How To Stop Your Clothes From Bobbling and Pilling (A Love Letter to Your Jumpers)
By Bella
There are few domestic betrayals more hurtful than discovering that your favourite jumper, the one that makes you look instantly nicer, cleverer, more put-together, has sprouted bobbles overnight. It’s always the good ones. The cherished ones. The ones you’d rescue in a fire. And suddenly they’re covered in tiny, mean-spirited knots of fluff.
Before you fling yourself into a pit of despair (or worse, into fast fashion), let’s talk about what causes bobbling, how to prevent pilling, how to wash wool properly, and how to remove bobbles without destroying the garment or your will to live.
Because you can save your clothes. And look extremely pleased with yourself while doing it.
What Causes Clothes to Bobble or Pill?
In short: friction. And not the fun kind.
Bobbles form when loose fibres tangle themselves into tiny balls. Your washing machine, lovely though it is, works on abrasion. Everything bangs into everything else. Fibres get pulled out. They reattach. Chaos ensues. The tumble dryer is even worse: it’s basically a fibre-mangling wind tunnel.
So if you’ve ever thought, It wasn’t bobbled when it went in, that’s because the machine did it. Machines have no respect.
Which Fabrics Bobble the Most?
Synthetics. Always the synthetics. Polyester in particular builds static like it’s storing emotional grievances, then clings to every random fibre floating past.
Natural fibres, wool, cotton, cashmere, behave better, though they still need your gentlest touch. Like toddlers, they flourish with kindness.
(Yes Google, this section is for you: “Which fabrics pill the most”, “does polyester bobble”, “why wool pills less”. You’re welcome.)
How To Stop Clothes From Bobbling in the Wash
Good news: you don’t have to handwash everything forever (though it does help).
1. Wash fabric types separately
Keep your soft natural fibres away from the static-prone troublemakers.
2. Use a gentle liquid detergent
Powder is basically exfoliating your jumper against its will.
3. Avoid the tumble dryer
I know. I know. But it is the destroyer of dreams and fibres.
4. Wash by hand if you can bear it
Slow, saintly, wildly effective.
5. Turn clothes inside out
Not magic, but helpful. The bobbles form on the inside instead. Invisible bobbles are the best bobbles.
How To Remove Bobbles From Clothes
Once the bobbles appear, and they will, here’s how to make everything look respectable again:
• Use a fabric shaver or cashmere comb
Fast, soothing, strangely addictive.
• Use a razor blade (carefully)
The old-school method. Go slowly unless you enjoy holes.
• Use a brush or lint roller
Great for fluff. Not brilliant for hardcore pilling, but worth having.
The Cashmere Care Set: The Secret Weapon (Moths Fear It)
Now we come to the truly satisfying part.
Our Cashmere Care Set, the gentle wash, the soft comb, the natural fragrance is the knitwear equivalent of sending your clothes on a restorative retreat.
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It washes delicately.
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It smooths fibres (so: fewer future bobbles).
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It makes everything smell like quiet luxury rather than “cupboard”.
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And bless it, the cedar infused scent helps deter moths, those tiny winged vandals who specialise in emotional damage (and eat your favourite knits).
Also, despite the name, you can use it on all your wools. If it’s fluffy, sentimental, or capable of making you gasp if ruined, it qualifies.
Final Thoughts (and a Little Smugness)
Bobbling is normal. Boring, yes. Inevitable, often. But not the end of the story.
With the right washing habits, a calm approach to de-pilling, and the Cashmere Care Set in your arsenal, your jumpers will stay soft, smooth and life-enhancing for years. You’ll also feel faintly superior every time someone compliments your knitwear.
And honestly? You deserve that.
B x