How to Wash and Clean a Faux Fur Coat, Jacket, or Vest

Photo by Jesus "CritiQ" Henriquez

Is your faux fur coat or jacket looking a little worse for the wear? Has that beautiful furry hood accessory been to one too many parties? If your SpiritHood seems like it could use a little TLC, don’t worry – it happens to all of us!

Before you attempt to wash faux fur coats, hoods, and vests, let us fill you in on the proper way to clean faux fur coats. Yep, there’s a specific method to the cleaning madness. But, trust us – if you follow our tips, your faux fur will remain puuuurrrrrfectly sexy for years to come.

Does My Faux Fur Coat, Jacket, or Vest Need to Be Washed?

Before taking your stylish piece for a swim, ask yourself a few questions. Where has your faux baby been lately? Did you have the time of your life at a music festival? Bet you were rockin’ out to your favorite artists while creating lasting memories with your crew. If you’re smiling from ear to ear right now but your sexy digs look like they barely survived the apocalypse, you may need a clean faux fur coat. 

While keeping you warm and cuddly, your once clean faux fur coat took a beating, didn’t it? Dust storms, rain, body glitter, and even sweat can dampen the foxy fluff. The harsh environmental elements alone can soil your faux fur. But don’t worry, we’re here to help you rescue your favorite accessory and get you back into your puuuurrrrfectly clean faux fur coat, vest, or hoody in no time!

If your beloved faux fur coat, jacket, vest, shawl, or hood needs some serious attention, we’ve got you covered. As long as you follow our step-by-step guide on how to wash faux fur coats and accessories, you’ll be struttin’ around with your pack again in no time! And yes, this method will work for any faux fur, but why would you pawssibly want anything but a SpiritHood?

 

How Often Should I Clean Faux Fur Coats and Accessories?

 To keep your beloved faux fur garments in excellent shape, you’ll want to avoid washing them too often. What's too often, you ask? Grrrreat question.

How often you should wash faux fur coats and accessories depends on you. How often do you prowl in your panther or snuggle in your wolf throw? You’ll also want to consider the environments your faux furs have been in. 

If you tend to be around smoke often, a clean faux fur coat or garment is probably a must. However, you really only want to wash faux fur coats only a couple of times a year at most. So, if you can avoid sauntering around long-lasting smells in your furs, you’ll keep them looking and smelling fabulous in between cleanings. 

Now, if you have a run-in with a drink or have a pet who lives to drool on your faux feline robe, you may only need to spot clean now and then. If you can avoid excess exposure to unintended fur decor, that’d be super! 

If you only slip into the warmth of one of these bad boys a few times a year, you can get away with a good dunking once per year or two.

How to Determine When to Wash Faux Fur Coats and Accessories

Now, before you get out your cleaning supplies, pull out your faux fur vest or hood and examine the damage. Does your golden wolf show signs of post-party destruction? Has it lost its alluring appeal or silky, soft texture? If your sexy second skin resembles more of a hunt gone wrong, it’s time for a good cleanse.

Avoid Heat like the Plague

Before we even begin, listen to us very carefully. DO NOT, under any circumstance, use heat. Don’t dip it in hot water or put that sexy beast in a dryer. Write that down.

Most faux or fake fur is made from acrylic—which is an artificial fiber. What happens when heat meets acrylic? It melts. This is why you should never (ever, ever, ever!) use hot water or put your (dirty or clean) faux fur coat in the dryer.

Heat will ruin the soft and fluffy fur of your faux fur coat, shawl, vest, or hood. Trust us when we say you won’t be able to revive it. Instead, you'll take one look at it and be sadder than a kid who dropped his ice cream cone on a nice sunny day.

We repeat: Never use hot water. Never put faux fur in the dryer. Memorize it. Get it tattooed on your arm. Whatever you have to do to remind yourself that heat is bad news for your faux fur!

Got it? Now you’re ready to get your hands wet!

How to Clean Faux Fur Coats and Accessories

All faux fur requires specific care to ensure it comes out this process lookin’ sexy as….well, you get the idea. It’s vital that you don’t deviate from these steps. Now, let’s stop pussyfooting around and get to it!

What’s That Smell? Steps to Clean Faux Fur Coats, Hoods, and Other Accessories 

Step 1– Take a little whiff of your faux fur garment. If it hasn't been to a dusty and debaucherous festival lately, it may just need a good shaking outside. Escort your beast out back and give it several firm yet loving shakes.

Give your precious a good brush with a wide-tooth comb. Don’t be afraid…you can apply medium pressure—we promise he won’t bite. If you have an official SpiritHood faux fur, use the comb that came with your purchase for optimal fluff.

Step 2 – Does your faux fur have a lingering scent? If you’re getting fragrance flashbacks from recent adventure trapped within your fur, we recommend an essential oils spray. (The best essential oils to eliminate smells are lavender and orange.) Bring your garment outside and give it a light spritzing.

Step 3 – Now, allow your beauty to hang in a safe location indoors. Be sure to leave it in an open space, away from direct sunlight, for a day or so.

Mental Note: Don't hang it in a cramped closet or next to a heater. Doing so will cause unnecessary damage to your clean faux fur coat, hood, or throw. Ideally, you want to hang it in a place where nothing is touching it. Give it some space to breathe. Yes, your faux fur needs to breathe! :)

Step 4 – Give it a quick run-through with your fingers to check for damp spots. All good? Then your fake fur garment is now ready for its next outing.

 

Steps to Wash Faux Fur Coats, Hoods, and Other Accessories

If your faux fur coat, jacket, or vest DOES need more than a spritz, here’s how you’ll want to wash faux fur coats and accessories to ensure they survive!

Spot Clean Faux Fur Coats and Garments When Possible

First, let’s talk about how you effectively spot clean faux fur coats, jackets, and vests. Besides, if you don’t need to go through the hassle of a full-blown swim yet, why do it?

Did you have a beverage mishap? A little spillage happens now and then. Our trusted spot cleaning method should have you taken care of in no time.

Here’s how to give your faux some spot cleaning love:

Step 1 - Using cold water only, dunk the soiled area into a bowl of water. Slosh it around a bit, gently rubbing the soiled areas together.

Step 2 - Remove your faux fur from the water and squeeze or press firmly to remove water. DO NOT wring it out. You don’t want to damage the poor thing! Remove as much water as you can. 

Step 3- Hang dry this bad boy in an open area, avoiding direct sunlight and cramped quarters.

Step 4 – Use your SpiritHoods comb to brush, fluff, and reshape the fur.

Now, if you’ve tried both airing out and spot cleaning and still have a little something on your fur, you’ll want to give that baby a bath. If you know heading straight to the full spa treatment is what your SpiritHood needs, follow the steps below.

How To Wash Your Faux Fur Coat, Jacket, or Vest By Hand

Faux fur is a unique fabric, and as such, if you want it to last, we always recommend washing it by hand. This sounds tedious, but it's really not that difficult. Fwhrankly, nobody’s going to show your faux the kind of love YOU will. It’s the best method if you want longevity and a truly clean faux fur coat, jacket, throw, or vest.

It just takes seven specific steps. Ready? Let’s do this:

1. Prepare — Take everything out of your pawkets and secret zipper pocket (if it's a SpiritHood brand product).

2. Fill— Fill up a bowl, sink, or bathtub with cool water. Most faux fur hoods and shawls can easily be washed in a bathroom or kitchen sink. If you've got a faux fur coat, jacket, vest, or throw, you’ll definitely want to use your tub. Trust me….it’s the puuurrrrfect size.

3. Wash — Dunk your faux fur into the cool water and give it a good swish.  Prepare yourself - the amount of dirt that releases from the fur is a bit horrifying! It’s crazy how much dirt and dust particles can be hiding all up in there. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!

Continue to carefully yet firmly hand wash your item, sloshing it around enough to set that trapped dirt free. A nice swim will ensure it all falls away.

4. Rinse—Empty and refill the sink or tub with fresh cold water. If you have any stains or visible spots, gently rub those areas together.

5. Squeeze— Once your clean faux fur coat, jacket, or vest is soil-free, it’s time to give it a bear hug. Use your muscles and gently, but firmly, press or squeeze out the excess water, but do not wring it out.

The water will make your jacket or throw pretty heavy. You want to get as much water out now before you hang it up. Concentrate on squeezing and pressing the water out from the bulkier areas of your garment first, and work your way out to the edges.

6. Hang Dry — Now that you’ve removed as much of the excess water as possible, your clean faux fur coat is ready to hang dry. Hang your SpiritHood faux fur coat, jacket, or vest in your bathroom, near an open window, or outside. Remember to keep that baby out of the direct sunlight! The more air circulating around your garment or blanket, the faster it will dry.

Don’t get antsy - it may take a day or two after you wash faux fur coats and garments to dry thoroughly. Check on it every few hours, rotating it to expose all sides evenly. You could also place a fan nearby to help speed up the drying process.

7. Brush — Using a wide-toothed brush or the one we included with your SpiritHood purchase, brush the fur back into place while still damp. This will help your clean faux fur coat or throw retain its natural shape, shine, and fabulous good looks.

Once your coat, jacket, or vest is dry, give it another good comb-through to help fluff it up. Alternatively, you can use your fingers to move the fur back into place.

PRO TIP: Always hang your coats, jackets, vests, hoods, or shawls in a closet with space between your faux fur and other items. Smashing your items together degrades the fluffy appearance of your garment, and we want to see you out in full fluff!

To Soap or Not To Soap When Hand Washing

Naturally, you want to know if you should use soap when you wash faux fur coats and accessories. I hear ya! Who wants to cozy up under a dirty blanket, right? The truth is, you probably don’t need to add any soap to your cool water. 

If you follow our steps, the process of hand washing should remove most dirt and odor trapped in the fur. However, if you really want to use soap, just make sure it’s a light and natural soap. Avoiding heavy detergents and bleach, which can permanently damage your faux fur, will ensure it’s with you for years to come.

Use just a drop or two of a natural castile soap—like Dr. Bronner’s. We recommend adding it to the sink or tub full of water first, then adding in your garment.

Be sure to rinse your fur piece out thoroughly during the Wash and Rinse steps. You don’t want any lingering soap particles clinging to the fur.

Can I Wash Faux Fur Coats, Jackets, and Vests In A Washing Machine?

As most of you know by now, we highly recommend you clean your faux fur coats, vests, shawls, and hoods by hand. However, if you have the right equipment, you could technically stick your faux fur item in a washing machine, but NEVER the dryer. That said, there are some critical things to consider as you wash faux fur coats or other items in the machine.

Considerations before using a washing machine for faux fur:

1. The Washing Machine – The type of washing machine you use matters. We recommend a High-Efficiency washing machine that is 2019 or newer, as the technology in most newer models has a gentle function that is actually gentle.

If you wish to use a detergent, we still recommend a very mild and gentle liquid detergent.

We do not recommend using a public laundry facility, as industrial machines are not sensitive enough to prevent damage to your faux fur. We also do not recommend using your apartment’s washing machines, as they are also likely to cause damage to your faux fur coat, vest, shawl, or hood.

Side note: If your faux fur coat happens to be made out of 100% polyester, a standard machine should work just fine.

2. Prepare- Take everything out of your pawkets and secret zipper pocket (if it's a SpiritHood brand product).

3. Protect the Environment - We strongly recommend buying the Guppy Friend Washing Bag (or other wash bags) to throw your garment into while machine washing. This bag prevents microplastics from going into the ocean. Although you’ll only need to wash your item every once in a blue moon, this bag is still perfect for protecting our oceans. 

We are currently developing our own larger version of this wash bag to fit our SpiritHood garments. As soon as we get it puuuurrrrfect and have more information, we’ll pass it on! 

Follow the directions provided when washing your garments using the Guppy Friend Wash Bag.

4. Toss it in the Washing Machine on Cold— Run the gentlest cycle possible - cold water only! Once the cycle is, finished gently but forcibly squeeze or press out any excess water. Remember, do not wring out your Faux fur.

5. Hang Dry — Now that you’ve squeezed out all the water that you can, it’s time to hang dry. But, of course, you weren't thinking about tossing that bad boy in the dryer, were you? DON’T DRY IT IN A MACHINE… EVER.

Hang your clean faux fur coat or jacket in your bathroom, near an open window or outside, out of the direct sun as previously recommended.

6. Brush— Using the same method, gently brush your faux fur while damp and again after drying is complete.

Keep Your Faux Fur Fluffy Faux Ever

If you follow our instructions on how to clean faux fur coats, you’ll have a fresh and fluffy faux fur coat, throw, blanket, or hood faux ever! When you treat your SpiritHood or other faux fur garments like a fine cashmere sweater, it will keep you looking sexy faux years!

Now that you know how to care for your fur, it’s time to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty — errr clean!