How to remove bobbles from clothes
Why do my clothes keep bobbling?
It’s pretty annoying when your favourite cardigan or jumper develops bobbles. The technical term for it is ‘pilling’, and it happens naturally, often making your woollens look old and worn out. The bobbles form when the fibres in knitted yarns rub together and come loose, gathering into small balls of fluff (pills), rather than falling off. This usually occurs during washing and daily wear, and is more noticeable around areas of friction, such as around the underarm area or where you carry your tote on your shoulder.
How to get rid of bobbles
1. For a high-tech approach, try the Steamery fabric shaver. With three precision-made blades, this powerful shaver can be used on clothes, textiles and furniture to help remove any natural bobbling and keep them looking newer for longer.
2. A lint roller or sticky tape can be used to collect loose fluff, and even popping on a pair of rubber washing up gloves to brush your hands over the surface of your knitwear can pick up a few bobbles. Keep a roller in a cupboard in the hall to pick up fluff, bobbles and hairs before you leave the house.
3. You could also try using a very fine-toothed comb (like those used for treating headlice) to lift away the bobbles. Pull the comb towards you gently with short strokes and the teeth of the comb angled straight down so they don't get caught up in the fabric.
How to stop clothes bobbling
They are natural and almost inevitable, but if you want to stop bobbles from forming in the first place, tweaking your washing habits is a good place to start and can help prolong the life of your knitwear.
1. Wash on a short cycle for wool or delicates
A shorter wash will reduce the length of time your knitwear is spun around in the drum.
2. Use gentle, liquid detergent
Washing powder can rub up against clothes as it dissolves in the wash, while liquid is less abrasive.
3. Wash knits and delicates separately
Separating your softer, more delicate clothing from harder clothes such as denim means your knitwear won’t be rubbing against tougher fabrics.
4. Wash your knitwear inside out
If washing your knitwear separately is a step too far, turning them inside out before you pop them in with the rest of the wash load can help. It will make the bobbles form on the inside of the jumper instead.
5. Try handwashing
This is the gentlest way to wash your knitwear, and you can buy special handwash detergent from your local supermarket.
6. Reduce washing altogether
‘Not only will less wash loads be better for the planet, it’ll cut down on the times your knitwear will be rubbing against other clothing,’ says Katherine Bonnick, Head of Ethical Sourcing and Sustainability. In between washes, use fabric refreshing spray or a fabric steamer to keep your garment fresh. And when you do pop it in the wash, avoid the drier at all costs. Not only can the heat shrink delicate knitwear, but heat and friction together are the perfect storm for causing bobbles. Air-drying is best.
Our expert says
‘Not only will less wash loads be better for the planet, it’ll cut down on the times your knitwear will be rubbing against other clothing.’