How to Fix a Sweater That Has Stretched

Co-authored by Kamel Almani

Last Updated: May 14, 2024 Fact Checked

Knitted and crocheted sweaters naturally stretch out, but there's no need to fret because shrinking them back down to size is almost always possible, whether they're made of wool or another material. Whether you need to fix a whole sweater or just a portion of the garment, you can do so through a variety of methods. Once you've gotten it back down to the best fit, there are many measures you can take in order to prevent future stretching!

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Shrinking a Whole Sweater

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You only need to soak an entire sweater if you want to shrink it entirely. Sometimes, this is not necessary. Your sweater may only have certain portions, like the neck or sleeves, that have stretched out. In this case, you can reshape the sweater by hand.
Fill a tub with slightly warm water. Submerge your sweater in the water until it's soaked. Remove the sweater from the water. Press out any excess water into the sink. Do not wring or squeeze the sweater to remove water as this can cause damage.^{[1]
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Place the sweater between a padded towel. Using your hands, gently mold the sweater into your desired shape. Then, set the sweater aside to dry.^{[2]
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Dry carefully. You should not hang a reshaped sweater to dry. Hanging can cause bumps and lumps on the sweater's shoulders. Instead, pin the sweater to the towel you were using. From there, lay it down in a safe place to dry. Keep out of reach of children or pets as you do not want the sweater handled while drying.^{[3]
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If you want to reshape the whole sweater, more extreme action needs to be taken. To start, get your sweater wet using lukewarm tap water. How wet you get the sweater affects how much it shrinks. For more shrinking, completely soak the sweater prior to drying. For less shrinking, just gently mist the sweater using a spray bottle until its damp.^{[4]
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If you want to shrink a whole sweater, you can use a machine dryer. After wetting the sweater, place it in a dryer on high heat. You should use the highest heat setting possible, especially if you want to shrink your sweater significantly. Run the dryer until the sweater is completely dry. This should shrink your sweater a couple of sizes.^{[5]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Shrinking Sections of a Sweater

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You can shrink sections of a sweater, like the neck or sleeves, if only these areas are stretched out. Be sure to test a hidden section of your sweater first, as either the boiling water or the blow-drying may affect the color. Boil a medium-sized pot of water. Then, pour this water into a bowl.^{[6]
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You can dip the sleeves, cuffs, or neck of the sweater into the water. Use protective gloves if the water is still steaming. You do not want to get burnt in the process.^{[7]
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3
Remold the sweater. Using your fingers, gently pinch and squeeze the portion of the sweater you're shrinking. Work the sweater until it's at your desired size and shape.^{[8]
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- If you're remolding the cuff of a sweater sleeve, it might be a good idea to hold the cuff chest level as you remold. As the cuff is small, pulling it closer will allow you to see what you're doing.^{[9]
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  Research source} When remolding a larger area, like the neck of a sweater, try laying the sweater down on a flat surface as you work.
- If your sweater is very wet, you may want to remold it over a towel to catch any drips.
4
Dry with a hair dryer. When you've reshaped the sweater, take a hairdryer and blow the sweater dry. The hot air works in combination with the hot water to solidify the new shape, shrinking that portion of sweater back to its original size.^{[10]
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- As the method requires hot air to work, you do not want to use the cool setting on your hair dryer. Start with the low heat setting. If the sweater is not drying fast enough, consider switching to high heat.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Preventing Stretching

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Fold sweaters rather than hanging them. You should fold your sweaters and store them in drawers rather than hanging them. Hanging sweaters can stretch out portions of the sweater. It can also leave small humps at the shoulders. If possible, fold your sweaters rather than hanging them.^{[11]
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2
Take precautions if you must hang sweaters. If you need to hang your sweaters, take certain precautions. Use thick, padded hangers to provide more support. This can help prevent stretching. You may also want to fold your sweater over and hang it from the bottom bar of a hanger. The bottom bar may provide more support, preventing stretching.
- You can cut open an empty paper towel tube and then fit it over the bottom bar of a hanger. This may help prevent creasing.^{[12]
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If possible, you should always hand wash your sweaters. Hand wash them in cold water with a small amount of fabric softener and detergent. Rinse thoroughly, making sure to get all the suds out. When removing excess water before drying, press the sweater. Do not squeeze or wring it. Fold the sweater in half and hang it over the bottom bar of a hanger on a drying rack to dry.^{[13]
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Question

I have a marino wool sweater that shrunk. How do I stretch it back out?

Community Answer

This might sound weird, but you should wear two or three other sweaters underneath your wool sweater. Hang around the house like that for a while. When you take the under sweaters off, your shrunken sweater will have stretched out.

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How do I shrink an acrylic sweater?

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Acrylic doesn't usually shrink much, but you could try putting it in the dryer on high heat.

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I hung my merino wool sweater to dry on a hanger and it got super long. I didn't realize that would happen. Is there any way to shrink it in one direction (length wise)?

Jannalyse Larsen

Community Answer

Put it in the dryer in a netting bag or laundry bag. It will shrink and not get frayed.

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Tips

Once your sweater has been shrunk to the proper size, help it to maintain that size by folding it in tissue paper and storing it on a shelf or in a drawer rather than hanging it.

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