I just got a smartwool long sleeve microweight baselayer from REI, and I am completely obsessed with it. It is miraculous. Most importantly -- it doesn't seem to hold onto odor at ALL! I wore it around the house Saturday, and then Sunday I wore it during a PR effort up a local hill and definitely sweat in it, so I tossed it in the hamper. This morning I pulled it out of the hamper and it seemed fine, so I wore it on my bike commute in today. I sweated because I was overdressed, but I hung it up to dry and now it still seems completely....clean.

So, what's the deal with caring for smartwool? Should I just not wash it until there *is* an odor? Or will putting off washing it eventually result in an odor that can't be conquered? At what point does not washing it make me a disgusting human being?

While I might not often wash my work pants, I am used to my cycling gear only being used once between washings (except for like, leg warmers and jackets). But the smartwool was super expensive, SEEMS clean after 3 days of wear, and I want it to last forever!! I know smartwool is machine washable but I still assume that will shorten its lifespan.