Alpaca Collections | Product Care

Alpaca fibers are naturally stain, odor and wrinkle resistant. Because of this, alpaca garments can go extended periods between cleanings. When it’s finally time for a cleaning or when you end up accidentally wearing your food, here are our suggestions for taking care of your garments.

Cleaning Woven garments (including jackets, coats and some vests)

For all of our alpaca coats, jackets and vests, we recommend cleaning with an eco-friendly dry cleaner. There’s a great Wall Street Journal article, Finding an Eco-Friendly Dry Cleaner, that talks about alternatives to Perc, the known air and groundwater pollutant and likely human carcinogen that’s used by most traditional dry cleaners.

Cleaning Knitwear (including sweaters, cardigans, and some vests and accessories)

We strongly encourage you to find an eco-friendly dry cleaner near you. Never place Alpaca knitwear on a hanger; the garment can stretch out of shape. The best way to put away your garment is to lay it flat on a shelf or in a drawer.

Cleaning socks, hats and gloves

All socks, hats, and gloves (not the leather ones of course) are machine washable in cold water. We suggest they be placed in a pillowcase or one of those mesh laundry bags. They should then be left to air dry.

Storing your apparel and accessories

Make sure your alpaca products are clean and dry before you put them away for long-term storage (little critters like moths enjoy dirty fibers better). We suggest placing everything in a cedar chest during extended storage. Inside the chest, as well as in your closet or dresser, we also suggest including some cedar chips or lavender.

All knitwear, including sweaters and blankets, should be folded and laid flat. No knitwear should be placed on a hanger as this can stretch the material. For woven apparel or anything that you do place on hangers, we recommend using either a cedar hanger or those hanging cedar blocks.