Softening old wool

Zend

I'm not sure if this is the right place but here goes. I have recently undone a jumper to reuse the wool. The wool was originally quite soft but has now become a bit stringy. Is there anything I can use to make it soft again? I want to use it to knit a bedjacket.
thanks

JAZ63

what about washing it with fabric conditioner ?

valk_scot

Make skeins/hanks of it (tie well) then soak in warm water plus fabric conditioner and a dash of white vinegar. Rinse, roll in a towel to blot and then thwhack the skein a few times off the side of the bath, to make the fibres bloom up a bit.

GreyQueen

valk_scot wrote: »

Make skeins/hanks of it (tie well) then soak in warm water plus fabric conditioner and a dash of white vinegar. Rinse, roll in a towel to blot and then thwhack the skein a few times off the side of the bath, to make the fibres bloom up a bit.

The above is bang on the money and wool will revive wondrously if given the above treatment. However, I'm wondering if you're using the word wool as a generic term and the yarn in question might not be wool at all but an acrylic? The reason that wool can revive so wonderfully is that the fibre is hollow and can puff itself back up with a bit of help. Acrylics are petroleum by-products and don't have the same ability to bounce back. A wool/acrylic blend will improve somewhat with skeining and washing but not so much a pure wool can.

I've turned old acrylic jumpers into wonderful hooked rugs, using multiple strands to make each tuft, and they do very well. You can also re-knit somewhat tired yarns with another one or two thin-ish strands and make a presentable garment.

Good on ya for re-using yarn!

Here's a wee tip which might be of use to anyone who has a fibre which might be natural or acrylic and they're not sure. You'll need a saucer, some matches and a snipped length of the yarn in question.

Set fire to the end. No, I haven't taken leave of my senses, I have a diploma in textiles and this is a legitimate test. If it burns to grey ash, what you have is a natural fibre. If it melts into a gooey mess, you have a synthetic. Some of each quality? It's a blend. HTH.

Zend

Thanks all for the advice. Not sure if it is wool or acrylic so off to burn some. I'm sure to get some strange looks from DH . It seems such a shame to throw it away when the wool can still be of some use and the garment I knit with it was never worn.