What happens if I tumble dry clothes that say (on the tags) they should be flat/line dried?

Question

What happens if I tumble dry clothes that say (on the tags) they should be flat/line dried?

Answer 1

They may shrink, depending on the material.  Rayon is notorious for this.  If they get stiff when you dry them flat, you could try tumbling on low/gentle for just a few minutes and flat dry the rest of the time.

Answer 2

They would shrink or go funny in another way.

Answer 3

sometimes nothing will happen,

but sometimes they'll shrink and sometimes they'll stretch....and sometimes parts will shrink while others stretch.

all depends on what their fiber content is and how they're constructed

Answer 4

Most often they will shrink and/or frayor pill  the fabric.  If it is silk it will harden the fabric. If it is a sweater it may come out the size of a toddler.  It will also fade the color.

Answer 5

Most likely they will shrink, but not always uniformly.  You could end up with a crooked hemline or one sleeve shorter than the other.

Answer 6

they will probably shrink

Answer 7

Sometimes I throw my clothes in the dryer ( that say line dry ) but I only leave them in for about 10 minutes and let the rest finish air drying.  

Also - it should not matter if you have an option to do air fluff, or something similar.  As those options do not use any heat, just air.

Thanks for reading!