Vicki, that is such a wonderful idea to make a quilt. Have you thought of making it first and then washing it? That is if they are not soiled to badly and just dusty from sitting around.

Yes I thought about washing at the end, but since these fabrics are old, I'd like to see how they will do , shrinkage, fading, rust spots disappearing, etc. first. It is all hand stitched. The centers are what I'd discribe as a circle version of robbing Peter to pay Paul. And one centers is a sheer fabric that will have to be replaced with something else. So there is a bit of prep work involved. I will put them on unbleached muslin, but I have to see if I have enough first because muslin is really hard to match the colors. (unbleached that is). I feel asleep in front of the tv last night and didn't remember to take pictures but will try to do so tonight. Really interesting blocks--they are at least 15" across so will look fine on a 20 inch square or larger, which should go together rather quickly unless I get sidetracked by my other 999 projects! :lol: (or should I say (UFO's) :lol: :lol:

So you are going to sew each block on a piece of muslin, that should
secure them well, I hadn't thought of you doing that, duh :!: :!:
Good idea, Vicki.

i use a old salad spinner i found at a garage sale. washed some old blocks in the sink with teped water and a little soap. then rinsed them and spun them in the salad spinner. they came out just perfect. dried them on towels. works great for when you dye your own fabrics and only want to do a small amount of fabrics or laces.

lisagale

Vicki,
You're a sweetheart. I've always heard that phels naptha soap was OK on old material, hand washed in the tub and hung to dry but I've not tried it yet. I have a completed grandma's flower garden waiting to be cleaned and hoping for the best. Oh, have also heard that Orvus soap works well.

I cant wait to see this Quilt Vicki!! I think you should start stocking up an kleenex now!!!

The vinegar and water solution worked really well on 20 of the 24 blocks. The other 4 are going to need something else. There is one with pale blue in it that may require replacing the pale blue. It is very discolored with age I guess. I may try more vinegar tonight. Three other blocks have dark brown spots on them, some worse than others, and one block needs sturdier fabric for its center. They are definitely an improvement over what I started with. I think I have enough unbleached muslin for the background fabric. I found 5 yards or so in the closet and washed it and threw it in the dryer this mornng before I left for work. I will press the muslin tonight and figure out if that is enough, so that i don't have to hunt for more at the store. I am pretty sure that it won't be enough so I am hoping to be able to match the color at JoAnn's tonight. I hesitate to start before I know about the muslin because I want all the muslin to be the same shade of beige. So I am looking to find another couple f yards, hopefully that will be about the same color. If not then, I will set this aside and just get enough for the whole thing. I washed them before I even thought to take pictures so just bear with me for another day or so. :-)

Juat got this in an email today,


Removing rust:

Sponge lemon juice on the spot and hold over a
steaming kettle

Removing brown age spots:

Soak affected areas in a mixture of 1 quart
buttermilk, 1 tablespoon vinegar, and 1 gallon of water.
Repeat as necessary; rinse thoroughly when finished.

Other rust remedies are:

for white textiles, rub with lemon juice and salt and put fabric in the sun

for washable textiles, boil the fabric in a solution of 4 teaspoons cream of tartar and 1 pint of water

I got mostly all the other stuff out except on one with pale blue fabric. I had to redo it. I had some of what looks like the same fabric so I replaced it in that block. I am definietely going to try these remedies for getting the rust out. Thanks!