Care Guide
Congratulations on your purchase of a fine alpaca product!
The information below discusses how to clean your alpaca clothing.
You will find that with proper care, your valuable alpaca garment will become a personal favorite or perhaps even a family heirloom!
Here are some tips, gleaned from experts, on the best ways to keep your fine alpaca garment clean and in good shape for many years...
First, think of your alpaca sweater, socks, etc as fine yet strong hair, which is what it essentially is.
Care for SOCKS:
Wait? Alpaca is naturally odor resistant. You can very likely wear the socks more than once before washing. We experimented and it was, well... wow!
To clean:
Turn socks inside out. This helps in cleaning the you out of the socks:
Gentle machine wash cycle OR wash by hand in cold or room temperature water.
OR 
IN 
Use a mild detergent or even a mild hair shampoo:
OR 
Gently/lightly machine air dry OR roll in a towel to absorb most moisture, then air dry:
OR 
AND 
Alpaca socks are mostly pretty durable unless they are a fine loose knit variety or of a very high % of alpaca. They can be gently machine washed and rinsed in the same cold or room temp water, perhaps use a laundry mesh bag for added security, then AIR DRY. The dryer is harder on real wool fibers than the washer.
Just remember: A HOT DRYER IS BAD.
As you can see, alpaca socks are very Motel Friendly. They can be successfully washed and dried nicely in a motel room using sink, shampoo and a towel.
For Fine Garments and Accessories:
Cleaning any natural animal fiber garment can be done in a washing machine with regular laundry detergent, as long as there is no agitation at all, but we don't recommend it for anything larger than socks. Felting can occur in the spin cycle, every bit as easily as agitation. The finer the fibers, the less handling it can take before felting.
Temperature changes between the wash and rinse water tends to be the most common cause of shrinkage. Make sure the water stays the same temperature. Lukewarm is best, about 100 to 105 degrees. Don't use extremely hot or cold water.
Laundry soap and dishwashing liquid can be too harsh for some fibers. We recommend baby or other mild shampoo to our customers (skip the stuff with lots of fragrance or conditioners added - cheap stuff is just fine). After all, these products are designed for gently cleaning hair fibers, thus it's fabulous for alpaca garments.
Swish your garment very, very gently in a (clean!) sink with the shampoo, let sit for just two or three minutes, and rinse in same temp water. Be sure to think in advance about how you'll get the same temperature water for washing and rinsing. Maybe a bucket transferred from the tub once the temperature is set. Try to handle the item as little as possible.
Leave it in the sink for a few minutes for it to drain, gently squeeze just enough water out so you don't soak the floor when taking the garment out of the sink. Lay it out on a towel and GENTLY roll up in the towel. Don't squeeze or press hard- you only want to have the towel absorb more water. Leave it in the towel for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a dry towel and let air dry. Turn over and place on fresh, dry towel every few hours (drying time is highly controlled by room temperature and humidity). Another nice, simple and inexpensive drying method is to use a sweater dryer rack. These allow you to lay out the sweater and provide good air flow around the garment. They typically cost around $10 at Wal-Mart type stores or online (search for: sweater drying rack).
Whatever you do, don't use Woolite! Even the "gentle" formula can be too harsh for some fine clothing.
Structured coats, jackets, finely woven or intricately detailed garments should be dry-cleaned.
Though not as susceptible as wool items, during the summer months, your alpaca garments should be stored away from possible moth infestation. We recommend using a sealed cedar chest, closed bag, or another moth protected environment.
Cleaning before storage is recommended as fresh stains that may not yet be visible could oxidize and become fixed during storage.
With proper care, your alpaca garment will give you many years of soft warm enjoyment and you too will have an alpaca heirloom!
If you have further questions about the care of your fine alpaca item, feel free to contact us at:
info@purelyalpaca.com / 1-877-PURELYA
