Merino Wool and Silk products:
Wool is very elastic. It is dirt and water resistant and has a temperature and warmth regulating effect. It keeps better warm than all other materials and regulates cutaneous respiration and the oxygen exchange. It can absorb up to 35% of its own weight of moisture without feeling wet. Besides, wool is aliphatic by nature.
Due to the wool’s characteristic of being dirt-repellent frequent washing is not necessary as wool regenerates itself by airing-out in air containing a lot of oxygen.
The silk thread is an animal albumen fibre which is extracted from the cocoon of the silkworm and which is similar to the wool fibre structure and in its characteristics. The extraordinary length of this natural silk fibre, its tensile strength, finesse and its characteristic grip, turn silk into one of the finest textile materials. Silk is especially eudermic and has a shiny surface. Silk actively balances temperature, i.e. it gives warmth when it is cold and cools down when warm. Silk is suitable for people with sensitive skin.
Silk can take up 40 % of its own weight as moisture. It regenerates, similarly to wool, in fresh air and does not have to washed frequently. We advise to only hand wash silk in warm water without rubbing. Avoid when drying your silk clothes long and direct sun as otherwise the fibre gets brittle and loses its firmness.
Care instructions for Merino Wool and Silk
Underwear from wool and wool/silk should be washed by hand with a wool detergent. Please do not soak, rub, wring or toss your underwear in water. It is important that the washing and the rinsing water have the same temperature that wool does not suffer a cold shock which causes felting. After washing wrap the underwear in a towel, wring and pull it in form and let it dry flat.
Pay attention to care labels on each product. Here are explanation of the most common symbols which can be found on our prdocts
Wash
Machine wash
Delicate machine wash
Special delicate machine wash
Hand wash
The numbers in the tub indicate the maximum washing temperature, which should not be exceeded. The line underneath the tub requires a (mechanically) softer treatment (delicate wash) and marks washing cycles suitable for wash-and-wear and mechanically delicate articles. A double line indicates washing cycles with a more minimized mechanic, e.g. for wool.
Iron
Hot iron
Medium hot iron
Do not hot iron! Be careful when steam ironing
Do not iron
The points in the iron indicate the levels of temperature of the respective iron.
Tumble Drying
Drying with normal thermal load
Drying with reduced thermal load
Do not tumble dry
The points stand for the drying level of the tumble dryer.
Bleach
Chlorine and oxygen bleach admissible
Non-chlorine bleach only
Do not bleach
Dry Clean
Do not Dry Clean
Do not wet clean
The letters are for chemical dry clean and indicate which active solvents can be used. The beam underneath the circle stands for a reduced mechanical treatment, addition of moisture and/or temperature when dry cleaning.
This symbol marks articles which can be wet cleaned. Normally it is in the second line under the symbol for chemical dry cleaning. The beam underneath the circle indicates a reduced mechanical treatment. (see washing).
Engel 'Nature at its best', started off producing knitted nappies in the 1960s. Today our range contains underwear, nightwear and outerwear for babies and children.
Besides organic cotton we use the finest organic Merino virgin wool and natural organic Merino virgin wool with silk. All the dyestuffs we use are free from heavy metals and have always been free from harmful AZO-dyes. For colouring our woollen textiles we use only reactive dye, which compounds particularly well with fibre and stands out for its excellent fastness. We abstain from any kind of chemical finishing with our textile processing. Basically all used agents should be bio-degradable and must not pollute soil, air and water.
All of the metal parts that we employ are free from nickel; other materials stem from natural renewable resources. It is also part of our company’s philosophy to consider aspects of ecological production and waste management as well as human ecological standpoints. We also place a value on short routes of transport as well as on social aspects.
As a founding member of the ‘Arbeitskreis Naturtextil e.V.’ and the International Association Natural Textile Industry e.V. as well as a main initiator of an international ecological textile standard, we will continue to be committed to superior ecological quality – for your skin and for the love of our environment.
Engel
