Cotton and canvas tote bags are flexible, lightweight, and long-lasting. You probably have a few of them sitting around, but you might not be cleaning them as often as you ideally should. After all, these fabrics do get exposed to the elements, as well as to everything that you carry inside them, so it’s worth giving them a wash every now and again to ensure that they don’t get grubby or smelly.

Lucky for you, it’s super easy to wash these tote bags.

Cotton is the easier of the two materials to deal with; after all, you almost certainly wash cotton whenever you do a load of regular clothes. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. For example, you’ll probably want to use a cold water cycle since cotton tote bags are vulnerable to shrinking. If the bag has been dyed, make sure it’s also colourfast before you throw it in the machine.

Once they’re out of the washing machine, resist the urge to put them in the dryer – even the low-heat setting might cause them to shrink. You’ll probably find that the bag looks a little crumpled when it comes out of the washer, so lay it on a flat surface and reshape it with your hands. Make sure not to forget to untwist the straps or handles. If there are still wrinkles after the bag has dried, just go over it with an iron, keeping to a medium setting, to get it looking as good as new.

Canvas isn’t likely to be something you’ve washed before, but you really just need to follow the same directions. Put your canvas in the machine, use a cold-water cycle, and reshape before air-drying. The only thing to be aware of is that fact that your canvas bag will be quite stiff when you take it out of the washing machine. Have no fear, that stiffness will go away as the bag dries.

Now that you know how easy it is to keep your cotton and canvas tote bags in great condition, you’ll have no excuse not to keep yours pristine.