Drying special-care items
Most garments and household textiles have care labels with laundering instructions. Always follow
label directions when they are available. General drying instructions for some special washables
are included in this section.
Air drying
Heat sensitive fabrics, plastic, rubber or some stuffed items require drying
without heat. Use an Air setting or line dry. The Air setting is useful for
fluffing bedding and pillows, and dusting draperies and clothing. See
Warning on page 7.
Heat-sensltlve
fabrks
l Olefin, polypropy-
Follow care label directions.
lene, sheer nylon
l Cotton and If shoes can be machine laundered:
canvas shoes
1. Place several bath towels in the dryer to act as a buffer, or place
shoes on drying rack if your dryer has one.
2. If rubber or foam rubber materials are part of the shoe, use an Air
setting. For other materials, see page 8 for cycle, time, and tempera-
ture recommendations.
Pillows, stuffed
3. Remove shoes from dryer while still damp and allow to air dry.
toys
l Feather, foam,
If manufacturer recommends machine drying, dry one pillow at
polyester
a time and:
1. Make sure coverings are securely stitched.
2. Shake and fluff the items by hand several times during the cycle.
3. Make sure pillows are completely dry. Feather pillows take a long time
Plastic, rubber
to dry.
items
l Shower curtains,
Follow care label directions.
tablecloths, baby
panties
Scatter rugs
Follow care label directions.
Blankets and
Machine drying knitted woolens is not recommended. Block to shape
woolens
when wet and allow to air dry. Line dry blankets in shade on a breezy day
over two lines. Pin edges together and straighten them. When partly dry,
turn the blanket over, repin and restraighten. When dry, brush nap.
l Cotton, rayon,
Dry as recommended for permanent press fabrics on page 8.
synthetic blankets
If manufacturer recommends machine drying:
l Electric blankets,
1. Place one or two dry towels in the dryer and preheat 3-5 minutes on a
electric sheets,
high setting. This will dry blankets faster and help avoid pilling.
woolen blankets,
2. Put blanket in dryer with warm towels. Set control for 20 minutes.
washable woolen
garments
3. Check after 10 minutes. Remove when still damp. Overdrying and long
tumbling can cause shrinking and pilling.
4. Place blanket on flat surface or over two lines to finish drying. Gently
stretch to original size and shape.
5. When completely dry, brush gently to raise nap. Press binding with
cool iron if needed.
continued on next page
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