hangers and sleeves will be in the correct position;
• with a washing machine, everything is much simpler, you just need to follow the recommendations indicated on the product label.

You should not wash the fur with soapy water, because it will not be possible to restore it after such a process. It can be wiped with water heated to 30 degrees, dried thoroughly and gradually combed with a fur brush. As an additional tool, it is allowed to use diluted vinegar that adds shine.

Preventing stains will help special water-repellent protective agent, but it is necessary to apply it often enough for a good effect.

And now we recommend watching a video in which you can learn how to clean a children's sheepskin coat at home without dry cleaning.