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After spending $50 on a sports bra and over $100 on a pair of leggings, you sure as heck don’t want to mess them up in the laundry. These specially made clothes require a little special attention in the wash, otherwise you may end up with piling, stretching, fading, shrinking, or even prematurely ending the lifespan of your gear.
If you’ve been wondering how to care for lululemon products, we’ve got ya covered. After all, yoga wear as expensive as lululemon should definitely last for many sweaty workouts to come! Proper care is key for getting the longest life out of these garments.
(And if you’re wondering if lululemon is even worth it in the first place, check out this post where we dive into Everything You Need to Know about lululemon).
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How to Wash lululemon
When I bought my first pair of Lulus, I was honestly afraid to wash them. I didn’t want to mess up the buttery smooth texture or perfect curve-hugging stretch. Thankfully, I learned that washing lululemon clothes doesn’t need to be a huge ordeal. It’s actually pretty simple once you get the hang of it.
lululemon Washing Instructions
lululemon offers a wide range of product lines with unique proprietary fabrics, trademarked fiber technology, and the highest quality manufacturing details. So you can’t just toss these clothes in the laundry like you would an old T-shirt.
Fortunately, however, most lululemon clothes are totally machine washable and easy to dry. There are just some specific steps you should take to maintain the luxe quality you paid for.
lululemon care instructions are usually found on each garment’s inner tag or on the product listing online. Check the label on your gear for fabric-specific wash info or review our guide below.
Never Wash Your lululemon Gear Like This
It may seem silly, but I once almost had a heart attack when I saw my husband tossing my Lulu outfits into a hot laundry load with his Carhartt workwear and heavy-duty jackets. This would’ve completely ruined the luxurious yoga gear, but luckily I caught him just in time!
No Abrasive Materials
lululemon products are remarkably durable and long-lasting, but that doesn’t mean they’re invincible. You should never wash with abrasive materials or fabrics like Velcro, heavy zippers, or denim. These may rip or degrade the fabric and leave you pretty upset with whoever did the laundry (sorry babe!)
It’s best to always keep “like with like”. Turn your Lulu gear inside out and wash it separately with other workout gear and synthetic fabrics like Luxtreme and Nulu.
No Fabric Softeners
You should also avoid using fabric softeners on sweat-wicking yoga gear. Fabric softening laundry products will actually harm the technical fabrics of your Lulu gear and limit the moisture-wicking capability. No fabric softeners will paradoxically yield softer fabrics. Funny how that works!
If you forget this guideline and accidentally use fabric softener, don’t worry! Your gear isn’t totally ruined. The best course of action is to wash the items again without fabric softener and they should go back to the normal sweat-wicking levels once the softener is cleaned off.
Avoid Mixing with Cotton
Keep Lulu gear separate from towels, hoodies, and cotton leggings. If you have any of lululemon’s products made of Luon® fabric (such as the Define Jacket, Cool Racerback Tank Top, Men’s Discipline Pant, and others), you’ll definitely want to avoid washing it with cotton. Although this fabric is designed to be cotton-like and soft, it is a special sweat-wicking stretchy fabric that attracts fluff. Washing with cotton (especially towels) may result in a lint mess on your Luon® gear.
When in Doubt, Cold Wash Air Dry
The best bet for most of lululemon clothes is simply machine washing in cold water or a delicate cycle and then laying flat to dry. This is the best way to preserve the lifespan of stretchy LYCRA® fibers and help hold the perfect shape of your workout gear.
Less Detergent is Better
Lulu fabric researchers have found that the least amount of detergent possible tends to be best for the majority of their products. Using a gentle, natural laundry soap will ensure that you don’t damage the fibers or affect the sweat-wicking and water-repelling properties of the clothes. I prefer ECOS hypoallergenic laundry detergent or Whole Foods Market organic laundry detergent.
Preserving Bright Colors
Any bright-colored leggings or outfits should be washed alone before wearing them. This will help prevent any discoloration or bleeding dyes from the factory. After the first wash, you can keep washing bright-colored gear with other similar colors. Just keep them away from other fabrics when wet in order to prevent fading or discoloration.
Can you dry lululemon leggings?
lululemon leggings can be put in the dryer as long as it is on the lowest coolest setting. The company recommends hanging or laying flat to dry for best results, but tumble drying on low will not damage their proprietary fabrics in any way. Just be sure you don’t put them on a hot drying cycle.
Lulu’s natural blend and merino wool garments should only be laid flat to dry. Outerwear pieces can be tumble dried on low as long as all zippers and Velcro closures are closed.
lululemon Care for Specific Products
lululemon wash instructions are found on the inner tag of every product they make, but it makes laundry day a lot easier to just group them together. Here’s how you care for specific categories of Lulu clothing:
How to Wash lululemon Pants
Most Lulu pants and leggings are made up of one of their signature synthetic fabrics like Luon® or Nulu™, blended with elastane or spandex. These are all synthetic fibers that can be easily damaged by just tossing them in a hot washing machine.
If you’re wondering how to wash lululemon yoga pants, simply turn them inside out and wash with other synthetic fitness gear on a delicate cold cycle. Lay flat or hang to dry, or tumble dry on low.
Again, you definitely don’t want to wash your lululemon yoga pants or leggings with any clothes that have zippers, Velcro, or abrasive surfaces! Turning them inside out helps to protect the buttery outer coating as well.
How to Wash Align Leggings
The lululemon Align collection is a minimalist approach to athleisure designed to help “distractions just float away”. Most pieces are made of a blend including buttery soft Nulu™, nylon, elastane, and Lycra®.
All Align leggings should be machine washed on cold with like colors and tumble dried on low. Never bleach, iron, or dry clean your Align leggings!
How to Wash lululemon Align Tank
Just like other Align collection pieces, the Align tank is a nylon and elastane fabric blend that needs to be cold-washed with colors. Hang or tumble low to dry.
Remove the Cups
It’s recommended to remove the cups and hand wash them separately with gentle soap in cool or warm water. Lay the cups flat to dry. This helps hold the best shape and support once you put them back into a tank or sports bra.
How to Wash lululemon Shorts
lululemon shorts are usually washed the same as leggings and pants, depending on the material. The tight-fitting compression-style shorts can be turned inside out, cold-cycled, and hang-dried with your leggings. Looser running shorts are a bit more hardy and easily withhold a cool to medium wash cycle and low tumble dry.
How to Clean lululemon Mat
Like most yoga mats, your lululemon mat should only be spot-cleaned with a gentle mat cleanser or damp cloth. It’s recommended to do this after every practice. Always let your mat air dry before rolling it up. Avoid putting the mat in direct sunlight or it will fade and degrade the material. Never soak or drench your mat to wash it.
How to Wash lululemon Headband and Accessories
Most sweaty Lulu accessories should be washed in a delicate bag or lingerie bag on a cold water cycle. This is especially important for slip-free headbands and hair accessories because the oils from your hair can build up and make them less likely to stay in place. Alternatively, you can fill a clean bucket or sink with lukewarm water and a dash of gentle natural soap. Hand agitate and lay flat to dry.
Closing Thoughts
At the end of the day, taking care to wash your Lulu gear isn’t much of a hassle considering how much it extends the lifespan of their products. Once you get addicted like I am, it becomes second nature to toss all your workout gear in a delicate cold wash cycle together. I include other brands of workout gear in there as well, all turned inside out and with similar colors.
Hopefully, this helps ease the burden of your laundry day and keep those fancy leggings flowing with you for many years to come!
Namaste!
Need to know how to get a spot out of my shirt