Hand embroidery fails in three ways. The thread pulls. The dye moves. The heat kills it.
All three are avoidable. All three usually happen in the first wash.
The short version
Cold water. Inside out. No bleach. Lay flat to dry. Iron on the reverse, never across the stitching.
If you remember one line, remember that one.
Why inside out matters most
A washing machine is an abrasion machine. Garments rub against each other and against the drum, and raised embroidery takes the worst of it — the stitching stands proud of the cloth, so it makes contact first. Turned inside out, the flat face of the garment takes the friction and the stitching rides protected underneath.
This single step does more than any detergent choice.
Cold water, and what heat actually does
Heat is the fastest way to ruin a hand-finished piece. It shrinks the base cloth, and the embroidery thread does not shrink at the same rate. The result is puckering around the stitch — the fabric draws in, the thread does not, and the panel warps. It cannot be pressed back out.
Wash cold. Skip the dryer entirely. Heavy fleece at 260 to 300 GSM holds water, so give it time — flat, out of direct sun, reshaped while damp.
Natural dye moves. That is not a defect.
Indigo and other natural dyes release colour in early washes. This is the dye behaving as dye, not the garment failing.
Two rules follow. Wash a dark or indigo piece separately on its first wear. And never leave it sitting wet in a pile — colour transfers between damp layers in a way it never does when dry.
Over time indigo lightens at the wear points and deepens elsewhere. That is the intended arc. It is why the cloth is worth owning.
Detergent and bleach
Skip bleach, including the oxygen kind sold as colour-safe. It attacks dye and weakens thread at the same time.
Avoid detergents with added brighteners on anything undyed or ivory — they build a cast over time. A plain, mild liquid detergent is enough. Fabric softener coats fibres and dulls raised stitching; leave it out.
Ironing and pressing
Turn the garment inside out and press from the reverse. Direct heat on the face of an embroidered panel flattens the stitch and can gloss the thread permanently.
If you need to press the front, lay a cotton cloth between the iron and the garment, and keep the iron moving. Never press a printed or patched panel directly.
Storage
Fold heavy knitwear and fleece — do not hang it. Hangers pull the shoulders out of shape under the weight of 260 GSM cloth and heavier. Tanks and tees fold flat. Keep everything out of direct light; sun fades dye faster than washing does.
If a stitch pulls
Do not cut it. A pulled loop can usually be eased back through to the reverse with a blunt needle. Cutting turns one loose stitch into an unravelling line.
Per-fabric detail
Our care guide lists the specific instruction for each weight in the collection — 200 GSM combed cotton through to the 300 GSM brushed fleece trouser. Every product page carries its own care line as well.
If you are deciding on fit before you buy, the size guide carries real production measurements to the half inch, not converted estimates.
Browse the collection: FUKRA — Collection I.