Can I Shrink My Wool Pants?

[Indiana Snipes]

Got some adventure pants and they turned out a little bigger than I planned in the waist. If I machine wash these and stick them in the dryer how significantly will they shrink? I got them a little long too (on purpose) so I'm not worried about that, but I wasn't planning on the waist being so loose, the pants barely stay on with a belt, really not sure how this happened because I measured pants that fit. Anyways if I send them through the washer and dryer will they shrink down to Barbie Doll size or just a few inches? :

[ij1936]

I would take them to a tailor and have them altered. There is no way to gauge how much wool pants will shrink by washing and drying wool pants. It would be a shame to ruin a pair when altering would work better and could be cheaper in the long run.

[YARVTON]

The argument made for washing and drying would be: add character, show signs of wear. Unless you WANT all your gear to look like it was made yesterday, it makes some sense to distress. I fear they just won't shrink enough, but then you can have them altered and not worry about any future shrinkage.

[hocfutue]

Where the wool shrinks, and how much, can vary in a garment. You can end up with some odd bunching along seams, texture changes, stuff like that. Just take it in to a tailor. The results will be much better, and will cost less than you would think.

[Indiana Strones]

I have a similar problem with my shirt. I have a Wested shirt, size is M, but is big. How can I shrink it? Thanks for any help!

[YARVTON]

When the answer is unclear always ask: "What would Indy do?"

[Scott63]

If they're wool, I would NOT recommend that you machine wash and dry them. They'll shrink, but will probably come out looking really fuzzy.

I agree with ij1936 - take them to a tailor and have the waist taken in.

Scott

[Snakewhip_Sable]

You could also try eating a few tubs of butter with a spoon. Eating a lot of deep fried bacon wrapped weiners and such oughta help that waistline fit real snug.

Think outside the box, people!

[YARVTON]

How would you clean work clothes in the 1930's? Never clean? Dry-Clean only? Hand-wash/line-dry? Wasn't it common to size-up to accomodate shrinkage?

[Long John Silver]

You could also try eating a few tubs of butter with a spoon. Eating a lot of deep fried bacon wrapped weiners and such oughta help that waistline fit real snug.

Think outside the box, people!

Mmm...bacon...

BTW, I did have a pair of L.L. Bean wool pants about 25 years ago (they don't sell the particular style anymore). I wore those pants everywhere as a teenager and only washed them in Woolite and cold water, because I was too cheap to pay for the dry cleaning.

One night, I really wanted to wear the pants but they were still wet from washing. I usually air-dried them, but I decided (stupidly) to throw them in the dryer. Well, in the matter of 20 minutes, they shrunk by a couple of sizes and became really frizzy. I made the same mistake years later with a very nice Scottish sweater to similar results.

Bottom line: they'll shrink for sure!

Regards,
LJS

[YARVTON]

There's an interesting thread around here about having Crystal Skull screen-accurate pants made -- at over $400./pair.

But the relevant point is that Bernie washed the pants to make them look worn and rumpled. So the question remains: Are these pants brand new or have they been on some adventures?