The Cleaning Clothes (vintage or other) Thread

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

New one ladies: getting cooking oil out of silk. Any suggestions?

 

[KittyT]

New one ladies: getting cooking oil out of silk. Any suggestions?

Dry cleaning?

Next time wear an apron. I learned that one the hard way.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

Dry cleaning?

Next time wear an apron. I learned that one the hard way.

I got some of it out with Woolite, but not all. I softened a vegan butter spread so I could bake some cookies, and when I put the wooden spoon into it it squirted out on me! Ew.

 

[Mary]

Half a year later, I finally wet the dress and I'll worked out fine. Thanks Kitty T and Smuterella! This is my lucky day.

 

[laurakitty]

This is definitely the most useful thread ever!

 

[MissJeanavive]

Grease Stain: Satin Gown - Help?

Hey there ladies, so I went to a dinner dance and managed to get some sort of stain on my satin gown - I am guessing grease from dinner. Took it to the dry cleaner and they had no luck. One of my favorite gowns...let me know if you have any suggestions.

 

[Odalisque]

I looked around online and found this info:

Cleaning Satin.—Satin of good quality may be cleaned very satisfactorily. Make a weak solution of borax by dissolving 1 tablespoonful of powdered borax in 1 quart of water. Stretch the satin on top of the ironing board or the work table and sponge it lightly, dipping the sponge into the borax solution and rubbing always with the grain of the satin and not across it. When the satin has dried, iron it on the wrong side only.

This process is excellent for cleaning, but will not restore the color. If there are grease spots on the satin, they should be removed by a stain remover or an absorbent previous to sponging.

You might also want to try this thread http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=16552&highlight=cleaning

The dress is gorgeous by the way. Good luck

 

[Lady Day]

Also this thread may help.

So much fun with a search

LD

 

[deco_darling]

Does anyone have much experience with dying vintage rayon clothing? I successfully dyed a black 1940s blouse a year ago with a dye called RIT which you can get at any local market. It came out pretty well and i've had no problems. It took me many tries for several hours but I mainly dipped the dye in the underarm fading mostly. Can anyone recommend a better solution or a better dye brand? Perhaps share the same experience? I don't usually buy vintage clothes with perspiration stains but I bought this on ebay and didn't think it would be that bad.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

STUPID QUESTION ALERT!!!

How does one spot test OxyClean? I need to clean a dress I just got a Goodwill, cotton with an all over pattern.

 

[MissAmelina]

B.O. Nightmare

I purchased a "no returns" 1950's multi-colored blue chiffon dress from ebay for about 30 bucks---the seller said it was in excellent condition. I tried it on briefly and gave her a positive rating.

Jump ahead one week-- I decided to air the dress outside as it had a little mustiness to it, and after a few minutes in the sun, a RANK scent of body odor permeated the yard. It really stunk. Seriously.
The dry cleaners told me that dry cleaning will not remove armpit odor and that i would need to wash it by hand.
So I washed it in warm water and mild soap...the water turned blue, but the pattern is such that you cannot tell the colors bled.

I sprayed it with some garment odor spray and left it to dry in the sun. And it still stinks. Only now the whole dress smells like fabric freshener and B.O.

I read in the thread that I should try spraying it with vodka.
Should I just burn it instead?

 

[Miss 1929]

Hey there ladies, so I went to a dinner dance and managed to get some sort of stain on my satin gown - I am guessing grease from dinner. Took it to the dry cleaner and they had no luck. One of my favorite gowns...let me know if you have any suggestions.

Ah, the stuff that can get on you at Mr. Rick's Martini Club!
Which drycleaners? When all else fails, go to Virginia Cleaners, Shattuck and Virginia in North Berkeley. They specialize in antique and vintage fabrics - they do all the textiles for the University's collection! I have had great luck with them.

And Miss Amelina, yes, do the vodka thing! It really works!
And if it doesn't you can drown your sorrows in the leftover.
Plain vodka, not flavoured!

 

[Mary]

I've never heard of the vodkasprayingmethod. What I would do is wash it again with some softener. I think the softener puts a new coat on the fabric and capsulates all bad smell. Then I would hang it outside for some days. And before I would wear it in public I'd dance in the to see that it doesn't smell whan I sweat a little.

M

I purchased a "no returns" 1950's multi-colored blue chiffon dress from ebay for about 30 bucks---the seller said it was in excellent condition. I tried it on briefly and gave her a positive rating.

Jump ahead one week-- I decided to air the dress outside as it had a little mustiness to it, and after a few minutes in the sun, a RANK scent of body odor permeated the yard. It really stunk. Seriously.
The dry cleaners told me that dry cleaning will not remove armpit odor and that i would need to wash it by hand.
So I washed it in warm water and mild soap...the water turned blue, but the pattern is such that you cannot tell the colors bled.

I sprayed it with some garment odor spray and left it to dry in the sun. And it still stinks. Only now the whole dress smells like fabric freshener and B.O.

I read in the thread that I should try spraying it with vodka.
Should I just burn it instead?

 

[Miss 1929]

I know I have posted this before...

Does anyone have much experience with dying vintage rayon clothing? I successfully dyed a black 1940s blouse a year ago with a dye called RIT which you can get at any local market. It came out pretty well and i've had no problems. It took me many tries for several hours but I mainly dipped the dye in the underarm fading mostly. Can anyone recommend a better solution or a better dye brand? Perhaps share the same experience? I don't usually buy vintage clothes with perspiration stains but I bought this on ebay and didn't think it would be that bad.

Most vintage clothing can be spray-dyed with RIT if it is not a thing that can be washed. Many vintage rayons, especially the crepes, will shrink like hell and be ruined if you get them wet. So, you put rubbing alcohol and RIT in a spray bottle, and OUTSIDE, spray lightly, let it dry, repeat until it looks even (letting it dry between each coat so you can see the result), and then put it in a plastic bag and take it to be dry cleaned. DO NOT TELL THE DRY CLEANERS what you did, just get it cleaned. If you tell them thry will not take it - they say it will mess up their equipment but that's nonsense. The dry cleaning will remove the excess and set the dye.

Any powder dye will probably do trick, but I have always been happy with RIT. And it's a vintage brand!

 

[Warbaby]

Rust stains on white linen?

I recently acquired two pairs of 1920s white linen plus fours. The fabric is in great condition - in fact, one pair seems to be essentially unworn. However, there are a few spots of rust stains or foxing that I'd like to remove. I read through all the posts in this thread and while Oxyclean seems to be the cleaning method of choice, there was also a mention of treating the spots with lemon juice and/or a paste of cream of tartar. I was thinking of trying both methods but I'm wondering which method to do first. Any other suggestions for dealing with rust spots on linen?

BTW - Cream of Tartar is potassium bitartrate and is an excellent cleaner for antique silver. When I was working as a restorer at the MMA, it was the cleaner of choice for silver because it doesn't polish it and make it shiny - just removes the tarnish and dulling. Make a paste with water and rub gently with a cloth. It's not instant, but works slowly so you have complete control of the degree of cleaning.

 

[J.J. Gittes]

Ok, I know this is the Powder Room, but Ladies I have a question needing an answer.
I have a vintage Rayon shirt, with a ink stain on it from an exploded pen. I heard that Oxyclean does a good job with taking away stains of this type. I've tried other "Ink Removal" products but nothing removed it fully, including dry-cleaning. Will Oxyclean damage it? Any Suggestions?

 

[Paisley]

Alcohol. Try it on an inconspicuous place first.

 

[Miss Sis]

I recently acquired two pairs of 1920s white linen plus fours. The fabric is in great condition - in fact, one pair seems to be essentially unworn. However, there are a few spots of rust stains or foxing that I'd like to remove. I read through all the posts in this thread and while Oxyclean seems to be the cleaning method of choice, there was also a mention of treating the spots with lemon juice and/or a paste of cream of tartar. I was thinking of trying both methods but I'm wondering which method to do first. Any other suggestions for dealing with rust spots on linen.

I don't think Oxyclean will remove rust marks, but you can but try! I've never had any luck with that sort of thing. Lemon juice and sunshine is my prefered method. You may have to do it a number of times to lighten the marks, but being white linen, you shouldn't have any problems there at all.

I'm not up on the Cream of Tartar method but again, can't see it doing any harm at all.

 

[Miss Sis]

Ok, I know this is the Powder Room, but Ladies I have a question needing an answer.
I have a vintage Rayon shirt, with a ink stain on it from an exploded pen. I heard that Oxyclean does a good job with taking away stains of this type. I've tried other "Ink Removal" products but nothing removed it fully, including dry-cleaning. Will Oxyclean damage it? Any Suggestions?

Not sure if the dry cleaning will have set the stain now, but try soaking the stained area in a bowl of full fat milk for a good while, then rinse well in cold water before washing again. Saw this tip on a programme about Victorian life and it worked there.

 

[Inky]

I recently purchased a style of dress I have wanted for such a long time - a 50's patio squaw dress! it's cotton with a pretty good amount of silver rick-rack and trim on the yoke and tiered skirt. There are, of course, no washing instructions. I'm just happy it has the cotton content/size paper label!

anywho - it needs a laundering - i'm too afraid to send it to the cleaners with all that silver metallic trim - but also afraid to hand wash it - any tips? suggestions? or should i just air it out and spot clean the couple of areas that have some white powdery bits on the hem?