A practical gift idea: clothing care kit

A clothing care gift basket…

I love practical gifts, but that doesn’t mean they can’t incorporate a little luxury. Here are a few of my favorite clothing care products that would make a lovely clothing care kit gift, either together or on their own:

Clothing care gift ideas: cashmere detergent, lingerie bags, travel steamer.

1 The Laundress Wool & Cashmere Shampoo. I’ve used this shampoo for years now on my cashmere and wool sweaters and love it. All of The Laundress products are cruelty-free and plant-based.

2 Fabric Fresh Spray. Freshens clothes between launderings.

3Small clothing steamer. I bought one of these for travel, but now use it frequently at home. Easier on delicate fabrics than ironing.

4 – Moths can be tenacious, so any steps that can prevent them from taking up residence are worth the effort! During the warmer months, I store my (clean) wool and cashmere sweaters in a cloth storage bag like this one.

5Mesh washing bags. These are my laundry Secret Weapon. I use these bags to wash any delicates in the machine, as well as wool and cashmere sweaters, scarves, and cloth masks.

Clothing care gift ideas: clothing brush, moth repellent sachets, sweater comb.

6Potpourri cone. I learned from Julia at Total Wardrobe Care that oil and dirt particles can accumulate in the bottom of laundry hampers and be an attractive environment for moths. So I keep one of these in the bottom of our hamper to discourage the little buggers.

7 Sachets. In addition to deterring moths, these May Chang hanging sachets make our closet smell fabulous! (Julia from Total Wardrobe Care gifted these a while back, and I’m just about to order another set.) I hang these every 20″ or so among my wool, cotton, and linen items.

8 – A sweater comb. This is the one I use to remove any pills, and always pack in my travel toiletries kit.

9Clothing brush. Cutting back on laundering or dry cleaning will help clothes last longer. Sometimes all that’s needed is a surface cleaning. A clothing brush like this one can remove dust, lint, pet hair and surface dirt.

10Janie Stick. Gently and effectively removes grease stains. I never travel without one of these!

More clothing care kit gift ideas:

Wool dryer balls. I switched from disposable fabric softener sheets to wool dryer balls several years ago, and have never looked back. They reduce static and wrinkles, and help clothes dry faster without damaging fibers, your dryer, or the environment.

A cedar moth kit will help keep your clothes for longer and this kit has everything you need. With over 1K purchases last month and great reviews, you won’t regret buying it.

Anti-static Freshening Spray. In between washings, spritz sweaters with this to freshen and deter moths.

What would you include in a Clothing Care Kit?

For more gift ideas, check out my “comfort & joy” gift ideas for women.

(This post was published at an earlier date and has since been updated.)

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23 Comments

  1. I would include a copy of “Laundry Love…Finding love in common chore,” by Patric Richardson. A fun read with amazing information.

    1. I totally would recommend this book! When my Minneapolis friend (who actually went to one of Patric’s seminars) said it changed her laundry routine, I had to read the book. I really did learn a lot about laundry and I was in my late 60’s!!

  2. A lovely gift idea. My daughter could use these things. I use wool dryer balls as well and sometimes add a little essential oil on them to fragrance my clothes in the dryer.

  3. I want to fully understand washing sweaters with a blend of 8 percent wool. Do you wash them in bags and have them be ok? Mine say DRY CLEAN ONLY. I really like your product ideas today. Thank you.

    1. Hi Barbara, I wash almost all of my wool, wool blend, and cashmere pieces on the delicate cycle in a mesh bag. Then reshape and dry flat on a rack. (The exceptions would be sweater jackets, or anything with more structure, which I do dry clean.)

    2. I use The Laundress Delicate Wash for sweaters that are a blend that includes some wool. I use a mesh bag, cold water on hand-wash or delicate cycle, and lay flat to dry and they come out great — softer and better-smelling than dry cleaning and no harsh chemicals.

  4. Thinking of services my dry cleaner/tailor used to provide, I’d add a tiny sewing kit — for reattaching buttons or fixing hems. It’s amazing, but a colleague used to pay his dry cleaner $5 per button to re-sew them. Ha.

  5. My hubby does most of our laundry. It was a problem figuring out what to hand dry and what goes in the dryer. I use the mesh bags to indicate what needs to be hung. It makes it so much easier to identify the delicate items. BTW a big shout out to him for wrangling the laundry!

  6. Great list. I would add a rechargeable sweater shaver. I love mine. Available on Amazon for under $20. There is no danger of cutting my fine knitted and cashmere sweaters. Far more effective than a comb, I have found. Also, I love the Woolite Dry Cleaner Sheets to use for 20 minutes in your dryer. They work great on my husband’s Pendleton shirts and my fine woolen or cashmere knits. If you have a major stain, should take the item to the cleaners. I use mine at the end of a season to freshen up my sweaters before storage. Since I live in the PNW, lightweight cashmere sweaters are worn 10 months a year.!!

  7. Thanks for this post, it’s a great resource for all things laundry. I’ve just recently started wearing cashmere sweaters and I bought a sweater comb similar to the one you show, but I’m curious about how often I should be using it. Is there a rule of thumb for that? Is any amount of pilling acceptable?

    1. Hi Wendy, I generally only comb when pilling is noticeable, and only on the pilled area. Some pilling is normal for most cashmere sweaters, especially when new.

  8. Well I’m leaving a second comment today 🙂 I just ordered the Laundress shampoo. I also looked at the storage bags and then saw a different version that is stackable because it has a frame built into the bag. I really need to stack on my closet shelves to utilize all the space. So I’m going with that choice. Now to the steamer…it cautions against using on wool and other delicate fabrics I’m sure that’s because steam will shrink wool…but it also says to if used on wool to steam on the underside of garment. Susan, how do you use this steamer on your cashmere or other wool garments? I’d like to hear your first hand experience along with the steamers cautions. Thanks….

    1. Hi Dee, I generally don’t steam my sweaters, but have steamed wool jackets, coats, and pants without any problems.

      1. Thanks! I don’t want to make mistakes. Also which drying rack do you use? There are so many versions. I’ve tried the old lay out the sweater on towels but the towels then stay damp and who has flat space to have multiple sweaters drying on damp towels? There’s always something new to learn and I’m eager to here any ideas. Thanks

  9. I have a hard and fast rule that nothing comes into the house ( exception: my husband’s suits or outerwear) that needs dry cleaning. I won’t wear anything next to my skin that has been dry cleaned but I also have a fondness for cashmere sweaters, wraps etc. I have used mesh bags for years washing silk and cashmere in cold water with a product called Soak. I have used my front loader which has a hand wash cycle but I put it on spin and no problems. Lay them out to dry and go over with a steamer if needed. They smell clean and fresh no shrinkage! The enemy of wool is temperature change which causes shrinkage so cool water only and no dryer.
    I also store my clean cashmere in oversized plastic ziplocks with the air sucked out. Never had an issue. Great list Susan I need a travel steamer the one I have is a bit big, I’ll look into this one.

  10. How do you steam clothing without burning your fingers? I haven’t figured this out because it seems I need to pull on the fabric to get a good result.

    1. Hi Janie, it’s a matter of practice, I think. I focus on keeping my free hand below the level of the steam spout, as steam (& heat) rise. When steaming a lighter weight piece (like a blouse) I steam from the inside.

  11. This is such a good idea for a gift.
    I am going to keep your list, and put together a kit for my granddaughter when she leaves for college. If I’d had mesh bags in college I would have saved a lot of clothes.
    I like washing wool sweaters at home too, and am happy with the results.