How To Wash Baby Clothes Without Shrinking Them

Babies are always raring to go! Their curious minds cause them to crawl almost anywhere. This means that their clothes tend to get dirty real quick. It is important that you dress your baby in clean clothes regularly in order for them to remain healthy and not come into contact with germs.

Although newborn babies don’t tend to move about too much, they too can dirty their clothes by soiling them with vomit or feces. Not only does one have to take care in choosing the right cleaning products for washing their little one’s clothes, since they have a very sensitive skin, there are several occasions when, after a wash, the clothes don’t seem to fit your baby anymore. You may be thinking to yourself as to how on earth your child grew so much in a matter of days.

Well, it is not your baby’s abnormally rapid growth; it is down to the fact that their clothes seem to be shrinking after every wash. Do not worry too much as we are here to share a few interesting tips on how to wash your baby’s clothes without shrinking them:

In This Article

1. Check The Material Used To Make Your Baby’s Clothes

Different materials require different temperatures and spin cycles in a washing machine. Baby clothes are mostly made of cotton, fleece, polyester as well as spandex blends. It is important to find out the type of material used to make the clothes before you decide how to wash them. This will help minimize the amount the clothes shrink after each wash.

2. Heat And Baby Clothes

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Heat is by far the main culprit when it comes to the shrinking of your baby’s clothes. Each time you make use of a washing machine or a dryer to clean, you are exposing the clothes to high temperatures that end up shrinking them. You can overcome this problem by hand-washing your baby’s clothes in lukewarm water. Alternatively, you can set the temperature of your washing machine to the coolest settings and avoid using a dryer at all costs!

3. Cold Water Is Your New Best Friend

If you feel that no matter what settings you run your washing machine/dryer on, your baby’s clothes still seem to shrink, then you need to try cold water. Although using cold water tends to lengthen the entire cleaning process, it ensures that the clothes do not shrink. Once you are done washing the clothes in cold water, iron them out at the lowest heat settings in order to make the clothes ready-to-use for your baby.

4. Make Sure You Take The Correct Measures

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If you use a washing machine to wash your baby’s clothes, it is extremely important to inspect them for traces of detergent and rinse them well after every wash otherwise this may cause irritation to your baby’s sensitive skin.

Furthermore, not all types of detergents are baby-friendly. The next time you go shopping for detergent, ask the store clerk to show you a brand of detergent that is compatible with washing baby clothes.

Lastly, you must always ensure that your baby’s clothes are completely dry before taking them off the clothesline. Any traces of moisture will invite mold and mildew to grow on the fabric of the clothes. If the Sun is not out and you want to avoid using a dryer (due to shrinking), you can always iron the clothes out on the lowest heat settings as mentioned previously.

If you follow the tips as suggested here, you will definitely reduce the amount your baby’s clothes shrink after each wash. Furthermore, you can be assured that the clothes you baby wears are clean and free of any germs or bacteria.

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