Preparation and Care Instructions

Jennifer’s Hamam PREPARATION & Washing Instructions
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** Please note that soaking is for cotton only and for those items that need to be absorbent for proper use

 Organic cotton is not absorbent to begin with; soaking can help speed the process of 'breaking-in' the cotton and assisting it to become more absorbent more quickly.
   
Also note that organic cotton has a huge amount of fluff at the beginning.  The first few times you run your pieces through the dryer, the lint screen will be completely full, but this will subside and become more normal.  If you do not have a dryer machine, it will take longer for this lint to disappear.

***  IF the piece you purchased is NOT going to be used as a towel OR is it made from LINEN, then the soaking can be omitted; however, you should put through the washer/dryer a few times to get rid of the natural lint.  Please see everyday care instructions below.

COTTON Thick Looped Towels
1st time:   soak in cold water for 24 hours and hang to drip dry (if you don't have a place to hang to dry or would like to speed up the process, you can put them in the spin cycle of the washer, then into the dryer)
***BE SURE that the towel is completely saturated with water; you may have to use your hands to squish the towel and really work the water into the fibres; by doing so the cotton can learn how to be absorbent much quicker.
** Please note that colourful or white towels usually need at least 2-3 soaks and a few washes before they are absorbent.  Ecru, which is the natural colour of the cotton and more raw than colourful or white, may need 3-4 soaks and a few washes before they become absorbent.  
Teaching your cotton how to be absorbent is not exact science, it's just water, time, and patience.   If your towels seem to be extra stubborn, it may be that your water is very hard; add a 1/2 cup of clear vinegar into the soaking/washing water to assist in softening the water. The other reason for a towel's slowness in learning how to be absorbent could be that the quantity of natural oils in the cotton is still too high for effective absorbency; in this case a hot water or two wash usually solves this issue.
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‍Everyday care for COTTON or LINEN looped towels:  
washing machine 30-40 C
NO FABRIC SOFTENER, NO BLEACH
cool-medium dryer
Do not over dry cotton and do not use hot temperatures for linen

**  Should any loops get caught or hang long; cut the longer loop off with sharp scissors at the length of the other loops
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COTTON Thin Flat-woven Pestamel
1st time:   soak in cold water for 10-12 hours and hang to drip dry(if you don't have a place to hang to dry or would like to speed up the process, you can put them in the spin cycle of the washer, then into the dryer)

Pestamel are lighter, thinner and have less material than the thick towels and therefore usually take less time to learn; however, if you are having issues with absorbency after an overnight soak,  the same suggestions made for the thick towels can be used for the pestamel to hurry their learning process along.
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‍Everyday care for COTTON or LINEN:  
‍washing machine 30-40 C
NO FABRIC SOFTENER, NO BLEACH
cool-medium dryer
Do not over dry cotton and do not use hot temperatures for linen
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Everyday care for WOOL items:  
‍washing machine 30C
NO FABRIC SOFTENER, NO BLEACH
Lay flat to dry.  

KEEPING WHITES WHITE and dealing with STAINS
Using harsh chemicals damages natural fibres. As a natural alternative use - Vinegar and Baking Soda
You can put a teaspoon of each directly on a stain, rub and throw into the washing machine.
You can use up to a cup of each (pour directly into the washing machine) to slowly and naturally whiten your whites.
***note a reaction happens when the two ingredients are mixed, so do not try and mix in a  small glass or they will bubble up over the glass and make a mess.
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ENEMIES OF YOUR TOWELS
Our everyday hygiene products may seem harmless, but many of them can cause your textiles to wear and fray much faster than normal.
 
Things like deodorants and facial/body creams and washes can sometimes contain chemicals that are not good for your textiles.  

Certainly any prescription creams/lotions/gels are usually not good.   

For those of you that love to swim, know that swimming pools contain chlorine and this will not only slowly bleach your towels, but also make them wear much faster. 

We recommend, when you can, to avoid the use of the above mentioned items with your Jennifer’s Hamam textiles.   If it can’t be avoided, be sure to rinse your face, hands, body, etc. VERY WELL before drying yourself and wash out the products from your towel (following the instructions above) as soon as possible.  Using the mixture of vinegar and baking soda (as listed above under Kepping whites white and dealing with stains) is a good idea when you are trying to rid your textiles of unwanted products and chemicals.

Spills & Stains - although these won't destroy your towels, they can make them look unsightly.  If you deal with spills quickly and use the vinegar-baking soda suggestion above, most stains will come out easily.   If you leave the spill to set, it can dye the colour of the fibres and be very difficult to deal with.  Other things like hair dye and ink should be kept away from your lovely textiles as they will permanently dye the fabric.

To keep your towels soft, do not use harsh chemicals, reduce the amount of detergent, increase water temperature for cotton to warm, do not overload your washing machine, use wool dryer balls and lower heat settings in the dryer.

ENJOY!!