Published on December 21st, 2022
Last updated on February 23rd, 2023
How To Store Sweaters In Your Home? 5 Top Organization Ideas
Such things never go out of fashion, delighting us with their elegance. They give warmth and comfort in winter colds. Wool products are hygroscopic and breathable. This is because each fiber of the material is hollow inside. Accordingly, the fibers must breathe when storing sweaters.
The first rule to remember when storing clothes, not just woolen ones, is to keep them clean and dry. For this, you need to prepare the clothes properly. This is the most important step. If not correctly treated, your wool sweater can turn into the wrong thing to wear.
Quality clothing made of natural fibers is expensive. And it is very frustrating when after seasonal storage, we find:
- a deformed silhouette;
- an unpleasant smell of dampness;
- holes left by greedy moths.
Remember some simple and proven rules to prevent this from happening to your clothes. But first, a few words about the properties of natural fiber.
How to Prepare Wool Cloth for Storing Sweaters?
You should clean wool sweaters of dirt and dust with a soft brush before you hang them in the closet. Pay special attention to the inside of collars and cuffs. Because they absorb fatty residue from the skin when in contact with the body. Then they enter into the fibers, emitting an unpleasant odor. For more heavy contamination, expensive woolen sweaters should be dry-cleaned.
Here are some tips to follow:
- You can wash sweaters in warm water with mild detergents. These products may contain lanolin, a natural animal fat. Also, you can add vinegar or fabric conditioner to the rinse water. The washing mode is manual;
- You should not use spinning;
- Drying needs to be in a horizontal position.
Moisture in storing sweaters is one of the worst enemies of woolen fibers. So you need to be especially careful to dry сlothes beforehand. During the day, they are aired in the room or on the balcony. Sun frying has a good effect, dries excess moisture, and kills the moth larvae.
Clean, dried, and aired products can be safely packed until the next season.
How to Store Sweaters at Home? 5 Best Sweater Organization Ideas
Sweaters aren’t easy to store. They get twisted, cling to everything, and form uncontrollable piles. So it is vital to find good options for clothes organization. Fortunately, there are many ways to store sweaters, and we’ll tell you the best ways to store sweaters. You can read our top recommendations below.
1. Store sweaters by color
Lay out your sweaters on a shelf, distributing them by color so you can easily see them and pick them up. Separate the stacks from each other with shelf dividers. These handy gadgets are inexpensive and can be very useful.
2. Distribute sweaters by their type
Store sweaters in a loose drawer of the dresser. To avoid chaos you can sort them by:
- type;
- the thickness of knitwear;
- a family member.
Also, you can put such cases on a shelf in your closet for storing sweaters. This option may work for tall people, but those less than average will need a stepladder chair.
3. Use lifting devices
Use a special lifting device to keep the shelves tidy. Take a piece of sturdy cardboard measuring 21*27 cm with smooth edges. Then, when you want to remove the sweater, insert the cardboard under it, lying on top, and lift it. Now you can pull out the sweater you want without messing up everything else.
4. Use special storage boxes
Buy non-woven bags or zippered cases for storing sweaters. Up to a dozen, sweaters can fit in each one, depending on the case size and the weight of the sweaters. Such boxes are suitable for shelf storage. You can also organize them by sweater type or by color. For example, it could be wool sweaters, high-collar sweaters, or shades of different colors.
5. Use all free space
If you have extra space at the bottom of your closet, put some large, or storage boxes. These are where you put your out-of-season sweaters. This will help you protect your knitwear from dust. It is one of the best ways to store sweaters.
How to Protect your Woolen Clothes Against Moths?
After you hang the clothes on hangers or put them out, do not forget to protect them from moths. Preventing moths is better than curing them! It is one of the most significant sweater organization ideas.
If you see moths in your closet, you know the larvae have already been deposited. This means clothes are washed, shaken, aired, and dried in the sun. That is, we redo the procedure of preparing clothes for storage. We dust and air out the whole closet. And after that, we put dried remedy onto the closet shelves:
- Lavender;
- Geranium;
- Tobacco;
- Sandalwood;
- Orange peels;
- Cloves;
- Something else chemical.
We hang dried bunches or collect them in sachets, whichever way you like. So, we advise you to use our recommendations to fight these insects successfully.
Bottom Line
You can find things made of wool in every home. They will never go out of fashion. They keep us warm and give us comfort and coziness. So they need our careful care and protection. Remember that proper care and storing of woolen sweaters prolong their life span.
FAQ
How to properly remove the smell of sweat from woolen sweaters before storing them?
To remove the smell of sweat from wool and restore the fiber’s elasticity, it is enough to hang the item for a few hours in a bathroom filled with hot steam and then dry it in the open air. The same effect is produced by airing sweaters in foggy weather.
Can I store woolen items in vacuum bags?
It is not recommended to use vacuum bags for pure wool products. Firstly, there is no air circulation in the vacuum environment. And secondly, the garment may lose some of its fluffiness. But tracksuits and other knitwear containing, besides wool will also feel quite comfortable in a vacuum. Vacuum bags are indispensable for storing bulky woolen blankets and plaids.
Can you store sweaters on a hanger?
If you leave a sweater on a hanger, it will quickly stretch and lose its shape under the influence of its weight with gravity.
How to store cashmere sweaters?
Items of clothing with delicate fibers, such as cashmere, deserve special attention. You can follow the same primary Marie Kondo folding method described earlier, but only fold the rectangle in half. It’s unnecessary, but if you want to preserve the garment better, lay a cloth napkin over it to protect the delicate cashmere.