Cashmere and wool socks do not shrink because they got wet. They shrink because they got hot and were tumbled while wet. Remove those two things and a good pair will last for years.

Wool fibres are covered in tiny scales. Heat opens them, agitation locks them into each other, and the fabric felts: denser, smaller, and never quite soft again. The whole of wool care comes down to avoiding that. Here is how we wash our own.

The short version

• Inside out, in a mesh bag if you have one
• 30°C maximum, wool or delicate cycle, lowest spin
• A wool detergent, never a biological one
• Never the tumble dryer
• Reshape, then dry flat

That is the entire method. The rest of this post explains why each step matters and what to do if something has already gone wrong.

In the machine

A modern machine washes wool perfectly well. The wool cycle exists for a reason: it keeps the water cool and the drum movement gentle. Use it.

Turn the socks inside out. Most of the wear and most of the dirt is on the inside, and the outside keeps its surface longer when it is not rubbing against zips and seams. A mesh laundry bag adds another layer of protection and stops a sock disappearing into the drum seal.

Set the temperature to 30°C or cold. Set the spin to the lowest your machine allows, or switch it off. A high spin is agitation by another name.

Use a detergent made for wool or delicates. Biological detergents contain enzymes designed to break down protein, and wool is protein. Over a few washes they thin the fibre and make it rough. Fabric softener is not needed either; it coats the fibre and dulls it.

By hand

Hand washing takes five minutes and is the safest option for a cashmere blend. Fill a basin with cool water, add a capful of wool detergent, and submerge the socks. Squeeze gently a few times, leave them for ten minutes, then rinse in clean cool water until it runs clear.

Do not wring. Press the socks between your palms, then roll them in a clean towel and press again. That removes most of the water without stretching the knit.

Drying

Drying is where most socks are ruined. A tumble dryer delivers heat and agitation together, which is exactly the recipe for felting. One cycle can take a sock down a full size.

Instead, pull each sock gently back into shape while it is damp, lay it flat on a towel or a drying rack, and leave it. Away from a radiator, away from direct sun. Wool holds water, so this takes a day. Hanging a wet wool sock by the cuff stretches it, which is the opposite problem to shrinking and just as permanent.

How often to wash

Less often than cotton. Wool and cashmere resist odour naturally, and airing a pair overnight does most of what a wash would do. Two or three wears between washes is normal; the fibre lasts longer and so does the colour.

If they have already shrunk

Felted wool cannot be fully undone, but a lightly shrunk sock can often be coaxed back. Soak it for thirty minutes in cool water with a tablespoon of hair conditioner, which relaxes the fibre. Press out the water, then stretch the sock gently and steadily back towards its original size, working from the cuff down. Pin it flat to a towel and let it dry in that position. It will not be perfect, but it will usually fit.

Pilling and holes

Pilling is loose fibre working its way to the surface. It is normal in the first few wears of any cashmere, and it stops. Remove pills with a cashmere comb or a careful pass of a fabric shaver; never pull them off by hand, which draws out more fibre.

A hole at the toe or heel is almost always a nail or a rough shoe lining rather than a weak sock. Our cashmere socks blend the cashmere with virgin wool and recycled polyamide at exactly those points so they hold up, but a sharp nail will beat any fibre.

Why this matters more for cashmere

Cashmere fibre is finer than merino and much finer than ordinary wool. That fineness is what makes it so warm and so soft, and it is also what makes it less forgiving of heat. A merino sock might survive a careless wash. A cashmere blend will not.

Our cashmere socks are 10% cashmere and 38% virgin wool, knitted at a family-owned factory near Braga, in northern Portugal, and designed in Brussels, in a crew cut for men and women, plain or striped. Treated as above, a pair will see you through several winters. If you are deciding between cashmere and other fibres, our guide to cashmere, merino and cotton socks covers when to wear which.

Questions we are asked

Can I machine wash Escuyer cashmere socks?
Yes. Turn them inside out and wash them on a wool or delicate cycle at 30°C, with a wool detergent and the spin set to its lowest. They are a blend of 10% cashmere, 38% virgin wool and recycled polyamide, so they handle the machine well, but never the tumble dryer.

What temperature shrinks wool?
There is no single number, because shrinking is heat plus movement, not heat alone. Warm water opens the scales on each wool fibre and agitation locks them together. Keep the water at 30°C or below and the drum gentle, and wool will not felt.

Do cashmere socks shrink in the dryer?
Yes, and quickly. A tumble dryer combines heat and agitation, which is exactly what felts wool, and a single cycle can take a cashmere sock down a full size. Reshape them while damp and dry them flat, away from a radiator.

How do I unshrink wool socks?
Soak them for thirty minutes in cool water with a tablespoon of hair conditioner, press out the water, then stretch them gently back to size and pin them flat to dry. It works for light shrinkage, but heavily felted wool cannot be fully undone.

Can I use normal detergent on wool?
Avoid biological detergents. Their enzymes are designed to break down protein, and wool is protein, so over a few washes they thin the fibre and make it rough. Use a detergent made for wool or delicates, and skip the fabric softener, which coats the fibre and dulls it.

Escuyer. Considered design, made to last.