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Laundry symbols look like another language, but the washing instruction symbols on the care labels of our garments tell us exactly how to wash and dry the laundry, as well as providing additional information about bleaching and ironing. Read on for our quick guide to what the symbols mean, or download and print your own laundry symbol chart for reference when you see a symbol you don't recognize.
The appropriate temperature and washing cycle are important for achieving excellent washing results, and can even prevent damage to our clothes. The laundry symbols below can give you an idea of the temperature, indicated by the number of dots in the water tub symbol, while the different cycle types are represented by the tub with one or two lines below it.
Washing cycle symbols 
Drying is an important part of the garment care process, but we've all heard those horror stories about cashmere sweaters coming out of the wash three sizes smaller.
Knowing the symbols of our tumble dryer, such as the square with a circle in the middle that indicates the permitted tumble drying, can help to avoid putting the wrong clothes in the tumble dryer. Other symbols can give us additional information, such as a square with a horizontal line in the middle means that you should dry the item flat or an crossed out twisted symbol, which tells us not to wring the clothes. The temperature is given by increasing the number of points within the circle.
If you want to use bleach, you'll want to look at the fabric care label on the garment to determine if there is a bleach symbol, given by a triangle, or, more importantly, a do not bleach symbol, by a crossed out triangle. Recognizing these signs can save our clothes from permanent damage from chlorine bleach.
Some fabrics look great after ironing, but others, such as more delicate materials, can be damaged. There are even some fabrics that simply require special attention when ironing.
For example, if you want to iron your new shirt and want to know if it is safe to iron, look for the iron symbol on the garment, represented by a small iron symbol with dots in the middle to indicate the temperature setting, like the ones shown below.
Don't let the laundry symbols confuse you. Get this printable guide to laundry symbols and keep it handy the next time you do laundry. Once you download this laundry symbols pdf, you'll be a pro when it comes to laundry. Download now
Get the best out of your laundry with a little help from Ewla, and if you need more detailed information, visit our comprehensive guide on how to do laundry in our blog and join the exchange of ideas .
