Antique Finest

Posted in Garden Antiques on 06/12/2010 12:10 am by admin

How do I clean my antique linens?

I have a pile of antique doilies/dresser scarves, some are linen, some have a finer weave, most are embroidered, some are trimmed in crocheted lace. All of them are yellowed (which doesn't bother me so much, they're freaking old), some have stains, all of them are permanently creased because they've been folded so long, but they APPEAR structurally sound. What is the safest way to clean these poor things without damaging the main fabric or loosening the stitching in the embroidery/crochet?

Take one that you don't care about very much, and then try and see how well they are really. They could just feel good because of the starch and retaining position for so long.

Dry cleaning is a great idea. I would reccomend it, but if that's too expensive for you, get a mild cleaner like Woolite, and then just let them soak in a utility sink, an unused bathroom sink, or even a bucket or pot. Then carefully lay them out to dry. Laying them out to dry in the sun, and putting a little bit of lemon juice on the yellow spots would take care of the yellowing. But if you live in an apartment, or somewhere that has restrictions not allowing you to do such, then just put it on top of the dryer and let it air dry all day one day.