# How should I wash and iron my linen shirts?



## rocco (Feb 21, 2007)

Last time I washed and ironed a linen shirt, it shrank.

Should I machine wash hot and leave it to air dry?

Hand wash in lukewarm water and leave to air dry?

As for ironing, I am minded to only iron the shirt when it is damp. And iron only the cuffs and collar.


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## joeyzaza (Dec 9, 2005)

It is hard to prevent linen from shrinking. I wash mine on warm and hang to dry. I press mine damp using a spray bottle. I press the entire shirt and not just the cuffs.


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## rocco (Feb 21, 2007)

I will try to wash them by hand in cold water. These are "bespoke" (from Hong Kong) so I want to be careful.


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## Holdfast (Oct 30, 2005)

I don't treat them any differently to my cotton shirts, and they seem to do OK - cool machine wash (40 degC), tumble dry to slightly damp on a moderate heat, steam iron after. Yeah, I know, I abuse my shirts with that regime but they don't seem too badly off for it all. Treat 'em mean, keep them, um, clean!


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## Buffalo (Nov 19, 2003)

what does the care label say to do, or if none, the creator of the shirt?


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## Flanderian (Apr 30, 2008)

Beat on rock in stream, hang over branch.

Seriously, all linen with which I've had experience is very durable, but like all cotton (except perhaps the plasticized sort.) it will shrink. Other than purchasing it with enough room to allow for that, I'm unaware of any desireable way to launder it without some shrinkage.

I'd machine launder with warm water, a decent detergent *and liquid fabric softner*, then machine dry on the permant press setting. It's also important to not put too many clothes in the dryer. If you do, your shirts will be more difficult to iron.


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## Rossini (Oct 7, 2007)

My linen items seem to be happy in a luke warm wash followed by air drying, and regular ironing. I would avoid tumble drying or a hot wash.


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## Leather man (Mar 11, 2007)

Rossini said:


> My linen items seem to be happy in a luke warm wash followed by air drying, and regular ironing. I would avoid tumble drying or a hot wash.


This is just what I do.


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## ajo (Oct 22, 2007)

When it comes to linen shirts and pants I let the wife hand wash them and then she will put them on a gentle spin cycle to get the excess moisture out and hang them out to dry. But seeing as the summer sun in Oz is quite strong the drying is done in the early part of the day. Any delicates or fabrics where the colour can fade are taken in before midday.

As for the ironing she does it for the week every Sunday night.

PS The right detergent is big issue we have been using low phosphate environmentally friendly ones for a number of years now which produce good results and they don't have added perfumes, which I could never stand.I recently came across one from NZ called eco store which we have switched to and it works very well with all clothes.


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## SirSuturesALot (Sep 2, 2007)

Does linen shrink more than cotton? Should I size up 0.5 or 1 when buying linen shirts to compensate for shrinkage if dry cleaning said shirts is out of the question?


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## Pipps (Dec 20, 2005)

Do not 'size up'. Wash your shirt at 40'. Iron whilst damp.


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## SirSuturesALot (Sep 2, 2007)

Mr. Pipps said:


> Do not 'size up'. Wash your shirt at 40'. Iron whilst damp.


Thanks Mr. Pipps :icon_smile:


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## Grayson (Feb 29, 2008)

Um... I take mine to a very good cleaner who's earned the right to care for my best clothes. 

'Nuff said.


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## Hector Freemantle (Aug 2, 2008)

Mr. Pipps is right about low- temperature washing. If you haven't been working down a coal mine, your shirts will not be really dirty and with a good detergent will be be fresh again after a -40 wash. A washing machine is fine. But I do find that the neck and sometimes the cuffs need to treated by a prior rub with toilet soap to ensure grime is removed.


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## David V (Sep 19, 2005)

Wash cold. Hang to dry. Steam iron. Linen will contract when washed but I have found that as the garment is worn the heat from your body will relax the fibers and it will feal softer.


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## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

Grayson said:


> Um... I take mine to a very good cleaner who's earned the right to care for my best clothes.
> 
> 'Nuff said.


I used to use a very old Buckhead cleaner, until the day I brought them a shirt that was 15% linen and they charged me $8.00 to hand-launder it without asking me first.

I haven't been wearing my linen shirts, but if I did I might be inclined to take them to a different location of that same cleaner.


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