Cleaning Vintage Quilts and Linens

Did you know the combination of chlorophyll and sunshine will brighten fabrics?

There are many ways to clean fabric, new and old, but this is my method in the YouTube video below, that I’ve used for years without fail. Now, I will tell you to be extra vigilant about watching fabrics that might bleed, like reds, dark colors, blacks, etc. I would always toss in a few Color Catchers (found in your laundry aisle) and if you see dyes begin to come out in the water, stop your cleaning, rinse well and do not repeat. There are just some fabrics that cannot be cleaned in water. You can always put it out on a green lawn in the sunshine to whiten and freshen.

The beginning of an old fabric soak may scare you, but not to worry, this is a good thing! I usually let this first soaking go about an hour or two. Then I will repeat, with the same detergent amounts and soak again. It may take 2 or 3 soakings for your water to run clear. 100 years of embedded grime and maybe nicotine, will definitely show in the water! You can find Retro Clean in this link on Amazon.

First soaking of a quilt and the backing in the bathtub, YUCK!

The before picture (below) of the quilt top doesn’t look too bad, but once it’s in the water, the story is told!

Before soaking, no real visible dirt or smell.

After this quilt top had been soaked twice, then placed in the sunshine for an afternoon, the colors absolutely changed and were brighter! I plan to quilt this with a simple edge-to-edge design on my longarm soon. Looking forward to it finally becoming a usable quilt! YES, these are all feedsacks from the 1930’s!! Fabulous, isn’t it?

Fresh, clean and BRIGHT! Ready for quilting!