Can This Item Safely Be Washed Or Dry Cleaned Please?

[wordyone]

I have had a 100% genuine Lambswool rug (small one) for some time now and it is looking a little the worse for wear. Is there any way of washing it or dry cleaning it to spruce it up a bit or will that ruin it altogether? Thanks.

[TheChair]

Found lots of advice on Google. Summarized below:

If you handwash, do it very very gently, in pleasantly warm water - not hot. Do it in a bathtub so that there's plenty of space. Don't rub, just swish. If you need to get dirt out, squeeze it through. Use detergent that is specially for wool and silk - this really makes a difference to the softness, so is worth the expense (besides it doesn't 'go off', so you just keep for next use). Drain the tub with the blanket in it, and squeeze out the water - don't wring. Rinse 3 times in the same way, finishing with a cool rinse, and then lay it out on a thikc towel. Role up, squeeze gently to remove excess water. Lay it out on a dry towel and leave to air dry flat.

This sounds like a lot of faff, but if you don't have a good wool wash cycle on your machine, or you have something particularly delicate, it is worth the effort.

Because it stretches easily when wet, the handling and drying advice is very important.

[wordyone]

Thanks for your answer TheChair. Think I will try this.

[atalanta]

If you mean lambskin, yes, wash it in the bath. It takes ages to dry, but will eventually dry alright.
If it is lambswool but not skin, then no. Get it dry-cleaned.

[wordyone]

Just caught up with some later answers. Thanks 'atalanta' for reminding me to check whether it is also lambskin - it is. So I can try the washing suggestion given. Thanks again everyone.