First, see if you can vacuum them using a hand held to get some of the fur off. Then I would sort it by size. I think I would start with the yardage and wash that in the washer, then gradually move down to the smaller sizes. You said that there was too much to wash by hand, but if you loaded up a mesh bag & swished it around by hand in your laundry tub, that might work. Several folks have mentioned spinning the wet fabric in a salad spinner. I had a disaster with fat quarters and my old washer. I got a front loader about a year ago and I can wash smaller sizes in a bag in there. Ask around to see if anyone you know has a front loader that would let you try a mesh bag of charms in their washer. good luck!