How to Care for Linen

12 de octubre de 2026

Wash linen at 30°C (86°F) on a gentle cycle, with the drum about half full and a low spin. Dry linen on a hanger in the shade, or tumble it briefly on low and take it out while damp. Iron linen damp at the hot setting, three dots in the iron symbol, up to 200°C (390°F), on the reverse.

That suits most linen dresses, blouses and trousers. The sewn-in label on each piece comes first: its instructions mark the harshest treatment the piece can take, so a cooler wash or a gentler cycle stays within them. Sizes and fit are on Size & care.

Step	What to do	Why
Wash	30°C (86°F), gentle cycle; up to 40°C (104°F) if the label allows.	The linen trade's own advice for garments.
Load	Drum about half full, similar colors, inside out.	The detergent industry's advice for delicate fabrics.
Detergent	Mild, without bleach. No optical brighteners on colored linen.	The Alliance's advice for linen; brighteners are whiteners.
Spin	Low. Never wring.	Hard spinning and wringing mark linen with folds.
Dry	On a hanger, in the shade; or tumble briefly on low and remove damp.	Open air keeps linen flexible.
Iron	Three dots, up to 200°C (390°F), damp, on the reverse.	Three dots is the setting the label system gives linen and cotton.
Shrinkage	A little, mostly in the first washes.	Tested fabrics shrank a few percent.
Store	Hanging, or folded loosely and refolded from time to time; clean and fully dry.	Repeated creasing in one place weakens linen.

What temperature should you wash linen at?

Wash linen garments at 30°C (86°F) on a gentle or delicate cycle, which is the advice of the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp, the European linen industry's trade body; linen makers put the limit for garments at 40°C (104°F). On a US care label that is "cold": the Federal Trade Commission's Care Labeling Rule defines cold as water up to 30°C (86°F) and warm as 31–44°C (87–111°F). Linen makers keep hot washes for kitchen and household linen.

Use a mild detergent without bleaching agents. For colored linen, linen makers advise a detergent without optical brighteners, the fluorescent whiteners that shift a shade toward white. Fabric softener is not needed: the Alliance notes that linen grows softer and more supple with washing.

How full should the washer be for linen?

About half full. A.I.S.E., the European detergent industry body, advises half-filling the drum for delicate fabrics, and the American Cleaning Institute's rule is that clothes need room to move. Keep the spin low and never wring linen: the Alliance warns that heavy wringing marks it with folds and that excessive spinning shortens its life.

Does linen shrink, and how much?

Linen shrinks a little, mostly in its first few washes, and less if it was pre-washed or stonewashed. In a 2008 study by Malčiauskienė and colleagues, a linen honeycomb fabric (a towel weave) washed at 30°C (86°F) in plain water stopped shrinking after its fourth or fifth wash; the authors give the clothing industry's limit as 2% in either direction. In a 2024 test, cotton-linen fabrics of 22–45% linen shrank about 2–4.5% after a 40°C (104°F) wash and 70 minutes in a dryer at 60°C (140°F). The Alliance warns that excessive heat can cause shrinkage.

The figures quoted online, often "3–10%, up to 15%", come from retailers and cite no test that can be traced. Pre-washed linen still shrinks a little.

Linen needs no sizing rule of its own: the tested figures are a few percent, mostly in the first washes, and a cool, gentle wash with air drying avoids the heat that adds to it. Size & care shows how to measure and what to do between sizes.

Can you put linen in the dryer?

Yes, on low, if the label allows it, and take it out while it is still slightly damp, which also makes it easier to iron. The Alliance says tumble drying is "not always recommended" and prefers open air, away from direct sun, so the fiber keeps its flexibility. The Canadian Conservation Institute notes that light damage to fabric is cumulative and cannot be undone.

Why does linen wrinkle so easily?

Linen wrinkles because flax has very little give. Britannica puts linen's wrinkling down to its low elasticity, which also gives linen its hard, smooth texture. In a 2014 review of plant fibers by Célino and colleagues, a flax fiber breaks at 1–4% elongation, against 7–8% for cotton. In a 2012 study by Vasile and colleagues, flax fabric recovered poorly from creasing. Ironing is optional; linen makers treat a soft crease as part of the look.

Is linen stronger when wet?

Not by any figure that has been measured. Linen does not weaken when wet the way viscose does, and water makes flax more pliable. The "20% stronger when wet" line repeated online traces to anonymous lecture slides; in published studies, flax strength rises with humidity only up to about 50–70% relative humidity and then falls.

How do you iron linen?

Iron linen hot and damp: three dots in the iron symbol, up to 200°C (390°F); the Alliance puts linen at "around 200°C". Iron while it is still slightly damp, or with plenty of steam, and on the reverse, as the Alliance advises. Use a pressing cloth on dark linen; GINETEX suggests one for pieces that can take on a shine. Avoid pressing sharp creases into dark linen: the University of Georgia Extension notes that its color can wear pale along a crease. Hang the piece as soon as it is pressed.

Without an iron, a steamer works well, and so does hanging the piece in a steamy bathroom or smoothing it by hand while it is wet.

How do you keep white linen white?

Wash white linen after every wear, with whites only and the right dose of detergent. The American Cleaning Institute notes that whites slowly turn grayer or yellower when they are washed with heavily soiled clothes, and that too much detergent or too little leaves clothes less clean; oxygen bleach works best at maintaining whiteness, not restoring it. None of the sources behind this guide gives a separate wash temperature for white linen garments, so the label sets it. For linen that has already yellowed, the Alliance suggests a short soak: 10–15 minutes in a little chlorine bleach, or 30 minutes in hydrogen peroxide, an oxygen bleach, then rinsed cold. That advice is written for sheets; for a garment, check the triangle on its label first. An empty triangle allows any bleach, and a crossed triangle means none. Two lines inside it mean oxygen bleach only: the peroxide soak, not chlorine.

Does linen need to be dry-cleaned?

Usually not. When a linen label asks for dry cleaning, the reason is often the rest of the piece: the Alliance names linings and buttons. Under US rules a label needs to list only one safe method, so "Dry clean" alone does not mean the piece cannot be washed; "Dry clean only" does, and a maker may print it only with evidence that washing would cause damage. "For best results, dry clean" means the piece can be washed, though dry cleaning may keep it looking better. Follow the label of a tailored, lined or interfaced linen blazer.

How do you remove stains from linen?

Act while the stain is fresh. Blot a spill rather than rubbing it in, test any product on an inside seam, and keep the piece out of the dryer until the stain is gone, because heat can set it. The methods below are adapted from the American Cleaning Institute's Stain Removal Guide. Where it says to use the hottest water safe for the fabric, read that as the warmest the label allows, no warmer than 40°C (104°F) for colored linen.

Stain	Method
Red wine	Sponge with cool water, or soak in cool water for about 30 minutes, pretreat with a stain remover, then wash.
Coffee, tea	Sponge or soak in cool water, pretreat with liquid detergent, then wash; soak an old stain in an enzyme product.
Oil, grease	Pretreat with liquid detergent, then wash in the warmest water the label allows.
Sweat, deodorant	Pretreat with a stain remover or bar soap, then wash. On stubborn marks, use an enzyme product or oxygen bleach.
Rust	Use a rust remover made for fabric. Never chlorine bleach, which can darken rust.
Mildew	Pretreat, then wash as warm as the label allows, with a bleach the label permits. Badly mildewed fabric may be beyond repair.

For a hard stain such as grease or red wine on a piece that cannot be washed, or on anything labeled for dry cleaning, take it to a cleaner; the Alliance and the Irish Linen Guild both recommend professional help for difficult stains.

How do you store linen in a humid climate?

Hang it on a padded hanger with room around it. A heavy or bias-cut dress is safer stored folded flat, as the Canadian Conservation Institute advises.
If you fold it, fold it loosely, pad the folds with tissue or a cotton cloth, and refold it along different lines from time to time. The University of Georgia Extension notes that linen creased repeatedly in the same place weakens along the fold, and the Canadian Conservation Institute warns that sharp creases can fracture fabric.
Clean, dry and unstarched. Starch and body soil feed mold.
Breathable, not sealed. A cotton bag lets moisture out; plastic keeps it in.
Away from damp. At about 25°C (77°F), the Canadian Conservation Institute puts mold on soiled or starched fabric at about 10 days at 80% relative humidity and about two days at 90% or more; clean linen usually needs 80–85% before mold is likely. Letting the humidity fall to a safe level every few days resets that clock; in a humid climate, a dehumidifier or air conditioning does that for a closet.

How do you care for a linen blend?

Follow the label, which must be safe for the whole piece, linings and trim included. Without one, our guidance is to care for the more delicate fiber. Linen-cotton takes the same care as linen. Linen-viscose takes the care of viscose, which keeps only about half its strength while it is wet: wash it cold, up to 30°C (86°F), by hand or on a gentle cycle; never wring it, but press the water out in a towel; dry it flat or on a padded hanger in the shade, with no dryer; and iron it at two dots, the medium setting, through a pressing cloth. Polyester-linen is covered in How to Care for Polyester and Blends.

Dresses, blouses, trousers and blazers

Dresses. Dry them on a padded hanger, and store a heavy or bias-cut dress as above.
Blouses. Iron on the reverse while still damp, and hang the blouse as soon as it is pressed, as the Alliance advises for shirts, so it keeps its shape.
Trousers. Hang them from the waist or by the hem. Press the front creases lightly, from the reverse, so the color does not wear pale along them.
Blazers. Follow the label, which for a lined or structured blazer may ask for dry cleaning. Between cleanings, hang it on a shaped hanger, steam out the creases and spot-clean marks.

Related guides

Care Label Symbols, Explained reads the label on each piece. How to Care for Cotton covers linen's fellow plant fiber, and How to Care for Viscose explains why viscose is fragile when wet.