How To Clean Stuffed Animals

It almost goes without saying that sometimes you just have to wash a plush toy. Sometimes plush toys live a rough life. They may experience a case of the stomach flu, they may be dusty from being on a shelf and unloved or they may have experienced too much love. They may have had the unfortunate experience of coming in touch with lice or other critters or they may need to be kept very clean for children with allergies and asthma. That’s a short list, I am sure you can think of more reasons you need to wash your plush toys.

Can You Wash Plush Toys?

Yes, you can but proceed with caution and consider the following:

I would NOT wash an extremely valuable item, a very old one, an item that my child cannot live without or an item that is damaged or coming apart in anyway.

A child I know cherished a bear called Mr. Bear and Mr. Bear is still treasured but no longer slept with. Mr. Bear would dearly love to hop in the washer but he is literally falling apart and he would come out in tiny bits so there is no way that Mr. Bear is ever going to be washed in the laundry machine again. As a matter of fact, he is so beloved and in such rough condition, that he will spend the rest of his days tucked safely in a shoe box in the closet.

In the case of a stuffed animal that your child cannot live without, I recommend buying another identical one and putting it aside. Preparing in this way will save a lot of grief if you lose the treasured item and will also give you another one as a back up if your child wears out the first one. In the case of Mr. Bear, we had two additional bears. One was identical and one was smaller. When we used them, our son was old enough to know the difference but he still loved them and they helped the precious Mr. Bear survive a bit longer.

I would also not wash items that have clothes or parts made of non-plush fabrics that seem a bit like plastic and that are pretending to be suede or leather, unless those elements can be removed. They do not stand up to washing and in my experience, shred. The outfit and eye apparatus seen on this Star Trek Borg plush teddy bear would not wash well.

Read the care instructions. Although I do not always follow the instructions, they are a good place to start. Most manufacturers recommend surface washing only with mild soap and a damp cloth. You can certainly try that with your plush toys but sometimes a stuffed animal just needs more cleaning than that and you might be happy to know that many soft toys may survive machine washing and will stand up to a trip through the washer.

If your stuffed animal includes excelsior, styrene foam or any foam material, they cannot be washed.

If a stuffed animal has joints or cardboard, it cannot be washed in the washer.

If it is musical or talks, it cannot be washed unless the music box is removable. I have not washed this gorgeous Mattel's I Talk Tigger. They are simply precious when hugged and, of course, the talking boxes would not stand up to being washed.

I have not tried to wash a Beanie Babies yet but have read that items stuffed with small foam balls in them cannot be washed.

Large animals can be washed but the filling may shift. I have not had that happen to any plush toy I washed and have had considerable success with large stuffed animals like an 80-inch long Innovage centipede, a 22-inch My First Puppy by Russ and a Disney Store Ojo plush bear from the Big Blue House.

If your plush has hard plastic elements, like the ping pong ball shaped eyes that sometimes appear on Sesame Street's Elmo, consider placing the toy in a pillowcase, which may help protect the plastic parts. This is not 100 percent foolproof but if it does not work totally, it should minimize the damage of the washing machine and the dryer.

If you can, use a delicate cycle on your washing machine. I use regular laundry detergent though I have read that fabric softener can also be used for plush and that it will make the plush extra soft.

I use hot water when I want to be sure a stuffed animal is clean but I have read that hot water can weaken the glue that holds items like eyes in place so be aware.

Can You Dry A Soft Animal?

Once again the answer is yes, sort of. Some stuffed animals dry well, more likely if their plush is short. Fluffy plush tends to change texture in the dryer. In any case, I find air drying a safer method because there is no heat to possibly melt or alter the fur. I actually have an air dry cycle on my dryer, which I use very successfully. The soft fluffy mane on the Gund Lion ‘Casey’ shown above responded extremely well to air drying but I know from another experience less successful experience that his soft and fluffy mane would have been destroyed by the heat of a dryer.

Sometimes toys that have been washed loose their new look and, of course, the more you wash them, the more that look will fade. However, I have washed many soft toys that came out of the process looking better than when they went in and, in any case, at least they will look clean!

Be sure to check out the large selection of new, used and vintage stuffed animals in my eBay store. You never know what plush treasures I might have in store for you!

You never know 

what PLUSH TOYS

I might have in store for you!
Brenda

Stuffed Animals I Have Had Success Washing in My Washing Machine Recently:

• Canada Post Blue Teddy Bear
• Curious George with Fleece Blanket
• Disney Store Heffalump Small Lumpy
• Disney Store The Aristocats Marie
• Disney Store Mickey & Minnie
• Disney Store Ojo
• Disney Store Winnie the Pooh
• Dream Works Shrek 26"
• Dundee Long-Furred Rabbit
• Earthrite Fiber Rabbit
• Ganz Wrinkles Dogs
• Gund Bubbles Teddy Bear
• Gund Casey Lion
• Gund People's Diamond Store Teddy Bear
• Gund Sandra Boynton Reindeer, Dasher and Dancer
• Innovage Centipede
• Ottawa Senators Plush Lion Mascot
• Piccolo Bambino 16" Blue Puppy Dog