Linen Pants... will they shrink?

xchen · Aug 18, 2007

Hi all,

I was in the Polo Ralph Lauren outlet today and finally found some linen pants in my size at a price I was willing to spend to try them out. However, they seem really baggy. I haven't washed them yet, and was wondering, will they shrink when I was them? If so I'd probably wash them and dry on high heat. Also, I know these are meant to bunch up, but would you roll them up at all? They are pleated so cuffing them is not an issue.

Thanks,
Christian

TheHoff · Aug 18, 2007

Yup, wash them, hang dry, press while damp. Don't have them hemmed or altered before that as they will shrink. Ignore the dry clean label at your risk but I wash mine as the texture only gets better and linen is meant to be washed (but not heat dried).

coachvu · Aug 18, 2007

They aren't going to shrink as much as it sounds like you want them to shrink. Also, unless these are drawstring linen pants, I wouldn't roll them.

TheHoff · Aug 18, 2007

Originally Posted by coachvu

They aren't going to shrink as much as it sounds like you want them to shrink. Also, unless these are drawstring linen pants, I wouldn't roll them.

Agreed on the rolling; get them hemmed/cuffed. However I thought the same thing about the shrinkage but just last week I did a first wash on a pair of linen Polo trousers that brought them in nicely in the leg. It won't hurt to try as it sounds as if you need less inseam as well.

Holdfast · Aug 18, 2007

Originally Posted by TheHoff

Agreed on the rolling; get them hemmed/cuffed. However I thought the same thing about the shrinkage but just last week I did a first wash on a pair of linen Polo trousers that brought them in nicely in the leg. It won't hurt to try as it sounds as if you need less inseam as well.

I think it depends a bit on how tightly woven the linen to begin with. If the pair being mentioned above are the ones I think they are, then the weave is quite open to start with, so a little bit of shrinkage isn't entirely unexpected. A more tightly woven linen shouldn't shrink as much in my experience.

Nowadays, I tend to send all trousers to the dry cleaner, regardless of material, and haven't noticed major shrinkage with that form of cleaning.

TheHoff · Aug 18, 2007

Originally Posted by Holdfast

I think it depends a bit on how tightly woven the linen to begin with. If the pair being mentioned above are the ones I think they are, then the weave is quite open to start with, so a little bit of shrinkage isn't entirely unexpected. A more tightly woven linen shouldn't shrink as much in my experience.

Nowadays, I tend to send all trousers to the dry cleaner, regardless of material, and haven't noticed major shrinkage with that form of cleaning.

It was the pair courtesy of the HF Men's Shoppe in the UK. They were had at a great price but they were a bit baggy at first appearance (as they should be, for the casual style)... I do favor washed linen though so the shrinkage was expected and welcome.

Holdfast · Aug 18, 2007

Originally Posted by TheHoff

It was the pair courtesy of the HF Men's Shoppe in the UK. They were had at a great price but they were a bit baggy at first appearance (as they should be, for the casual style)... I do favor washed linen though so the shrinkage was expected and welcome.

I'm glad the magic of water did the trick for them.

If only all fit problems were so easily solved!

Vintage Gent · Aug 18, 2007

It's possible, though, that the waistband could shrink far more than the rest of the trousers. That's fine if they're quite loose in the waist, but otherwise you could render them unwearable (or at least in need of letting out). Launder linen pants at your own peril.

xchen · Aug 18, 2007

Originally Posted by Vintage Gent

It's possible, though, that the waistband could shrink far more than the rest of the trousers. That's fine if they're quite loose in the waist, but otherwise you could render them unwearable (or at least in need of letting out). Launder linen pants at your own peril.

I think they'd be okay if they shrunk a little. Even if they weren't, they only set me back $20 so it wouldn't wreck my world. I'm also not sure what shoes to wear these with. I'll post some pics of possibilities sometime next week to see what you guys think. Thanks for all the replies. I'll let you know how they turn out after I try washing them.

kitonbrioni · Aug 18, 2007

I've not notice that linen shrinks a lot when machine washed and dried. However, it looks and feels better with each wash.

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