To shrink clothes, the most common and effective method is to wash the garment in hot water and immediately dry it on a high heat setting in the dryer. This works well especially for fabrics like cotton, wool, and denim. The heat from both washing and drying causes the fibers to contract, shrinking the garment. For cotton clothes, soak and wash in hot water (10-15 minutes), then tumble dry on high heat until fully dry. Wool requires more care with lukewarm water and gentle agitation to avoid felting, followed by air drying or low heat drying. Denim similarly responds to soaking in hot water, washing in hot water, and drying with high heat. Synthetic fabrics like polyester also shrink with hot water washing and high heat drying but with caution not to damage the fabric. Delicate fabrics like silk should be shrunk carefully with low heat and gentle handling, such as soaking in lukewarm water and low heat ironing. Here are general steps to shrink clothes by fabric type:

• Cotton: Hot water wash, then high heat dryer.
• Wool: Lukewarm water soak with conditioner, gentle agitation, then air dry or low heat.
• Denim: Hot water soak and wash, high heat dryer.
• Polyester: Hot water wash and high heat dry, repeat if needed.
• Silk: Cold water wash, lukewarm soak, towel dry, low heat iron.

Always check the garment care label before attempting to shrink, as some fabrics can be damaged by heat or agitation. Repeat the process if more shrinkage is needed.