polyester viscose pilling

[California Highlander]

Hello friends,
I spent a few days at the TX ren fest in a polyester viscose kilt. I had to wash it when I got home, so I hand washed in the tub with a little detergent. Cool warm wash, cold rinse, hang dry. I noticed some pilling on the outside apron. Close to the fringe, above where my right knee would be. Nothing was rubbing it. My sporran wasn't that low.... So guys: what probably caused it, and what can I do about it? I'm not sure if it was there before the wash, or after. Also, for the leather straps, I used some saddle soap on them while they were wet to replace some of the oils lost / keep them from drying out. Was that a good idea or bad idea? Thanks!

I've washed my inexpensive PV (actually poly acetate) kilts and they do have some pilling, but this is after a lot of wear. One I wear frequently for yard work and it's seen the most wear and the most washes. But pilling is not terrible. These are the kilts you'd get off eBay and not Marton Mills PV.

Saddle soap, not sure. I use baseball glove oil.

[corbmonster]

Thanks for the tip on the oil. I bet that would condition it better.

[The Wizard of BC]

Can you tell us please who made your kilt? Alternately where did you buy it? Are there any labels inside the kilt?

Just trying to determine the actual fiber content to better advise you.

[auld argonian]

Seconding Steve's question. Sounds like the fabric is't PV because PV doesn't seem very prone to pilling. We've seen kilts that are actually made of Acrylic, which is prone to pilling, erroneously called Poly Viscose here several times in the past…there was a long standing question about "16 oz. PV" floating around the forum for a while and it was pretty well settled that what was being referred to as 16 oz PV was actually Acrylic. The PV material that I have has a finish more like worsted wool while the acrylic has a more fuzzy texture.

Best,

AA