Always pretreat fabric before sewing to remove chemical sizing from the manufacturing process. This gives you a better sense of the true drape and handfeel of a fabric. We recommend caring for your fabric in the same way you intend to care your finished garment. Heavier wools like coating should not be washed, but it is very important to remove as much shrinkage as possible before sewing. While it can be taken to the drycleaner for professional steam-shrinking, here’s an easy home hack for less delicate wool. Fill your dryer with damp towels and tumble dry on medium for 20-30 minutes. The steam from the towels will shrink and condition the wool. Use a warm iron with lots of steam when pressing; a press cloth will help prevent 'shine' left from a too hot iron.

Wool should never be washed in a machine; the agitation will felt the fibers. Some lightweight wools can be gently hand washed using cool water and gentle detergent like Eucalan or Soak. To dry, wrap in dry towels and compress to soak up excess moisture before laying flat to dry. It’s best to hang over a rack since the weight of wet wool will stretch and distort.

Use an extra sharp pair of shears or rotary cutter to cut your fabric. Test pressing on a scrap piece of fabric.