How To Keep A Sherpa Comforter Looking As Good As The Day You Bought It

When it's winter, you're sure to reach for a sherpa comforter. These beautiful faux fur blankets add a cozy charm to any room and are perfect to snuggle inside with your next read and a mug of hot chocolate. However, for the coziness to last through the year, you must treat these warm and fuzzy textiles carefully. Otherwise, they may start looking tired and worse for wear, with the synthetic fibers matting up and becoming rough to the touch.

The key to preserving your sherpa comforter's plushness lies in following three essential practices: washing it with cold water and mild detergent on a gentle cycle, skipping the hot dryer for air drying, and brushing out the matted patches regularly. These care practices minimize the exposure to high heat, product build-up, and high friction in wash cycles that wear the synthetic material out, causing it to look run-down. Additionally, it's important to store your comforters the right way. Rather than folding them up, which would crease the material and compress the fibers, roll them into a dust-free cotton bag.

Sherpa comforters shouldn't be washed frequently, as it's the friction in the washer that breaks down the fibers more quickly, rather than your actual use. Unless visibly dirty or heavily used, wash them about once a month or less, though be sure to spot treat any spills immediately. This should help extend the time between washes, prolonging your comforter's usable life. Naturally, this also means you must avoid overloading your washer when you do wash sherpa. Better yet, run it with just a few delicate items to minimize matting. 

Whether spot treating or running the laundry cycle, stick to cold water and a mild detergent meant for delicate fabrics. That's because high heat hardens fibers, while heavy-duty detergents (or bleach or fabric softeners, for that matter) can accumulate on their surface. Either way, your comforter will be stripped of its softness, affecting its durability and your experience.

Moreover, resist the temptation to tumble dry after washing. Sure, comforters dry out faster in the dryer, allowing you to cozy up in your reading nook just as quickly, but they'll come out damaged. Instead, lay them flat like a sweater or suspend them on a rack away from direct sunlight, and air dry to preserve their texture. But if circumstances or space constraints play spoilsport, set the dryer to its gentlest and lowest heat setting and toss in a few wool dryer balls to reduce static. Once dry, fluff it to redistribute the filling and maintain an even look.

Another habit that can help keep your sherpa comforter looking as fresh as ever is judicious brushing. Granted, it requires quite a bit of elbow grease, patience, and time, but it's well worth the effort if you would like your blankets to last for years without acquiring a drab appearance.

After a few wash cycles, examine your blanket for matting patches. Bring out a boar bristle hairbrush or a slicker brush, like this dog grooming brush from Saccison, and run it all over the comforter in every direction to untangle the fibers. Keep your touch light to avoid any untoward snags. This should restore the sherpa's soft, fluffy appearance. In heavily clumped areas, you may spritz water-diluted hair conditioner before brushing to loosen mats.

That being said, if your sherpa comforter still feels rough, consider adding 1 cup of white vinegar during the rinse cycle the next time you launder it. Unlike fabric softeners, white vinegar won't leave behind heavy residue, but will still soften and deodorize the fabric.