Coat Care Guide

We want your Appaman down jacket to last as long as possible, so it is very important to follow the care labels that come attached to the garment, especially if they have trims that need to be removed and/or secured prior to washing.  Outerwear often has faux trims that need to be removed and cared for separately. 

Always detach the faux fur from the coat prior to washing your coat. Getting faux fur wet can weaken the fibers and cause them to fall out, so for best results, brush the fur with a firm bristle brush, in the direction of the hair, on a weekly basis, especially after contact with rain. Consider shaking or brushing out dirt, and only using water to spot clean it when necessary.

Cleaning steps:

• Gently hand wash the fur using only a small amount of cool to lukewarm water and mild, color-safe soap, such as a wool wash.
• Avoid excessive agitation and/or wringing.  Rinse well with clean water to remove all soap.

Drying steps:

• Do not use appliances or heat for drying. 
• Gently brush and hang dry using a hanger or curtain rod, or lay flat on a towel to air dry.  Keep out of sunlight & heat.  Reposition and fluff the fur often to avoid flattening or creasing. 
• Do not reattach to the coat until both the coat and the fur itself are completely dry.

Down Coats

Down coats can be machine washed and dried! Remove any faux fur trim first.

Washing steps:

• Always use a front-loading washer when possible.  If a top loading washer is all you have available, use the gentle cycle, but beware that the agitating action of top loading washers can easily rip or snag the special quilted construction of down jackets.
• It is also recommended that you use a cleaner that’s specifically designed for down garments.  Regular detergents can be used; however, down soaps are more likely to rinse out clean and they can help prevent the stripping away of natural oils found in down which keep it soft.
• Use the permanent-press cycle on the washer and be sure not to add more soap than recommended on the bottle. Residual soap can prevent the down from drying properly, so you may want to run it through an additional wash cycle without soap to ensure it rinses clean.

Drying steps:

Please note that drying must be done slowly and completely. 

• High heat can ruin your jacket, so always use low heat.  Be extremely cautious when using commercial dryers as they tend to overheat quickly.  Make sure the dryer has cooled completely before using on your jacket. 
• Tossing in 2-3 clean tennis balls can be very helpful for breaking up the down clumps. 
• With or without tennis balls, it is also important to pull the jacket out regularly to shake it and manually pull apart any clumps with your fingers.  This will not only improve the look of the garment, but should also significantly reduce the drying time. 

If you do not have a dryer, you can always let the jacket air dry, but keep in mind that it can take up to a week to dry completely, depending on the humidity level. 

• To air dry, lay the jacket flat on a towel in a warm, dry spot out of direct sunlight.
• As with the dryer method, be sure to flip it over regularly and pull apart the down clumps to ensure it dries completely. 

Beware that down is extremely absorbent, so it can appear dry long before it actually is. 

Storing:

Avoid storing down jackets until completely dry and never compress them.  Compressing or stuffing wet down can lead to mildew which will ruin your down clothing.